Halstead Property

Brian Lewis
Exec. Vice President
Westside Office
Tel: (212) 381-2252
blewis@halstead.com

Triple Assesment

Many people though this building–he former New York Cancer Hospital at 105th and Central Park West, plus the adjoining tower–would never be finished. Now it’s a showplace–but will buyers pay top dollar? Our panel says not everyone’s ready to spend that much money so far uptown. Then again, the apartment right above it did just fetch $2.8 million.

Catherine Holmes, Barak Realty: “From the moment you arrive at the circular driveway, you feel this is someplace special,” says Holmes, who admires the park views. The layout’s a little challenging, however: “That one bedroom with the angled window is a nightmare to decorate.” Her assessment: $2.395 million.

Lisa Lippman, Brown Harris Stevens: “This location isn’t supersafe nor superconvenient,” she says, noting that it’s pretty far from the prime West Side. “Your price has to reflect that.” Besides, “it’s a tough apartment to sell vacant. Rooms look smaller without furniture.” Lippman predicts it could fetch $200,000 more if the owner staged the space with posh furniture. Her assessment: $2.1 million.

Brian Lewis, Halstead: “You have a ‘wow’ building with ‘wow’ services with only ‘upscale suburban’ finishes. For this level of pricing, you want a Viking, Sub-Zero, and Bosch in the kitchen,” he says. “But at the end of the day, it’s the location. Up here, it’s all about west of Broadway.” His assessment: $2.295 million.

Monday, November 28, 2005