Halstead Property

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

Neighbors Are Key

Would-be buyers want to know who'll share luxury digs

By PHYLLIS FURMAN

DAILY NEWS BUSINESS WRITER 
  

Big question for Plaza: who are the buyers? 
 
The fabled Plaza Hotel, now reborn as a super expensive, luxury condo, is getting the once over from would-be buyers. But it's not just the fancy amenities they want to know about.

Every time Richard Ferrari of Prudential Douglas Elliman, takes a customer to the famous Fifth Avenue landmark, he hears the same questions.

"Everyone wants to know who's bought there," Ferrari said. "They ask: 'Are they Wall Street?' 'Are they big-name celebrities?' 'Are they Europeans?'"

Forget about couture kitchens, swimming pools and screening rooms. Now more than ever, who will be sharing the roof is at the top of the list when it comes to getting an apartment.

New Yorkers have always been nosy about the neighbors. But the search for the "right building" with the "right people" has gotten more intense as the cost of real estate has sky-rocketed.

It's especially true at the high end, where buying an apartment "isn't just the space, it's the vibe," said Rob Gross, senior vice president at Prudential Douglas Elliman's downtown office.

A sighting of what appeared to be Elle MacPherson at the sales offices of chic new condo 20 Pine Street has would-be buyers asking questions about the supermodel, said Michael Shvo, whose company Shvo is the exclusive marketing agent for the building.

MacPherson's manager told the Daily News, "Elle is not looking for additional property in New York."

But buyers aren't just inquiring about bold-faced names. "Single guys want to know if there are other single people," living in a building, Shvo said. "Women are more celebrity," focused, he said.

Knowing whose names are on the mail boxes gives some buyers confidence that they are making the right decision.

"It's like a fashion trend," said Daniela Kunen, managing director of residential sales for Prudential Douglas Elliman. "You know how women need to be told what to buy? If someone knows the next- door neighbor is highly successful, it underwrites the decision."

On the flip side, Kunen has seen buyers walk away from a building when they learned something unsavory about a resident. "I saw a deal fall through where someone who lived in the building was convicted of securities fraud," she said. "The buyer was at a competing Wall Street firm and said 'I won't live in his building.'"

Some actually want to make sure a building does not house a lot of prominent people.

"I had a buyer in the Forbes 500, who actually wanted a second-tier building," said Halstead broker Brian Lewis. "They were worried about people knowing where they live."

But how much information nosy buyers can learn depends on the willingness of brokers to dish, as well as how much they can dig up on their own.

Exclusive marketing agents for new condo projects are expected to be discreet, to a degree.

Wilbur Gonzalez, senior sales director at The Sunshine Group, the exclusive marketer for Andre Balazs' 40 Mercer Residences, said he will talk about who's already bought in a building only "if you are about to make an offer."

"It depends on the stage of the process," Gonzalez said. "They would have to be so into the process."

But others eager to stoke a sale are way more chatty. One broker admitted that he floated the name of a TV celebrity, to help seal a deal at a new condo project. The fact that the celeb was a famous TV personality — and renovation guru — added an extra halo to the building.

The identities of condo buyers are made public in property tax records, but only after title has changed hands. Information regarding co-op buyers is not publicly available.

For basic information on whether there are troublesome neighbors in a co-op, it's worth reading board minutes and having a real estate lawyer interview the building's managing agent, said real estate attorney Ken Gardner.

But the best resources are doormen and brokers. While some may be reticent, in general, "brokers love to gossip," Gross said. "People talk about sex — and who lives where."

Monday, June 12, 2006