Open House Agenda: Five Apartments to See This Weekend
By Donna M. Airoldi on February 28, 2014 7:40am
The kitchen and dining area of the floor-through in the townhouse at 186 E. 111th St., Apt. 1, in East Harlem. This two-bedroom is listed for $500,000.
NEW YORK — Luxury apartments may make nice eye candy, but budget-conscious buyers need practical spaces that represent a good deal as well as a good investment, like these five apartments.
33-35 81st St., Apt. 6D, Jackson Heights, Queens
1 Bedroom/1 Bath
Co-op
Approximately 650 square feet
$177,500
Maintenance: $574 per month
Open House: Sunday, March 2, 1 to 2:30 p.m.
Lowdown: Many apartments in Jackson Heights offer good value, but this one-bedroom has the added bonus of being a top-floor corner unit with “amazing light” from eastern and northern exposures and “views to the Bronx and Westchester,” said Armen Meschian of Exit Realty.
Prior owners updated the galley kitchen, and though the bathroom is original to the apartment, it’s been kept in “good shape.” The entire building has new windows, and there is no wait list for a $165-per-month parking space in the building’s garage.
When a deal for the unit fell through, the seller and brokers reassessed the market, “saw an uptick and movement,” and increased the price by $13,000, Meschian said.
Location: The Donner Gardens Co-op, developed in the early 1950s, is on the border of the Jackson Heights Historic District. Unit 6D overlooks The Towers, the famous 1924 garden-apartment complex where Charlie Chaplin, Alfred Hitchcock and other Hollywood royalty once lived.
Plenty of ethnic shops and restaurants are nearby, including the new “Arepa Lady” store at 77th Street and Roosevelt Avenue. At 78th Street is the Jackson Heights Green Market. The 7 train is 3.5 blocks away at Roosevelt and 82nd; the QM22 express bus is at 82nd and 31st Avenue.
Why put it on your open house calendar? Prices for apartments in Jackson Heights are only going up and sales are happening quickly. “Last weekend, we listed and sold two apartments, including a one-bedroom for $318,000,” Meschian said.