Out and About: The more things change. . .

Under the. . . High Line

When I arrived in Manhattan more decades ago than I care to remember, the word on Chelsea was that the neighborhood was on the cusp of change.

One of the more celebrated residents at the time was Anthony Perkins, if memory serves, plus short and long-term occupants of the Hotel Chelsea, including the late composer Virgil Thomson.

Decade after decade, the mantra about the neighborhood was this: It’s going to change.  Finally, like a broken clock, Chelsea did undergo its transition from seedy to select.

The market, not the seller, dictates price

Eighteen offers on a single property ought to be all the proof anyone needs that the market is king when it comes to valuation.

Shown above, a Tribeca loft received the offers in a mere week, one of which already has been accepted. With two bedrooms and baths, the third-floor condo was listed at $1.375 million this month with 1,305 square feet, or 1,054 per square foot.

The asking price per square foot is

Luxury condo heads to foreclosure auction

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Graphic from curbed.com showing views from 121 W. 19th St. condo.

Listed in January 2007 for $3.95 million, an unsold penthouse at 121 W. 19th St. faces a foreclosure sale on July 28, according to curbed.com and propertyshark.com.

The condo is either 1,906 square feet (propertyshark) or 2,071 (the old listing for PH-E).  With $209,298 of assessed value and a lien of $3,237,096, the loft was last listed for $3.7 million until it was taken of the market in March of last year.

There is only one right time to buy

The Frank/Patterson's new penthouse apartment with huge skylights.

In an uncertain market, the question on every buyer’s mind is whether it is the right time to get off the fence.

One buyer recently answered that question in an e-mail quoted by the Observer.  His response is worth noting in part because of the credentials that he and his wife possess.

Robert Frank is the wealth reporter for the Wall Street Journal and author of the best-selling book, Richistan: A Journey Through the American Wealth Boom and the Lives of the New Rich.  His wife is Rebecca Patterson,  global head of foreign exchange at JPMorgan Private Bank.

Smart people, right? They recently spent $4.2 million on a penthouse loft at 73 Fifth Avenue.  Here’s why