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Eder D.
  • New to Real Estate
  • New York, NY
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Investing In New York City (Upper East Side - Yorkville)

Eder D.
  • New to Real Estate
  • New York, NY
Posted Jun 8 2022, 07:12

Hi, I'm new to real estate investing and I've been reading the Rental Property Investing book by Brandon Turner. That book is why I am here today asking this question. In the book he always talks about looking for a great deal and I was wondering if getting a condo in Yorkville would fit that description. The condo that I'm currently looking at looks great on paper and is around 300k which I believe, for the area, is a great price-point especially considering what it was worth pre-covid. The only thing that is a little obscure to me is the market in the area and tenant demand for 1 ba 1 ba's in the area. I walked around the area while searching for an apartment of my own and was hard pressed to find anything decent available. When I finally found a spot, the agent who gave me the tour and handled the paperwork said the market for the area is in high-demand and people are moving back into NY fast. Should I take this as a sign to buy or is there some other info I'm missing? 

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Alexander Szikla
  • Real Estate Agent
  • New York City
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Alexander Szikla
  • Real Estate Agent
  • New York City
Replied Jun 8 2022, 14:30

What is the monthly maintenance? What is the square footage? 

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Mohammed Rahman
  • Real Estate Broker
  • New York, NY
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Mohammed Rahman
  • Real Estate Broker
  • New York, NY
Replied Jun 8 2022, 16:09

Hey @Eder D. - Condos and Coops can go either way depending on what their monthly dues are (since you will be responsible for this on-top of mortgage payment). If you're unsure what the tenant demand is for the area, simply look up rental availability in your neighborhood. 


I use Zillow; if I see a lot of available units of a particular size/bedroom/bathroom then I know demand for those types are low, etc. 

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Replied Jun 9 2022, 07:29

Like Alexander said, definitely check the monthly maintenance fees.  The pricing seems too good to be true; otherwise, Yorkville is a lovely area (I used to live on 65th and 1st), and would rent quickly as there are a lot of medical facilities in the immediate area. Good luck

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Eder D.
  • New to Real Estate
  • New York, NY
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Eder D.
  • New to Real Estate
  • New York, NY
Replied Jun 9 2022, 20:35

@Mohammed Rahman , @Andrew Jennings Freerks Thanks for the input and advice! I was reading several articles about the maintenance fees and other expenditures associated with condos and co-ops in NYC, everything does seem a bit involved (especially co-ops), so I may reconsider. I will do more research though. Do either of you have experience with the NJ market at all? That's another place I've been considering, but if I invest there it will likely be around the Bloomfield area, near transit, and a multi-family home. 

@Alexander Szikla I don't have numbers for the maintenance fees on every property I've viewed thus far, but a few were around $400 and $500 a month. The square footage was typically below 500sqft and most were 300-400sqft.

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Replied Jun 10 2022, 02:13
:

 , @Andrew Jennings Freerks Thanks for the input and advice! I was reading several articles about the maintenance fees and other expenditures associated with condos and co-ops in NYC, everything does seem a bit involved (especially co-ops), so I may reconsider. I will do more research though. Do either of you have experience with the NJ market at all? That's another place I've been considering, but if I invest there it will likely be around the Bloomfield area, near transit, and a multi-family home. 

@Alexander Szikla I don't have numbers for the maintenance fees on every property I've viewed thus far, but a few were around $400 and $500 a month. The square footage was typically below 500sqft and most were 300-400sqft.

Do you mind sharing the listing with us? Something doesn’t add up. From what you’ve mentioned the condo has the price per square foot of something in the mid $600 range which is less than half of what other condos sell for in the upper Eastside. Pricing seems very low even for Yorkville.

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Mohammed Rahman
  • Real Estate Broker
  • New York, NY
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Mohammed Rahman
  • Real Estate Broker
  • New York, NY
Replied Jun 10 2022, 05:39
Quote from @Eder D.:

@Mohammed Rahman , @Andrew Jennings Freerks Thanks for the input and advice! I was reading several articles about the maintenance fees and other expenditures associated with condos and co-ops in NYC, everything does seem a bit involved (especially co-ops), so I may reconsider. I will do more research though. Do either of you have experience with the NJ market at all? That's another place I've been considering, but if I invest there it will likely be around the Bloomfield area, near transit, and a multi-family home. 

@Alexander Szikla I don't have numbers for the maintenance fees on every property I've viewed thus far, but a few were around $400 and $500 a month. The square footage was typically below 500sqft and most were 300-400sqft.

Hey @Eder D. - I personally don't have experience with the NJ market, but know someone who does. @Shawn Mcenteer, can you help weigh in here? Thank you. 

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Shawn Mcenteer
  • Realtor
  • Boonton Township, NJ
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Shawn Mcenteer
  • Realtor
  • Boonton Township, NJ
Replied Jun 10 2022, 09:13

Thanks for the  shout out @Mohammed Rahman Happy to help @Eder D.

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Alexander Szikla
  • Real Estate Agent
  • New York City
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Alexander Szikla
  • Real Estate Agent
  • New York City
Replied Jun 10 2022, 09:34

This must be fractional ownership or something fishy with the building? This deal is trading below replacement cost almost! 

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Jason Lee
Pro Member
  • Real Estate Agent
  • New York, NY
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400
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Jason Lee
Pro Member
  • Real Estate Agent
  • New York, NY
Replied Jun 11 2022, 08:42

Let me guess, searching on Zillow? You're probably looking at co-ops that come up in a condo/co-op search. You either can't buy these as investment properties, or if you can it has to be all-cash or non-warrantable. There is no such thing as a $300K 1 bed condo in Yorkville.

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Eder D.
  • New to Real Estate
  • New York, NY
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Eder D.
  • New to Real Estate
  • New York, NY
Replied Jun 12 2022, 14:35

Hey guys, after doing even more research the list I made of potential investments was more along the lines of what @Jason Lee purposed. Co-op's and if not, all cash. After doing even more looking within the Yorkville area, I may be redirecting and looking further into other areas of NYC and NJ. The main reasons why are listed below...

1. Maintenance Fee's 
2. Lack of financing options for Condo's at an affordable rate 
3. I don't believe there will be enough positive cashflow to make this a worthwhile investment. 

I haven't made a firm decision just yet though. 

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Eder D.
  • New to Real Estate
  • New York, NY
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5
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Eder D.
  • New to Real Estate
  • New York, NY
Replied Jun 12 2022, 14:36
Quote from @Shawn Mcenteer:

Thanks for the  shout out @Mohammed Rahman Happy to help @Eder D.


 Thanks! I reached out and sent my contact info via the form provided on your page.