What To Do With Your JR4 Apt?
A: Turn the Dining Area into its own, expanded 2nd bedroom. Add a closet (small is fine) and add electrical switches/outlets. It should be as large as possible and use up what I consider to be non-useable space that lies between the alcove and the living area. Make the 1/2 Guest Bathroom into Full Bathroom if possible.
The logic here is that you will market this property as a 2BR/1.5BTH Apt. and you will be reaching a target group of potential homebuyers that you normally wouldn't, with a lot more money to spend.
NEVER ASSUME THAT THE BUYER OR BROKER WILL FIND YOUR LISTING FOR A 1BR / 1.5BTH, WHEN THEY ARE LOOKING FOR A 2BRYou need to get to that next level from a marketing standpoint, when it comes to the real estate game in New York City. Brokers do it all the time with the "cozy", "charming", and "spacious" talk. Im talking about doing it with the layout, the floorplan. Try to change the floorplan, in a very nice way, to create more of what is not there. This will catapult your listing into a higher bracket when you go and advertise it. In this case we are going from a 1BR apartment to a 2BR apartment, for what could possibly be only a $5000 job.
I find that marketing a 1BR property and calling it a Convertible 2BR is way overrated. In the end I dont think it sells as well as pure presentation. From a risk/reward perspective you are spending $5,000 with some imagination and creative touch, for a possible $50,000-$100,000 increase in selling price.
If you don't do the renovations and spend 4x as much money on redoing the kitchen and bathrooms, how much more will you really get considering the final cost? 10K? 30K?
Be smart. If there is a constant gap in selling prices between 1BR & 2BR property's in this city, sometimes as much as $400,000, then you need to get your property at the lower end of the 2BR stockpile. Psychologically your property will be viewed as a VALUE to those buyers seeking a 2BR property. To them, all of a sudden here is a 2BR / 1.5BTH (which is fine for an expecting family), that is priced about $150,000 under the rest of the 2BR's! Look at this # analysis if your having trouble catching on here:
AVERAGE SELLING PRICE 1BR / 1.5BTH CONDO IN UES
$750,000
AVERAGE SELLING PRICE 2BR / 1.5BTH CONDO IN UES
$850,000
AVERAGE SELLING PRICE 2BR / 2BTH CONDO IN UES
$1.1 Million
If you can make the 1/2 bathroom (Guest Bathroom) into a full bathroom using space adjacent to the bathroom, then DO IT! It will be a big headache and probably cost about $15,000-$20,000 when all is set and done with all the labor, construction, materials, board filings, department of buildings filings, and architect fees. But in the end, you will be able to add on a good $75,000, possibly more, to your purchase price and put your listing with the 2BR/2BTH's that are out there.
SOME JR'4s CURRENTLY FOR SALE (listings from Feb 19th, 2007):
201 East 79th - $995,000
1036 Park Ave - $975,000
200 Central Park South - $949,000
