I (heart) Starck's Gramercy!
The Gramercy sales office opened two or three weeks ago and apartments have been flying off of the shelves. And they should be! For a new development with a fitness center, steam room/sauna, library lounge, resident's lounge, refrigerated storage and a roof terrace to be offered at $1,200 a square foot, I found myself in broker heaven! Since there are 207 residences and a 10 year tax abatement, the common charges and real estate taxes combined are under $1/sq ft. I might have to buy one of these myself when my studio apartment closes...
Philippe Starck can be seen wearing some bizarre red gloves on both the website and in the various sales office videos, but his eccentricity brings with it designs that are somehow creative, fun AND practical. His creations (15 Broad, for example) are just spectacular. Sign me up for the fan club!
As far as the unit mix at the Gramercy, buyers will find studios, 1, 2, and 3 bedrooms on floors 2 - 16. Floors 17 and higher include unique duplex "skyhouses" as well as one and two bedrooms which are laid out like master suites that you would find in a luxury hotel.
Buyers can choose from three styles of finishes, "Nature," "Culture," and "Classic." My buyer liked "Culture" the most because the white cabinetry makes the kitchen seamlessly blend in with the living area and creates the feeling of a larger space. We both felt that the "Classic" finishes were lovely but might make the apartment seem smaller since the cabinets are walnut and the floors are dark oak.
Every apartment has a washer/dryer (even the studios, yay!) and the apartment layouts have an efficient use of space. A "niche wall" in each residence cries out for the design-deficient among us to do something with the space by displaying art or other collectibles.
The building's location on the south side of 23rd Street between First and Second Avenue ensures that north-facing apartments on the mid to high floors get Chrysler and Empire State views, and apartments on the south side of the building above the 10th floor get river and open city views down to Wall Street. The Zeckendorf Building on 14th street is one of the few tall buildings between 23rd street and the Financial District.
Some may say that 23rd isn't the most glamorous location. For people who want to live downtown, but can't afford the new developments in SoHo/Tribeca, and don't want to live in the Financial District, there is nothing comparable to The Gramercy in the area. If you want something even close, you have to go to the A building on 14th between A and B, you'll pay a higher price per square foot, and personally, I'd rather live west of 1st Avenue.
Having grown up in Stuyvesant Town and attended P.S. 40, it kills me when people see the tall brick buildings between 14th and 23rd streets and say, "housing project." Stuyvesant Town was recently sold for $5.4 BILLION dollars. The rent stabilized units are diminishing and the market rate tenants just saw rent increases of 20 - 25% - it's not cheap anymore!
I would move to the Gramercy for the food alone - the best bagels in all of Manhattan can be found at Ess-A-Bagel on 21st street and 1st Avenue and Petite Albeille on the corner of 20th and 1st is delish.
Overall, I give this new development two very big thumbs up! If you are looking to buy an apartment, get thee to the Gramercy immediately! The building is selling quickly and prices will undoubtedly go up soon. The building will be ready for occupancy in December (so plan for February since winter construction is rarely on time) of 2008. Get ready to break your lease!
Posted by Noah
Wed May 23rd, 2007 08:24 AM
I was not as impressed as you were Christine. I wasn't crazy about the sales presentations focusing more on the eccentric Phillipe Starck and his ideas of love and harmony than the product itself.
I think you are buying a name here. Yes, the building has got some nice designs to it and I love the finishes in the bathroom, but I'm not crazy about:
1. Size of units
2. Model bathroom in showroom NOT in studios or 1BR units
3. Mostly North exposures from South side of 23rd street; Southern exposures would be more desirable.
4. Floor plans having so much hallway space in bedroom seems inefficient and makes livable space smaller
5. Units with N & E exposures only have that luxury in bedrooms; not living rooms.
However, pricing does seem reasonable for a new development being designed by this guy; even though I had no clue who he was.
Even some 3BR units are only asking $1250/sft, which seems on the low side compared to 3BR's in other new devs. I think some of the items I mentioned above have to do with this.
Nonetheless, these should sell and Shvo certainly went nutz with this marketing concept. that I'm sure will target foreign investors and Americans looking for an experience and a name to live in. I can see it already:
Where do you live? 'In the Phillipe Starck building'!
Posted by anonymous
Wed May 23rd, 2007 09:24 AM
I love this blog but this post sounds too much like advertising and seems out of step with the analysis and practical tips I come here for. I'd prefer a more candd assessment of the project and less puff, thanks.
Posted by Noah
Wed May 23rd, 2007 09:30 AM
Anon - Christine has shown that she is unbiased in her posts by not favoring every building she visits. I think she sees value in this building compared to other new developments.
PS - Christine is very active in the new dev world via her buyer clients here in Manhattan. She'll continue to add her perspective and trust me, if she visits a disaster that is way overpriced, she will mention it. Such as;
http://www.urbandigs.com/2007/03/900k_it_just_do.html
She also had some great tips to talk about:
http://www.urbandigs.com/2007/05/how_brokers_sell_their_own_apa.html
Thanks for your input though. I wish more readers would tell me what type of content they prefer to see here on urbandigs!
Posted by Noah
Wed May 23rd, 2007 09:35 AM
Anon - Forgot to tell you. Notice when Christine says "The building is selling quickly and prices will undoubtedly go up soon."..
This is true. The building took the 'release units in phases' approach by releasing a few studios, 1-BR's, 2-BR's and 3BR's as a first batch. Prices seem reasonable compared to other new dev inventory selling out.
Chances are, as phases pass on prices will trickle higher! At least, that is what normally happens when inventory in a specific new dev shrinks, buyer interest rises, and control goes more to developer as they approach sold out.
Posted by uwsider
Wed May 23rd, 2007 09:43 AM
I visit this site primarily to skip the "rar-rar broker" crap, any sniff of it and its an instant turn off. Christine's post had a few fumes but probably only because I haven't visted the building to form my own opinion.... However for that location, 1,200 $/sqft *could* be considered overpriced
So far, you've been pretty spot on in my opinion, when you say the market is a sellers market, I can see that myself when I visit open houses or track sales of units I have been interested in.
keep up the great work!
Posted by Toes
Wed May 23rd, 2007 12:48 PM
I rarely get this "rah-rah" about anything, people. But I have seen practically every new development from 57th street to the Financial District and I know a good deal when I see one. Go to the building and see for yourself.
Posted by havensofmanhattan
Wed May 23rd, 2007 04:35 PM
The pricing seems very reasonable for the amenities and location. I think these will sell quickly.
Posted by anonymous
Wed May 23rd, 2007 11:05 PM
We were in in the first release and considered a 3 bedroom. We were looking for a family apartment and were pleased with price and the school district. We ended up backing out for the following reasons:
1. Master bedroom was cramped
2. Ceiling heights were 8 feet (except in the skyhouses and the 15-16th floor) - look closely in the offering plan
3. Kitchen was small
4. A McDonalds is going into one of the commercial spaces. Given the proximity to the hospitals, we figured it would attract a lot of traffic and loitering.
5. Mostly 1 and small 2 bedrooms == lots of singles and investors. Didn't think it would be the best for families.
6. Location from the subway. (Although we were willing to look past this for the other benefits.)
The finishings were AMAZING however and the amenities were great. We were struggling for a long time to figure out if we wanted to do this.
Posted by VDH
Thu May 24th, 2007 12:14 PM
15 Broad is not finished to the standard that was promised by the marketing.
I would not use that as an example of a spectacular creation. Floorplans have a lot of wasted space also with few legal bedrooms - not Starck's fault I know but he put his name to the whole product meaning that he does not garantee best use of space.
However, the website for Grammercy does state 9 foot ceilings and not 8 foot. 9' is still too low though IMO. ou need at least 10' to get any kind of sense of scale or grandeur.
Streeteasy has a thread going on about tribeca apts and someone is touting 38 Warren in the 3.5M range and they are challenging ppl to compare with what else is out there at $1300 psf. I did a quick search and found a dearth of decent choices but that is no reason to decide on a less than ideal choice. Same goes for this place. Just because there is a lack of choice right now does not mean that this is the ideal place as the original post makes out.
Posted by anonymous
Sun May 27th, 2007 02:04 PM
Hello Christine-
Will you post a list of great condo where you think they offer good deals for quality construction? Plus the Pros and Cons of each? That will be helpful.
Also, the price seems higher than what the recent ny times article stated about this building:
“The building is expected to be completed next year. The 54 studios (from 430 to 480 square feet) start at $440,000; the 89 one-bedrooms (600 to 770 square feet) at $630,000; the 41 two-bedrooms (1,100 to 1,300 square feet) at $1.1 million; and the 23 three-bedrooms (1,600 to 1,900 square feet) at $1.65 million. So far, 83 units have been sold.”
Posted by anonymous
Sun Jun 3rd, 2007 08:07 PM
I went to the Gramacy sales office today.
Great visual presentation.
Stunning lobby, library and bar.
But almost all the one bedrooms avaialble are north facing.
10th floor below, you have the boring "Nature" look.
10th floor and above, price starts at $840,000 for 700 SF. and you have the option of the 3 looks mentioned above.
Decent applicance but quite basic, without kitchen island or breakfast bar, features you would find in other developments.
My feeling is, if you go for the Starck name and if you enjoying showing off his designed common area to your friends, this would be for you. Otherwise, think again. You have lots of deco work to do yourself to live up to the image (or rather illusion)!
Also, the sales associate mentioned the expected occupancy date would be end of Oct, which is slightlier earlier than what's in the earlier post.
Hope it helps.
Posted by Dave
Sat Jun 23rd, 2007 08:23 PM
I spent a lot of time looking around at new developments and did decide to buy here. I am a picky buyer that looks for value and comparing this to the other buildings I saw over a year, this was a relatively easy choice. I think its going to be a great place.
Posted by CC
Tue Oct 9th, 2007 10:11 PM
Is this a good investment opportunity?
Posted by toes
Mon Feb 11th, 2008 11:54 AM
Hi guys, I would no longer recommend this building as a place to buy. A McDonalds and a CVS are going into the commercial space. When I visited the building some months ago, they told me that they didn't know what was going into the space yet. Since the McDonalds and CVS were there before they bought the building, I think they may have misled buyers as to the probability that the McDonalds and CVS were going back into the space. I'd like to take a close look at the offering plan to see if it said what was going into the commercial space. Having a McDonalds in your building is NOT good for resale.
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