CHERISHED LUXURY: MANHATTAN’S PRIVATE OUTDOOR SPACES By Linette Semino   Whether it’s relaxing on a bench in Central Park or drinking an exotic cocktail at a trendy hotel’s rooftop bar, New…... Read more >

CHERISHED LUXURY: MANHATTAN’S PRIVATE OUTDOOR SPACES
By Linette Semino
 
Whether it’s relaxing on a bench in Central Park or drinking an exotic cocktail at a trendy hotel’s rooftop bar, New Yorkers truly savor being outdoors during the warm weather months. Many fortunate city denizens can escape to the outdoors without ever having to set foot outside of their homes. They soak up the sun and nature’s beauty right on their own private outdoor spaces. In Manhattan, outdoor space is an urban luxury that comes in an assortment of sizes, shapes and styles. In today’s tight real estate market, outdoor space adds 10-20% to a property’s value and for many busy New Yorkers, the convenience of not having to leave their apartments to catch a breath of fresh air is simply priceless.

It’s no secret that large private outdoor spaces are rare in Manhattan and depending on type and size, can be incredibly expensive. Exclusivity is what makes over-sized terraces and private rooftops so coveted and now a New Yorker’s obsession. In this town, there is surely no shortage of luxurious and grand apartments with private outdoor spaces that are as equally impressive as their interiors. The late society tastemaker and philanthropist Evelyn Lauder was known for the large and stunning terrace gardens that she cultivated at her elegant residence overlooking Central Park.

Knowing that outdoor space is so valuable, many lucky owners feel obliged to transform these blank canvases into breathtaking natural environments or peaceful outdoor living sanctuaries. Luckily, they can always hire talented landscape architects or designers to help them transform a lifeless space into an enviable urban oasis. When it comes to terraces and rooftops, the design possibilities are endless. However, Manhattan’s buildings have stringent guidelines on what can go on a terrace or roof. Therefore, before you commence any projects, you need to evaluate the outdoor space’s structural integrity, review your building’s weight and planting regulations, obtain written permission for your project from your residence’s board or management and finally, contact the NYC Department of Buildings to inquire about any planning and building regulations that may affect your area. Depending on your building’s guidelines, you may be held responsible for any leakage related to outdoor space, so you must ensure that it’s properly maintained and waterproofed. Making the most of your terrace or private rooftop space will create an additional “seasonal” living environment which adds more usable space to your home and increases the value of your property.
 
Small to mid-sized city balconies are typically perceived as loud and dusty outdoor spaces that owners never use and are often considered just a waste of valuable square footage. However, there are many benefits to having a balcony, as it can give an apartment the illusion of more square footage. If your building permits it, placing tall planters along the balcony’s walls or railings will add more privacy and decorating it with small flowerings will bring greenery into your home. If being a “city gardener” seems too high maintenance for you, then opt to decorate the balcony with silk artificial plants. While artificial plants can sometimes look cheap, a wide selection of high quality products can always be found online. Whether or not you choose to adorn your balcony with beautiful vegetation and flowers, all you really need is a cozy seating area to relax while enjoying a hot cup of morning coffee or a chilled glass of rose at sunset.

A delightfully landscaped terrace or rooftop garden can be a graceful extension of your home and even a small balcony can serve as a welcoming outdoor environment visible from the inside of your apartment. In Manhattan, private outdoor spaces are lovely sanctuaries that will pull you away from the bustling city life and streets below. For any New Yorker, that is a cherished luxury.

 

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nerdwallet we do the homework foy you Realtors Speak: First Steps toward Homeownership from Linette Semino by Mike Anderson on February 21, 2013 When Jane moved into her new Midtown Manhattan apartment…... Read more >

nerdwallet
we do the homework foy you

Realtors Speak: First Steps toward Homeownership from Linette Semino
by Mike Anderson on February 21, 2013

When Jane moved into her new Midtown Manhattan apartment – the first home she’d ever purchased – she was a grad student by day and hit the grind at night, trying to pay the bills. She was busy. She’d landed in a dreary neighborhood, too, and, worse, an expensive one.

Dreary and expensive enough that, within a year of moving, Jane sold her apartment prematurely. She even lost money on the place, thanks to apartment fix-ups and improvements, closing costs, commissions and the cost of moving – many expenses that homeowners often are able to recoup if they wait for their property’s value to appreciate. That’s a good 5 or 10 years in a healthy market, at a minimum.

Why she moved
Jane hated the neighborhood, though. At first, she had sought out a unit around a college or university – more up-and-coming areas – with all the benefits of that college-town feel: cool coffee shops, great restaurants and grocery stores and supermarkets aplenty.

Where she ended up was much different. It was too high-end. And her surroundings weren’t exactly Urban Bohemia – they were stale: office buildings, tourist attractions, high-end hotels and commercial properties. These were her neighbors, and they didn’t exactly welcome her into the community.
Rather, after 6 months, Jane realized she hadn’t integrated at all. She would even venture outside the neighborhood for more affordable restaurants and coffee shops, and, generally, she found prices too high.

Picking the right apartment and the right neighborhood
Hence the move-out and why it was worth it to lose money on the apartment. Hence her new neighborhood, too, where she now rents: her neighbors are now her friends, and she’s happy enough that soon she’ll be back in the buyer’s market, for a place in this same neighborhood.
The first steps toward homeownership

You don’t want Jane’s topsy-turvy experience for your first home purchase, and so your first step is this, courtesy of Linette Semino, an associate broker with Warburg Realty: “I would recommend that first-time homebuyers speak with current residents of that community to understand the advantages and disadvantages of living there – stopping someone on the street to inquire about the neighborhood is not a bad idea.”

If you like what you hear, and if you find yourself invested in that neighborhood, there’s plenty more to do, and Semino is here to suggest exactly how. And so, without further ado, we’ll let the expert speak for herself:

1. Set your budget
The first step a first-time homebuyer should take is analyzing how the monthly payment of their new mortgage and common charges affect monthly expenses and disposable income.

2. Know the market
The second step is becoming familiar with real estate websites where buyers obtain educational information on market trends, and where they can share questions and information with other first-time homebuyers.

3. Hire an agent
After becoming familiar with the real estate market and the types of properties available, the buyer should hire a professional real estate agent. A first-time home buyer will benefit from the expert advice and guidance of a broker, so I always recommend working with an agent.

-OR-

If a buyer decides to purchase without an agent, then I would recommend the following steps:

3. Become pre-approved for a loan
Contacting a mortgage broker or lender to understand how much down payment will be required and what the targeted purchase price would be, as well as the documentation required for obtaining a mortgage. Once the lender provides the pre-approval letter, the buyer can begin lining up appointments to view properties. When visiting properties, the buyer should take a camera to document the condition of the properties or any special features the home offers.

4. Get an outside perspective
Bringing a friend or family member for a second look and discussing the pros & cons of the home with them. Friends and family members are less emotional about the property and are of great help when it comes to selecting the correct property.

5. Decide on an offer
Analyzing recent sales in the neighborhood to come up with the right offer. It’s important to understand the similarities or differences between the properties being used and the property being considered. Finding properties with the same square footage or dimensions that have similar finishes and appliances is the key when coming up with the right offer.

6. Find an attorney
Interviewing real estate attorneys to understand the closing costs and the legal process of purchasing a home for the first-time. I’d recommend selecting an attorney who has closed on a similar property or someone who has been recommended by friends. The attorney’s contact information will be provided to the listing broker upon acceptance of the offer.

7. Make the offer
Submitting the offer along with the pre-approval letter and employment letter. The buyer will have to show the listing broker that he/she has money to purchase the property and income to pay for month expenses. I even recommend submitting a letter of personal introduction along with the offer – tell the seller how much you love the home and your neighbors will love you. Once the offer is accepted, the buyer will work with the attorney on the contract of sales and documents for the closing and with the listing broker on any applications or coop board packages required for the purchase.

 

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The New York Times   Dear Owner: Please Sell Faced With Apartment Shortage, Brokers Get Creative   A shortage of New York City apartments for sale is forcing real estate agents to take extreme,…... Read more >

The New York Times
 
Dear Owner: Please Sell
Faced With Apartment Shortage, Brokers Get Creative
 
A shortage of New York City apartments for sale is forcing real estate agents to take extreme, if not desperate, measures in order to conjure up listings.

One tactic is sending letters to all the two-bedrooms, say, in choice buildings to try to persuade their owners to sell. Another is buttering up the doorman for information on who might be inclined to move — a couple with a baby on the way, perhaps, or newly empty nesters.

Some brokers are trolling through expired listings in the hopes of reviving a dead deal. Others are digging through rental agreements to see when leases in coveted buildings might be coming due. And at least one broker has found that her years of volunteering at nursing homes have helped her find leads (more on that later).

Working the phone, the Rolodex and even the memory, brokers say, is all part of the game now that listings have hit a record low. Just 5,160 apartments and town houses were on the market in Manhattan at the end of last year, according to the appraisal firm Miller Samuel. That’s the lowest number since comprehensive tracking began about 12 years ago.

“If you are a shoe salesman, you need shoes to sell,” said Linette Semino, an associate broker at Warburg Realty. “Otherwise you’re not a shoe salesman.” To stock her shelves, she has been scouring expired listings, contacting landlords to see if they will sell, and soliciting owners by letter on her buyers’ behalf. With listings so scarce, “you have to think outside of the box,” she said.

Sure, most of these off-market exploits don’t result in deals. But in some cases, they have produced the keys to a new home. Following are six strategies for creating inventory in a tight market.

Go Canvassing

That’s what brokers call sending letters to owners to see if they will sell. Jeff Silverstein, a broker with Douglas Elliman, recently sent out a mailing to roughly 1,000 owners in choice buildings south of 14th Street. “Dear Resident Owner,” the letter began, “I am currently working with a client who is looking to live downtown. The inventory is extremely low and I need either a two-bedroom or three-bedroom apartment for her. ...” He has received three responses since the letters went out a couple of weeks ago.

Canvassing worked for Andrew Phillips, a broker with Halstead Property, when he was working with a family looking for a pied-à-terre. After a deal fell through on a $3.2 million apartment on Leonard Street in TriBeCa, Mr. Phillips sent handwritten letters to the owners of similar apartments in the building, including one that had recently been pulled from the market. When he didn’t hear from the owner or his former listing agent, he tracked the owner to his Florida address and called him.

“I said, ‘I have a buyer who missed out, and we’re not going to question the price,’ ” Mr. Phillips recalled. The owner gave him the go-ahead to show the unit, which was slightly smaller than the other place but nicely renovated. The family liked it so much they paid an additional $150,000 for the furniture, which brought the total to $3.45 million.

Approaching owners also recently paid off for Michael Rubin, an agent with CORE.

Last spring, Deepak and Kirti Srikant dropped by an open house Mr. Rubin was hosting in their building. They were just curious, said Mr. Srikant, the marketing director for a medical device start-up. “We weren’t convinced just yet that we wanted to move or sell.” But because the couple were sharing the bedroom with their small child, “we knew we’d have to move at some point. ”

Mr. Rubin asked if they would be interested in listing their apartment. He told them he had buyers already lined up. He said he knew he could sell at a good price.

“I harassed them,” he said jokingly.

Eventually, the couple agreed to show their apartment without actually listing it, with a specific price in mind: $1.35 million. They closed last month for nearly 4 percent more than what they had hoped for and more than 20 percent above what they paid in 2007.

And the Srikants made money on the deal by spending less than they had received on a two-bedroom with two baths and an office alcove in the financial district. “It’s a win-win that way,” Mr. Srikant said.

Search Expired Listings

Apartments are taken off the market for all kinds of reasons, ranging from low offers to visiting houseguests. You can search for expired listings on Streeteasy.com by selecting “advanced search” and “include only unavailable listings” under “listing status.” You will need to do a fair amount of cross-referencing to be sure a place has truly been removed — not sold and taken off the broker’s Web site or relisted with another agent. Then you can contact the original broker to see if the former client is still interested in selling. Be prepared to offer more than the original listing price.

Jessica Cohen, an associate broker with Douglas Elliman, came up with a three-bedroom on the Upper West Side by thumbing through expired listings.

Though the apartment had received multiple bids, she said, the owner had decided he wasn’t ready to move — partly because he’d had trouble finding a larger apartment for himself. But because her clients’ budget was higher than what the owner had initially asked, he allowed them to see it.

“It’s hard to get comfortable with paying over asking price for something that didn’t sell three months earlier,” Ms. Cohen said. But with “nothing to buy” she said, her clients are considering putting in an offer.

Consider a Combination

Can’t find a large enough apartment? Maybe you should be thinking about combining two small units. Studios and small one-bedrooms are fairly plentiful in the Upper East Side corridor east of Third Avenue beginning at 96th Street and stretching down through Kips Bay into the 20s, according to Frederick Peters, the president of Warburg Realty.

Spotting just such an opportunity, Elaine Tross, an executive vice president of Halstead Property, showed two side-by-side units at 250 East 87th Street, a Junior 4 and a two-bedroom two-bath unit that had a combined 2,300 feet of space. The total asking price was $2.175 million.

Because the building was in the thick of the Second Avenue subway construction zone, buyers would have to live with daily blasts for many months. But with few large apartments on the market, families looking for space were drawn to the listing.

The place ultimately sold to a seven-person household, including a live-in nanny, for $2.031 million. A completed three-bedroom combination in the same building is currently on the market for $2.5 million.

Combining apartments is not for everyone, Ms. Tross said, pointing out that such renovations are expensive, and require an architect as well as approval from the building and the city. But after several months of extensive remodeling, the seven-member family now has a four-bedroom four-bath home, she said.

“For the headache of it,” Ms. Tross said, “they got the apartment at a good price.”

Sweet-Talk the Doorman

Privy to many intimate details of the lives of their building’s residents, doormen often know, long before any listings are posted, when a move is planned.

“They have a very early idea of what’s happening,” said Jarrod Randolph, a broker with CORE, who found a client a $4.1 million Upper East Side three-bedroom about a year ago by chatting up the doorman.

Engaging in a conversation that may produce such information requires some finesse. You can’t be pushy and ask for the unit number, Mr. Randolph said. A better approach is to leave your card and ask the doorman to please pass it on to the sellers.

“I might come back a week later at the same time and on the same day, assuming the same doorman will be there,” he said, “and I might bring him coffee and cookies.”

Get a Well-Connected Broker

Michele Kleier, the president of Kleier Residential, has been going through her mental lists of past sales to figure out who might be ready to move again. “You need to keep on top of lifestyle changes,” she said, “because the truth is, if somebody is becoming an empty nester, very often they are going to move to a smaller apartment.”

People don’t necessarily focus on when the best time would be to enter the market, she added. With demand so strong for larger apartments right now, past clients with three or four bedrooms are sometimes shocked to learn how much their apartments are worth. Learn to Play Chess

Tova Weiner, an agent with A. C. Lawrence & Company, has been volunteering at nursing homes and retiree centers since grade school, never with any idea that it would end up benefiting her real estate career.

“One day an elderly woman asked what I do for a living,” Ms. Weiner recalled. “I told her I’m a real estate agent. In less than 60 seconds I had the whole room gather around asking advice regarding their properties. I walked out of that nursing home that day with my hands full of listings.”

Ms. Weiner, who primarily handles commercial listings but also does some residential, says she continues to receive calls and referrals from “the elders,” as she respectfully refers to the people she has met in nursing homes over the years.

“They know everyone and everything that’s in their neighborhood,” she said. “They know who is getting married, expecting a baby, getting divorced, moving, dying, selling and buying, and they know the story behind the vacant building down the street.

“Can’t find what you’re looking for?” Ms. Weiner said, “Just go to the park chess tables and ask.”

 

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The New York Times GREENWICH VILLAGE CO-OP $960,000 MANHATTAN: 250 Mercer Street (at West Fourth Street), #A-301 MAINTENANCE: $1,543 a month A one-bedroom one-bath in a pre-war doorman building with a…... Read more >

The New York Times

GREENWICH VILLAGE CO-OP $960,000

MANHATTAN: 250 Mercer Street (at West Fourth Street), #A-301
MAINTENANCE: $1,543 a month

A one-bedroom one-bath in a pre-war doorman building with a courtyard.

PROS: This third-floor unit has 10-foot ceilings and tall west-facing windows. Storage space includes a 7-by-10-foot loft over the kitchen, two custom closets in the bedroom and three in the foyer. One currently houses a built-in desk.

CONS: The apartment is near the elevator and trash room. The ceiling in the kitchen is lower because of the storage loft above. The breakfast-bar counter is not very wide.

Linette Semino, Warburg Realty

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The Real Deal September 2012 No more fear of fall In sharp contrast to last year, brokers expect strong market this autumn September 01, 2012 By Leigh Kamping-Carder What a difference a year makes —…... Read more >

The Real Deal

September 2012
No more fear of fall

In sharp contrast to last year, brokers expect strong market this autumn

September 01, 2012
By Leigh Kamping-Carder

What a difference a year makes — at least when it comes to Manhattan’s residential real estate market.
As the fall of 2011 began, the country was reeling. Following the near-stalemate in Congress over raising the debt ceiling, Standard & Poor’s had downgraded U.S. debt.

Occupy Wall Street protesters began camping out in Zuccotti Park — a glaring reminder of an arrested economic recovery. And European leaders were struggling to resolve Greece’s debt woes, which threatened to topple neighboring economies and even spread across the pond.

The effects of the European debt crisis and a volatile stock market rippled through the Manhattan market in the following months, spooking buyers and sellers and denting deal volume for the remainder of the year.

It’s true that none of these problems are entirely solved: U.S. unemployment rates remain stubbornly high, Greece is surviving on E.U. bailouts, and the U.S. faces drastic spending cuts in 2013 if lawmakers fail to find an alternative to the so-called fiscal cliff.

But when it comes to Manhattan home sales, last fall’s worries are in the rear-view mirror.

If the prevailing mood last fall was fear of a double-dip recession, this fall brokers said they expect sales to continue outpacing 2011 levels and for prices to rise or — among some property types — to remain stable.

“The trajectory of the New York City sales market has been climbing steadily since the beginning of the year,” said Mark Ski, vice president of sales at Bond New York. “Interest rates remain low, and an overall feel that the economy is turning around really help fuel the fire in this marketplace.”

While some brokers are still keeping their fingers crossed, as of late last month, there were 2,856 Manhattan homes under contract, about 30 percent more than the same time last year, according to data from real estate analytics firm Urban Digs.

There were 5,292 active listings, or about 22 percent less than a year ago.

In the luxury market, signed contracts are also up compared to last year, according to Manhattan brokerage Olshan Realty. At press time, 52 contracts had been signed last month for Manhattan homes priced at $4 million or up — a 73 percent increase over the same period last year, and the strongest August since the firm began tracking the data in 2007.

In a stark contrast to last fall, brokers expect the frothy sales market to endure, considering the continued low interest rates, high rents and demand from wealthy overseas buyers who see Manhattan real estate as a relatively safe investment.

“During the first half of the fall … I anticipate the number of transactions to soar upward and the prices in the condo market to scale even higher,” said Linette Semino, an associate broker at Warburg Realty.

However, she said she expects co-ops to move slowly at the same prices.

“Co-op prices have become more realistic and in sync with the marketplace, especially in the studio and one-bedroom market, where the demand is not higher than the supply,” Semino said.

Indeed, the main factor restraining transactions, brokers said, is the shortage of available listings and newly constructed apartments — a phenomenon they’ve cited since buyer interest picked up in the spring.

“There is no shortage of buyers who are ready, willing and able to purchase,” said Beth Stern, a broker at Corcoran Sunshine Marketing Group who heads up sales at the Apthorp on the Upper West Side.

“The true challenge is Manhattan’s lack of inventory,” she said. “Purchasers are anxiously awaiting upcoming new development because most buildings being brought to market this year are selling very quickly, leaving them little time for deliberation.”

Additionally, some sellers may delay listing their homes this fall until the outcome of the presidential race is decided in November, Warburg’s Semino noted. Others may hold off for even higher prices, said Jacob Frydman, CEO of United Realty Partners, a Manhattan-based real estate investment and advisory firm.

“Sellers of properties in the luxury market — but not at the top of the market — are expecting to get prices that may not be achievable, and may be holding out because of the perception that prices are increasing, given some of the unique ultrahigh-price deals that have gotten done recently,” Frydman said.
Some brokers, including Prudential Douglas Elliman’s Jacky Teplitzky and MNS CEO Andrew Barrocas, expect transactions to drop in the fall because of a lack of inventory.

Fortunately, some 1,000 units are expected to hit the market by the end of the second half of 2012, double the number of the same period in 2011, Corcoran’s Stern said.

In the rental market, Sofia Estevez, an executive vice president at developer TF Cornerstone, which is currently leasing up luxury rental towers at 4540 Center Boulevard and 4615 Center Boulevard in Long Island City, said rents are up about 10 percent over last fall.

“At the end of last year, we were still heavily giving concessions,” she said. “This year, there is great traffic, very high occupancy, and also a very good absorption rate for our new projects.”

An influx of early career professionals in the fields of law, finance and consulting should bring high demand for rentals through mid-October, said Douglas Wagner, Bond’s executive director of leasing.
“This pressure will be consistent with last fall, and we anticipate continued low vacancy levels in every Manhattan neighborhood,” he said.

 

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Real Deal Top Residential Agents of the Week Amanda Brainerd and Linette Semino,  Warburg Realty Price: $5.8million 10 Gracie Square #1/2... Read more >

Real Deal
Top Residential Agents of the Week

Amanda Brainerd and Linette Semino, 
Warburg Realty
Price: $5.8million
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The New York Times June 5, 2011 On the Market UNION SQUARE AREA LOFT $1,850,000 MAINTENANCE: $1,485 a month MANHATTAN: 25 West 15th Street (between Fifth Avenue and the Avenue of the Americas), #6 A three-bedroom…... Read more >

The New York Times
June 5, 2011

On the Market
UNION SQUARE AREA LOFT
$1,850,000

MAINTENANCE: $1,485 a month
MANHATTAN: 25 West 15th Street (between Fifth Avenue and the Avenue of the Americas), #6
A three-bedroom two-bath floor-through co-op with a washer and dryer and keyed elevator access in a prewar building. Wendy Greenbaum and Linette Semino Warburg Realty; www.warburg.com

PROS: Original eye-catching details include an arched window in the living room and tin ceilings throughout. The kitchen and bathrooms have been renovated with sleek finishes.
CONS: The co-op does not allow dogs. The building lobby could use sprucing up.< Read less

The Real Deal Warburg honors top agents Steinberg, Greenbaum, Semino   Richard Steinberg, executive managing director with Warburg Realty, was presented with his firm's top prize last night, based…... Read more >

The Real Deal

Warburg honors top agents Steinberg, Greenbaum, Semino
 
Richard Steinberg, executive managing director with Warburg Realty, was presented with his firm's top prize last night, based on his 2010 sales performance, during Warburg's annual award ceremony. Wendy Greenbaum, also an executive managing director, took home second place for sales performance, while agent Linette Semino was named rookie of the year. But sales talent isn't the only thing Warburg is celebrating this year -- the firm was recently cast for the second season of HGTV's realty reality show "Selling New York." The show, which tracks New York City real estaters as they navigate luxury sales, will feature Warburg's Leslie Rosenthal, Deborah Lupard, the company's president, Frederick Peters and Steinberg. TRD

 

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MIDTOWN CO-OP $625,000 MANHATTAN: 146 East 49th Street (between Lexington and Third Avenues), #7A A one-bedroom one-bath with beamed ceilings, decorative molding and a decorative fireplace in a prewar…... Read more >

MIDTOWN CO-OP
$625,000
MANHATTAN: 146 East 49th Street (between Lexington and Third Avenues), #7A

A one-bedroom one-bath with beamed ceilings, decorative molding and a decorative fireplace in a prewar elevator building. Linette Semino, Warburg Realty
PROS: This apartment has been meticulously renovated. The bathroom is spa-like, with an oversized shower. The kitchen has a window seat, and Viking and Sub-Zero appliances.
CONS: Maintenance is a bit high; there is no bathtub.

 

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‘The City’ Manhattan Real Estate Broker Linette Semino’s debut on MTV’s As the second season of MTV’s hit show ‘The City’ approaches its final episode, the drama between Whitney Port and…... Read more >

‘The City’ Manhattan Real Estate Broker Linette Semino’s debut on MTV’s

As the second season of MTV’s hit show ‘The City’ approaches its final episode, the drama between Whitney Port and Roxy Olin just continues to boil.  On this week’s show, Roxy made good on her promise to move out of Whitney’s West Village apartment and she hit the streets of New York City with friend Samantha Swerta in search of a place to finally call her own.  Roxy took the first bold step in getting out of Whit’s shadow.

Making her debut appearance on ‘The City’, top producing Manhattan real estate broker Linette Semino welcomed Roxy to her dream, downtown apartment.  Linette, a broker with the tony Madison Avenue office of Warburg Realty Partnership, looked ever-so-chic in her black MaxMara suit, Brian Atwood python pumps and jewelry by A.B.S. Allen Schwartz and Cartier as she showed Roxy and Samantha a beautifully renovated one bedroom.

Loving the apartment’s dark hard wood floors and fireplace, Roxy was a bit shocked when Linette told her the rent sticker price of $4,000 a month.  With a sigh, Roxy resigned to the fact that she would have to try to get her father Ken Olin

to help her out or just keep looking for other apartments with Linette.  Unfortunately, Roxy did not succeed in convincing her dad to foot the bill for the apartment later that day while having lunch with him at Ocean Grill.

As Roxy and others in the cast of ‘The City’ have come to realize, living the glamorous life in Manhattan is neither for the faint of heart nor the faint of wallet.  Just as much as ‘The City’ girls need those trusted Jimmy Choos on their feet to stomp their way through the tough New York fashion world, they also need a smart broker like Linette Semino by their side to help them find a cool place in the concrete jungle to rest those pretty feet.

 

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Sale of two cities Top, bottom priced apts. on East Side By ANNIE KARNI One's a mansion, the other's a box -- but hey, they're both penthouses. The cheapest and the most expensive Manhattan apartments…... Read more >

Sale of two cities
Top, bottom priced apts. on East Side
By ANNIE KARNI

One's a mansion, the other's a box -- but hey, they're both penthouses.

The cheapest and the most expensive Manhattan apartments currently on the market are both top-floor units just eight blocks apart on the Upper East Side.

The $135,000 studio at East 84th Street and Park Avenue could fit inside the maid's room of the $60 million penthouse atop the Mark Hotel on East 77th Street near Fifth Avenue.

At 180 square feet, Manhattan's cheapest micro-studio, on the 10th floor of 103 E. 84th St., brings back memories of living in a college dorm.

On the other end of the spectrum, the city's priciest pad is a five-bedroom, 7½-bathroom, 9,037-square-foot palace with an 839-square-foot terrace on the 15th floor -- overlooking the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

"It's a trophy purchase," said Jeannie Woodbrey, sales director for the Mark Hotel, at 25 E. 77th St. "It's like buying a Picasso."

Despite the hefty price tag -- which doesn't include $35,445 a month in maintenance fees -- an international set of moguls is flocking to see the new space. "There are a lot of billionaires around," said Woodbrey, who shows the apartment about five times a week to moneybags from as far away as Texas and India. "For some of them, it's their 10th home."

The living room boasts a 26-foot-high copper cupola roof and the duplex has solid oak floors, a private elevator and a gym with a steam shower. Future residents can order room service from Jean Georges, located in the lobby.

For buyers with a budget, the city's cheapest studio comes with a price tag that rivals the rent for a Manhattan storage unit -- and it's about half of what an identical unit on the first floor of the building sold for in 2006.

"The market is falling faster for studios because people can now afford a one-bedroom," said real-estate broker Linette Semino of Warburg Realty. "They can now go for the one-bedroom for $500,000."

The doll's house -- which would require the buyer to invest in a Murphy bed -- boasts terrace access, two tiny closets and a Pullman kitchen where the mini-fridge is tucked under the sink.

"A lot of people are interested in it to have a crash pad in the city," said Prudential broker Ilsa Vasquez.

The fire-sale price hasn't been matched in Manhattan since the 1980s, according to appraiser Jonathan Miller.

But as with every deal that sounds too good to be true, there's a catch: Manhattan's cheapest apartment has monthly maintenance of $1,500.

"It has adversely high maintenance charges relative to its size," Miller said. "There's no such thing as a free lunch in Manhattan."

 

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MOVERS AND SHAKERS: Linette Semino, Salesperson with Warburg Realty Partnership A graduate of New York University, Linette Semino developed a passion for residential real estate while working at the prestigious…... Read more >

MOVERS AND SHAKERS:
Linette Semino, Salesperson with Warburg Realty Partnership

A graduate of New York University, Linette Semino developed a passion for residential real estate while working at the prestigious Ritz Carlton Hotel in New York City. After a successful career in the hospitality industry, Linette embarked on her real estate career as an on-site sales associate with Corcoran's Sunshine Marketing Group. In this role, Linette was intimately involved with the sales and marketing of Extell Development’s luxury condominiums on Riverside Boulevard and Midtown East. Having worked on-site at several luxury condominiums and represented multiple individual owners, Linette has vast experience in marketing and selling residential real estate in Manhattan.

Whether her role consists of helping a client buy, sell or rent a co-operative, condominium, townhouse or brownstone, Linette treats her clientele with the utmost respect, confidentiality and commitment.  Linette will not hesitate to go the extra mile to ensure that her client's real estate transactions are as smooth, pleasant and seamless as possible.  Fluent in Spanish, Linette has also assisted many international buyers with identifying their ultimate home in New York City and to relocate to the “Big Apple”.  Linette stays abreast of market trends which matched with her innate listening skills, her creative eye, and great communication skills, is an unbeatable ability to match the right home with the right buyer. She builds a relationship with her clients based on trust, honesty and superior customer service – skill she acquired while working at the Ritz Carlton.

Throughout her career, Linette has built strong relationships with prominent members of New York’s business, legal, fashion, design and art communities which inform her understanding of emerging developments and trends in the real estate market. Linette currently resides on Fifth Avenue in Greenwich Village with her husband and in her spare time is an active member of such charitable institutions as the Municipal Art Society and Architecture for Humanity.

Peachy Deegan interviewed Linette Semino for Whom You Know.

Peachy Deegan: How did you enjoy working in the hotel industry?
Linette Semino: Working in the hotel industry allowed me to interact with and develop relationships with people from diverse cultures and social levels. I truly enjoyed creating long lasting memories for the guests and fulfilling their needs was a personal satisfaction. I also enjoyed working in exquisitely designed facilities with elegant surroundings of the finest quality. Working at Ritz Carlton was a wonderful experience for me.

What do most Manhattanites not realize about the hotel industry here?
Most Manhattanites do not realize that although room rates in Manhattan are very high, many hotels offer special rates, vacation packages, and many of these establishments’ fine dining restaurants offer a pre-fix lunch/dinner menu.

How does that compare to working in Real Estate for you- can you draw similarities?
The real estate industry is similar to the hospitality industry because sellers and buyers expect personal and friendly services, a professional environment and demand that their lifestyle needs are met with the least bit of inconvenience to them. What does one need in life? Comfort, luxury and entertainment and both industries offer that to their clients. I strongly believe that real estate professionals “must” be friendly, attentive, professional, and available all the time, just like employees in a Hotel. Real estate is also a service industry!

What do you enjoy the most about your profession?
Honestly, I enjoy visiting buildings with rich histories and architectural details. Finding the right home for my customers and selling my clients’ home at the highest price the market will bear is very rewarding. I enjoy helping my client’s achieve their goals whether it is to find an investment property of just a beautiful and comfortable property that makes them feel at home. The ability to share in my clients’ lives and memories is what makes this profession exciting.

How do you confront the challenges of today's real estate market?
The current real estate market has allowed me to stretch my creative vision in the ways that I approach the marketing, and negotiation of properties on behalf of my buyers and sellers. It has really kept me on my toes in terms of developing innovative strategies for success. I have been fortunate to develop strong relationships with professionals in other industries who have provided me with creative and practical ideas for attracting new business and successfully selling my client’s homes.

What is your favorite place to be in NYC?
My neighborhood, Greenwich Village

What is your favorite shop?
Barneys New York

What is your favorite drink?
Caipirinha..perfect for summer nights in Soho.

What is your favorite restaurant?
Philippe Chow, Indochine, and Minetta Tavern

What is your favorite NYC book?
740 Park, One Fifth Avenue

What is your favorite thing to do in NYC that you can't do nowhere else?
Having a drink at the Boat House in Central Park.

What do you think is most underrated and overrated here?
The architecture of Tribeca is very much underrated and if people, especially visitors to New York, take time to stroll through the streets of that one-of-a-kind neighborhood, they will truly be able to appreciate its unique beauty and diversity.
I know many people are going to disagree with me, but I think the whole concept of Brunch food is overrated. In New York City one can find cuisine from around the world. I like the idea of getting together with friends, but Brunch food is not the most diverse. I prefer Indian or Thai for Brunch.

What else should Whom You Know readers know about you?
Whom You Know readers should know that New York City have served as the greatest inspirations for both my personal and professional life.
While New York City may be challenging at times, there is no other place in the world where I would rather be.
Real Estate has given me the opportunity to intimately get to know New York City’s neighborhoods.

How would you like to be contacted by Whom You Know readers?
By email, Lsemino@warburgrealty.com      http://www.warburgrealty.com/agent/LBE

 

 

 

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