keeping it real in Chelsea (or not) as 'too pushy …?' thread pushes on

buying like it is 2005
There is a new listing last week in one of my favorite Chelsea condos that tracks with my December 4 Goldilocks post (Goldilocks in the too pushy ..? thread in greater midtown). One of the smaller units in the brand name building (under 1,000 sq ft), it last traded three years ago around $1,150/ft. It is offered now at a 7% premium over that 2005 clearing price. Two high-floor units in the same line have closed this year within $5,000 of the new offering price so there should be a lower-floor discount from the asking price here, even if early-2008 market conditions continue to apply (not likely, right?).

selling like it is … 2007, or 2011?
Another new listing this week in that (still favorite) Chelsea condo, but I can’t tell in which year they have priced it. A 2-bedroom unit, it traded above $1,100/ft within the last 30 months. It is now offered for sale above $1,250/ft. Deal, or no deal? Deal in 2009, or in 2011??

The smaller Manhattan loft is priced 7% above its 2005 clearing price; the larger unit 14% above its 2006 trading level. I’d say one is closer to The Market than the other, but what will Goldilocks say? I have them both on MLG tracking. (And yes, it has been a pushy week in Chelsea.)

© Sandy Mattingly 2008