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Open House Agenda: 3 Apartments to See This Weekend

By DNAinfo Staff on May 29, 2015 7:49am  | Updated on May 29, 2015 4:26pm

 Three apartments with back-of-building views.
Open House Agenda: 3 Apartments to See This Weekend
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NEW YORK CITY — A postcard view? Not everyone cares about having one, especially when it means having a quieter home. Here are open houses for three back-of-building apartments that skip the view as well as the accompanying street noise.
 
34 N. 7th St., Apt 2U, Williamsburg
1 Bedroom/ 1 Bath
Condo
Approximately 699 square feet
$975,000
Common Charges: $636 per month
Real Estate Taxes: $3 per month (abated until 2036)
Open House: Saturday, May 30, 1-3 p.m.
Sunday, May 31, 1-3 p.m.
 
Lowdown: For those seeking an amenity-laden life, the Edge, along the Williamsburg waterfront, hits the spot. The two-building condo complex — soon to be three — has everything from an indoor pool to a basketball court to a video game room.

“Bring friends!” said agent Dain Lee of the Corcoran Group.

This second-floor one-bedroom has a less-than-inspiring interior courtyard view, along with a private terrace of nearly 100 square feet. Facing the back, “you get to avoid the noise of the third Edge tower, which is being constructed across the way,” Lee said.
 
The kitchen includes convenient extras like a garbage disposal. The bathroom has a deep soaking tub and a rainwater showerhead.
 
The building is FHA-approved, allowing for a 3.5 percent down payment, Lee noted.
 
It’s pet-friendly and sublet-friendly, too — so it's suitable for investors.
 
Two possibilities for upgrades exist: The his-and-hers bedroom closets could be combined into one large closet; the walls could be reconfigured to incorporate the small hallway into the master suite.
 
The early afternoon open houses are precision-timed, taking advantage of the best light. On Saturday, you can feast at Smorgasburg, going strong in East River State Park right outside. Yum!
 
Location: The prime waterfront location is four blocks from the first stop on the L train, Bedford Avenue, and just steps from the East River Ferry to Manhattan.
 
Why put it on your open house calendar? In this coveted neighborhood, “not many one-bedrooms under a million dollars become available, especially with outdoor space,” Lee said. Another available one-bedroom on the sixth floor, asking $959,000, lacks a terrace.
 
65 Central Park West, Apt. 9F, Upper West Side
1 Bedroom/ 1 Bath
Co-op
Approximately 800 square feet
$965,000
Maintenance: $1,265 per month
Open House: Sunday, May 31, 2:15 - 3:15 p.m.
 
Lowdown: This one-bedroom is a classic home in an Emory Roth building dating from the late 1920s. Though it's an estate sale — which is sometimes code for a fixer-upper — the unit is in “marvelous condition,” said Carol Gat of the Corcoran Group, a veteran agent in the building.
 
With 800 square feet, it’s about as big as a one-bedroom gets. For those who still find it too small, there are basement storage bins, though with a wait list.
 
The foyer is next to a walk-in closet, which “backs up to the eat-in kitchen,” Gat said. All could be combined to create a formal dining area, as has been done in other apartments in the same line.
 
The windows overlook another building, though some sun arrives in the late afternoon. The back location means an escape from the bustle of Central Park — the building is directly across from Tavern on the Green and adjacent to westbound traffic exiting the 65th Street Transverse.
 
This pet-friendly building is finance-friendly, too. “Other buildings on Central Park West require you to put down more cash, but this building lets you finance 80 percent,” Gat said.
 
Location: The location in the heart of the Upper West Side is 10 minutes, if you dawdle, from the subway hub at Columbus Circle. “Some people on Central Park West wonder whether they can feel the subway,” which runs beneath, Gat said. “You don’t feel the subway at all.”
 
Why put it on your open house calendar? This super-spacious one-bedroom is in a prime location “in a first-class building,” Gat said.
 
25 Murray St., Apt. 8E, TriBeCa
2 Bedrooms, 2 baths
Condo
Approximately 1,127 square feet
$1.995 million
Common Charges: $785 per month
Real Estate Taxes: $1,236 per month
Open House: Sunday, May 31, 1-2 p.m.
 
Lowdown: The efficient layout of this mint-condition condo — in a 1930 assemblage of former commercial buildings — includes a huge rectangular living and dining area with an open kitchen. The smaller second bedroom, used by the seller as a home office, is a full 10 by 14 feet.
 
The guest bathroom includes a shower; the master bath has a shower, a separate tub and double sinks so “two people can brush their teeth at the same time and fly out the door at 7 a.m.,” said Greg McHale of Compass.
 
There’s not only a large walk-in closet — there’s a private storage unit on the same floor, a true rarity.
 
The south-facing apartment, on the eighth floor, is one floor above a planted terrace, “so you see a little bit of green and you are looking about 40 feet across a courtyard,” McHale said.
 
It works for those who don’t want street noise “and are home only when it’s dark,” or “if you have great window treatments and install fantastic lighting.”
 
Location: The southern TriBeCa location, near City Hall Park, means multiple subways are within a few blocks. Formerly, most of the “fancy stuff,” retail-wise, was north of Chambers Street, McHale said, but with the new developments around the World Trade Center site, more and higher-end retail activity is arriving.
 
Why put it on your open house calendar? It’s a real two-bedroom, two-bath apartment for less than $2 million in TriBeCa. Currently, there is only one less-pricey option on the market, farther north on Franklin Street.