Jan. 16, 2008 - 48 E 13 new but does it 'have it all'?

listing says yes
Having just had a conversation with Reader Colgin yesterday about why a particular loft might not have sold (see comments in last weekend’s open house review 8 Sunday open houses $1.8mm - $2mm), I was intrigued by the description and pictures of #3B at 48 East 13 Street, which is new to the market as of yesterday.

They are asking $3.1mm and $2,108/mo for “2,300 sq ft” with this headline "dramatic triple mint loft has it all”, so the listing description starts “Space, Renovation, Location!”

the missing word
Yes, the “St. Charles’s Chef’s kitchen” is full or proper proper names (not to mention, it is huge), as is the master bath. But if you read between the lines and look closely what is shown in the 6 photos (and what is not) you won’t see “light”. Four windows in the living room (one with a large a/c unit on top). Two windows in the master bedroom (both with shades down).

Buyers who visit hoping that there is something out the 3^rd floor windows are likely to be disappointed, especially if they consider the bedrooms to be dark.

selling the R word
Buyers will either love or hate being at 13^th Street off the corner of University. Unbelievably convenient for mass transit, without the charm of the West Village or the Union Square views of nearby neighbors. Rather convenient to Whole Foods, whose rear sits across 13^th Street. So they sell the L word (location) to draw the lovers and not the haters.

Without views or (much?) light, they are selling the interior experience – the “what a great space in which to spend time doing (anything)!”.The kitchen and master bath look not to disappoint, based on the photos and descriptions (I am a sucker for kitchens), and the rest of what is shown looks like a clean renovation. I love the bleached wood floor here (another read-between-the-lines about light?) and the understated lighting features, while the photos suggest a Long-and-Narrow foot print. (Not so Narrow, with a living room 24.5 feet wide; but maybe 90 feet Long.)

what else is missing?
But I can’t tell what the layout is behind the kitchen as there is no floor plan (yet?). If those two master bedroom windows are opposite the living room windows, there must be another window on the same wall back there somewhere for the 2d bedroom, and probably a nice shade on that window. (The 3^rd bedroom or home office likely has no window.)

building history has a mystery
I find only one prior sale in the building, in August 2006, when #9C (of unknown size, condition or layout) traded at $3,217,500, apparently without a REBNY firm. So I can’t tell how helpful that sale is as a comp, but I bet this seller and Janet Weiner at Halstead know.

and an oddity
This building is one half of a tax lot, with 35 East 12 Street being the other half. My guess is that the two buildings are part of one coop. (The 12^th Street side appears to be a little narrower, but they may even has been built as a single building, with 12^th and 13^th Street entrances.)

There is a “2,600 sq ft” “full floor” loft there for sale for $4.2mm and $2,616/mo. The 5^th floor at 35 East 12 Street has been on the market for 12 weeks and is “filled with sunshine” (what a difference a block makes!). Compared to #3B at 48 East 13 Street, the 5^th floor at 35 East 12 Street may just ‘have it all”: Space, Renovation, Location and Light (though #3B is dramatically lower priced).


I wonder how many people have called today asking for a floor plan for #3B….

[update 12.5.08: For the later (and closing) history of  48 East 13 Street #3B, see December 5: find the number, hit the number / 35 East 12 Street closes.]


© Sandy Mattingly 2008