DWELL: A FAMILY-FRIENDLY BROWNSTONE UNDER $1M?

We received a message from a family re-locating from the West Coast who has visited Harlem and thought uptown would be a great neighborhood to settle down in since Brooklyn has become expensive along with anything below 100th Street in Manhattan.  A price point around $950K+ would be the general ballpark and the home should be in a family-friendly part of Harlem.

With all that said, we have to say that after our market search of home prices this year, it appear that only a shell, an SRO or a major fixer-upper would really work at this budget.  That would mean the new owner would need about $200K-$500K additionally for renovation and legal costs.  There is only one block in Central Harlem were the price has remained low since it faces public housing.  A couple of properties on this particular street are on the market and Number 217 West 131st is going for $990K. Occasional townhouses exchanging ownership for around the $500K mark seem to happen less these days and usually happen between mysteriously well connected individuals.

As far as being in a family-friendly area, South Harlem, Central Harlem below 135th Street and West Harlem might be the best bets since they have been developing the most over the past few years.  The blocks around Lenox below 135th are especially desirable and anything below 125th Street in general appears to be a great investment.  Hamilton Heights is the new underdog for 2014 and prices are increasing quite dramatically.  Anyone who walks the side streets of this beautiful neighborhood can see the overall value even though major amenities are only starting to appear.  A moderately fixed up home on a mostly renovated Harlem block will cost north of $1.5 million these days which is a deal for a Manhattan townhouse but may not the best price for entry level homebuyers.