NUMBER 1: LOWER CONVENT AVENUE

Our popular HB series that ranks the top 10 uptown micro-nabes is back for the best neighborhood countdown of 2016.  Harlem is a large part of Manhattan that changes block by block so we have put together a list of the best micro-nabes based on location, architecture, transportation, local amenities along with record closing prices when applicable. This is our own opinion based on reporting on the neighborhood for a few years and a new post will be made each day until the number one spot has been revealed.

No. 1: Lower Convent Avenue Historic District, West Harlem, 141st Street up to 145th Street on Convent Avenue including Hamilton Terrace.  Lower Convent Avenue jumps a couple of positions this year to get the Number 1 spot because of a sale just under the $5 million mark which is the record for all of Harlem for a single-family home.  Saavy developers have been upgrading historic homes with more expensive and period appropriate finishes that have been attractive to the higher-end brownstone buyer.  The value of this beautiful historic district will be apparent to anyone visiting for the first time since the architecture is some of the most unique in Manhattan and the townhouses are on the larger side.  Over the past couple of years, great local spots like Il Caffe Latte, Oso, Hogshead Tavern, Fumo, The Grange, Clove Indian, Filtered Coffee, Chopped Parsley or Sugar Hill Cafe along with those establishments closer to the Broadway corridor makes this part of uptown feel more like a neighborhood to hang out in.  As mention previously, express trains at the 145th Street hub takes one to midtown in about 12 minutes so transportation is also surprisingly convenient for this part of Harlem.