Finding the Ideal Neighborhood in NYC for Your Next Home

6/16/2020 PAID POST by HSBC — Finding the Ideal Neighborhood in NYC for Your Next Home

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n downtown New York City, a native has spent about a I decade helping families find their dream homes in the picturesque TriBeCa neighborhood. An elevated park a few minutes away in trendy Chelsea is the spot where locals gather to take in the colorful tulips and breathtaking views of the Hudson River. And farther uptown, there’s a baker on the historic Upper East Side who’s grown up alongside the customers who come in for his tasty pastries.

Whether you’re a lifelong NYC resident who wants to move up into new digs or you live overseas and are looking for a change of scenery, everyone expects a dazzling range of options for entertainment, culture and cuisine when they consider buying a home.

But beyond glitz-and-glamour, it’s the people and experiences that make NYC neighborhoods unique. In fact, if you’re a potential homebuyer, chances are you value these as much as high-end condo finishes and renovated bathrooms.

https://www.nytimes.com/paidpost/hsbc/finding-the-ideal-neighborhood-in-nyc-for-your-next-home.html 1/14 6/16/2020 PAID POST by HSBC — Finding the Ideal Neighborhood in NYC for Your Next Home Roschel Stearns, a licensed real estate agent in New York, says homebuyers aren’t just looking for the hustle and bustle of the city. Instead, they’re often focused on finding a “livable feel in a neighborhood that will distinguish it from the busiest sections of the city.”

TriBeCa, the Upper East Side and Chelsea are three of the most sought-after neighborhoods in New York City— for homebuyers who want to purchase their first home to those looking to trade up. The people, places and features in these neighborhoods make them special for a variety of buyers.

TRIBECA Family and Outdoor Space

Artists and financial types might not be two groups you’d rush to put together, but they both live happily in TriBeCa, a neighborhood in southwest NYC whose name is an acronym for “Triangle Below Canal Street,” an apt descriptor of its ideal placement in the city. You can find many of them mingling together while enjoying a cocktail or brunch at the nearby Beekman Hotel, which offers luxury accommodations in a landmark 19th-century building. Its stunning nine-story atrium has original cast-iron work along with two restaurants, including Top Chef star Tom Colicchio’s Fowler and Wells.

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The atrium in The Beekman Hotel, which was accidentally preserved after having been walled off in the 1940s, is open to the public. Visitors can enjoy the pyramid-shaped skylight or a collection of artwork on the ground level by Cathy Cone and curated by James Company Contemporary Art Projects.

“There’s a mix of business people, families, tourists,” said Alex DiGregorio, sales coordinator at the hotel. “We get a lot of locals come in regularly; so much so that the concierge will know and say hi to the kids of some of the families.”

The reason you’ll find so many residents with differing backgrounds in TriBeCa? It comes down to the old standard real estate consideration for both groups: location, location, location. The art crowd appreciates the open spaces in converted https://www.nytimes.com/paidpost/hsbc/finding-the-ideal-neighborhood-in-nyc-for-your-next-home.html 3/14 6/16/2020 PAID POST by HSBC — Finding the Ideal Neighborhood in NYC for Your Next Home warehouses where they can live and set up their studios; the bankers and stockbrokers enjoy the short commute to their offices in the Financial District.

New developments along the Hudson are attracting a diverse group of residents, people who want to be in the thick of things without necessarily being reminded that they're in the middle of everything. They enjoy the less-crowded feel of the neighborhood, as well as leafy parks and the bike path and walkway along the river. They also enjoy the The 1886 New York Mercantile Exchange elegant old buildings with ornate has been converted into condominiums. ironwork that stand next to brownstones and refurbished factory spaces.

“I started my rst job in TriBeCa, and this neighborhood really has not changed since then, and that’s pretty amazing.” — Joseph D’Alessio, HSBC Mortgage Consultant

Families are drawn to the good public schools, and everyone can appreciate the galleries and cultural offerings, such as the offbeat Mmuseumm, with its unusual exhibits and events.

Joseph D’Alessio, a native New Yorker who’s been a HSBC Mortgage Consultant at HSBC Bank USA, N.A.’s branch in the heart of TriBeCa since 2002, says the https://www.nytimes.com/paidpost/hsbc/finding-the-ideal-neighborhood-in-nyc-for-your-next-home.html 4/14 6/16/2020 PAID POST by HSBC — Finding the Ideal Neighborhood in NYC for Your Next Home families and local businesses — places like Balloon Saloon, where he gets gifts — are what make the neighborhood unique.

D’Alessio works with people interested in obtaining a home and guides them through the entire mortgage process — which can be particularly complex in NYC, from pre-approval to closing. He has helped over 1,000 people finance homes, including those who have no U.S. credit history.

He says he loves the neighborhood he Sharon Hershkowitz is the owner of the works in: “I started my first job in TriBeCa, Balloon Saloon, which has been open for 30 years. and this neighborhood really has not changed since then, and that’s pretty amazing,” he says.

More in Tribeca

DUANE PARK ALBERT WASHINGTON CAPSOUTO PARK MARKET PARK The rst public space acquired by the city specically for use as a The park features a 114-foot A public park that features a public park. fountain designed by a local basketball court, tennis artist. court, a community garden and a gazebo.

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It’s hard to believe that only 160 or so years ago this whole area was yet to be developed. First came rows of brownstones, then the mansions for the rich along the avenues, followed around 1910 by tall luxury apartment blocks. The Frick Collection, one of the pre- eminent small art museums in the U.S., is a testament to the early era of the Upper East Side: Henry Frick built his mansion in the early 1900s, with the intent that it would someday become the public museum it is today with a high-quality collection of paintings and fine furniture.

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The West Gallery in The Frick Collection has hardly changed since Henry Clay Frick lived there from 1914 to 1919.

Like Frick, many of America’s wealthiest families chose the Upper East Side as their home: Your neighbors might have been Roosevelts, Rockefellers and Carnegies. And Gracie Mansion, the official residence of the New York City mayor since 1799, is on the most eastern end of the neighborhood.

History is still to be found — indeed, the neighborhood has its own Historic District — but it’s a thoroughly modern section of the city. Kemp Minifie, a personal kitchen coach and private chef, is an Upper East Side stalwart. She’s watched the neighborhood change from its old German roots (“All that’s left is the https://www.nytimes.com/paidpost/hsbc/finding-the-ideal-neighborhood-in-nyc-for-your-next-home.html 7/14 6/16/2020 PAID POST by HSBC — Finding the Ideal Neighborhood in NYC for Your Next Home Schaller & Weber butcher shop and the Bavarian Inn”) to a hub with a more cosmopolitan feel. Yet, she says one thing remains the same: “It’s still a neighborhood, with lots of families and kids.”

In fact, if you want to feel connected to the rest of the city but also at home in the heart of your vibrant community, the Upper East Side might be perfect for you. The neighborhood boasts luxury doorman buildings, upscale townhouses and top-end towers, but if you head Chris Cunningham works at Schaller & toward the East River, away from the Weber, a German butcher and deli shop famous Museum Mile and millionaire that has been open since 1937. homes, you can often find more affordable apartments and a youthful vibe.

“The UES has a little bit of something for everyone,” says Neal Blangiardo, who’s been living in the neighborhood for nearly a decade with his wife and 4-year-old daughter. “You have billionaire row to affordable apartments, old and new, culture and cuisine. And food-wise, you can get everything under the sun, from Taiwanese to Sicilian to Ethiopian. It’s the kind of place you can go to a modern- day speakeasy and have a drink that was invented in the 1920s.”

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Left: Herbert Glaser runs Glaser Bake Shop with his brother. The bakery, which has been open since 1902, has been in the family for three generations. Right: Neal Blangiardo and his four-year-old daughter, Isabella, play in Carl Schurz Park along the East River.

Herb Glaser, who runs Glaser Bake Shop on First Avenue near 87th Street with his brother, says he’s seen the neighborhood change over the years. Glaser has been working at the bakery for nearly 40 years. The shop, which has been open since 1902, has been in the family for three generations of Glasers.

In the bakery, you can find reminders of the past: a notebook used to record bakery orders in the 1920s and Glaser’s parents’ wedding picture (of course, they’re standing in front of a cake that was baked at Glaser).

And to go along with the black-and-white photos, the bakery makes the ever-popular “black-and-white” cookie with divided brown-and- white frosting on top. While the shop didn’t invent the cookie, its customers fancy that it perfected the pastry, which despite its "cookie" name resembles the batter of a cupcake.

But the more things change, the more they stay the same. The black-and-white cookies have been one of the bakery’s top sellers for years, and hundreds still fly off the shelves every day, from minis to regular to super-sized.

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COOPER GUGGENHEIM METROPOLITAN HEWITT, MUSEUM MUSEUM OF ART SMITHSONIAN The home of a collection of One of the world's largest DESIGN Impressionist, Post- and nest art museums, with Impressionist, and early a collection that includes MUSEUM Modern and contemporary over 2 million works of art. art. The only museum in the U.S. devoted to historical and contemporary design.

CHELSEA Past and Present

A horn sounds as a cruise ship departs from its dock, reminding you that the Hudson is your neighbor on the west in this neighborhood. Steel trestles support repurposed elevated train lines running north to south through the heart of Chelsea, giving the neighborhood the nerve-center that’s the High Line park and walkway. Visitors and locals alike stroll above the traffic below and survey the city from a unique perspective on this roughly 1.5-mile park.

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The High Line is a 1.5-mile park built on an elevated freight rail line that enables visitors to see the streets on Manhattan’s West Side from a unique vantage point.

“No matter what the season, the High Line offers unparalleled cityscape views and a syncopation that sets the beat for the hood,” says Tim Horan, who has lived in Chelsea for 25-plus years.

The High Line is just one of the places that give a nod to the melding of Chelsea’s past and present: Railroads played a big part in the development of Chelsea in the second half of the 19th century as factories, lumber yards and mills set up shop from 14th Street up to 59th and needed freight access.

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Likewise, a series of piers along the Hudson that were originally a passenger ship terminal in the early 1900s now are used by Chelsea Piers Sports & Contreras Saol shows off a lobster at The Entertainment Complex, which includes a Lobster Place, which is located in health club, rock climbing wall, the city’s Chelsea Market. largest gymnastics training center, two basketball courts and a multilevel golf driving range facing the water.

Brett Leveridge is a longtime resident of Chelsea who appreciates the blending of old and new. “Around the corner from me, there are wooden structures from the 19th century that still house restaurants and stores,” he says. “I like to imagine the establishments that have stood there over the years, not to mention the generations of people who lived above them.”

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Left: Rows of townhouses created in the 1830s are among the oldest homes in Chelsea. Center: These homes are considered to be the best examples of Greek Revival architecture in the city. Right: Chelsea blends old charm with modern architecture.

The neighborhood’s housing also is like a love song marrying its rich history with more modern inspiration. You can buy a wide-open, renovated warehouse loft, choose the contemporary elegance of a new doorman building or find an old-school Chelsea walk-up to keep you in shape (and more cash in your pocket).

Horan appreciates the neighborhood for both its old charm and modern flavor, which includes a mix of fitness studios and bustling nightlife. He’s right in the heart of things, living in what he describes as “my lovingly restored 1850 townhouse, with all of the right bones for urban life, including a south-facing garden, where I have just started keeping bees.”