Women of Excellence

Earlier this week, I left New York behind bound for Pennsylvania. My mom was honored as a Woman of Excellence on Tuesday evening  and I took the opportunity to spend a few days in PA and visit with multiple excellent ladies. 

On Monday my grandparents prepared for the party by picking out attire. 

On Monday evening, I quickly stopped at Allie's house to hang with her and her three kiddos, Ella, Nina and Luke, before all bundling up to visit Jon and Hannah in their brand new house! A little pizza provided a ton of fun.

On Tuesday, my mom's supporters filled two and a half tables at the Hershey Lodge. It was a night to remember and a much deserved appreciation for a woman that is truly excellent. I couldn't have been prouder and only hope that some of that excellence has been instilled in me. ;o) 

The scores are in

Family dinner was a success! Lyle and I hosted an italian meal complete with Rev Run's spicy sausage lasagna, Ina Garten's caesar salad and garlic bread and Giada's tiramisu. I meant to take more photos, but we were so hungry and go so excited, we ate before I could think to take some shots. All I have is some photos of prep and then the food coma after.

On the house front, our loan application continues to move forward. We each received a 'Notice to the Home Loan Applicant' letting us know our credit had been checked. The notice outlined the three credit scores that had been provided to the lender from the primary credit bureaus: TransUnion, Experian and Equifax. Our loan application is just about complete, just as we received notice that the first closing on another condo unit in our development will happen April 14th. If all goes well, we could close as soon as May! 

Paperwork and proof

How do you convince a bank to loan you enough money to purchase a home? 

Lyle and I started our loan application this week. Paperwork abounds, especially because we're going for an FHA loan and the requirements are stringent. Any deposit over $1,000 into either our checking or savings account must be properly documented.

A word to the wise, if you're a child of the 80s like myself, you probably have some of those EE savings bonds lying around. A popular gift on birthdays and Christmas, I got lots of these growing up. Pay $50 upfront for a $100 bond and in years the bond will mature. Make copies of them!

Thinking this was an appropriate time to cash those puppies in, I deposited all of them. Getting itemized proof of each one, after they had already been shipped off to the bond department, was no easy task.

I'm sure more requests are to come next week, but for now we've provided all the goods. This weekend we can take a moment away from thinking about the house to prepare for the family dinner we're hosting next weekend. Our focus has shifted to a menu!

Signed, sealed and delivered

We signed our contract Friday! It's hard to believe we're a loan away from owning a piece of New York City. It doesn't get much more exciting than this.

Although the process has felt like a whirlwind so far, it has actually been a month since we put in our original offer. 

There's still a long road ahead before closing, but Lyle and I thought we should celebrate. Before returning to work, we made a pitstop at Artisanal and toasted with mimosas and almond croissants.

Reports, Lending and the Art of Negotiation

Each day we're one step closer to signing a contract! We got our engineering report back this week, and although there are a few things that need to be addressed (a broken window lock, replacement of a regular outlet with a GFCI outlet, etc.), its looks like the place is approved for move-in.

We met with our attorney on Monday, where we reviewed the entire offering plan and gathered commentary.

The current decision Lyle and I have to make is whether we make our contract contingent upon FHA loan approval. Since this is a new development, the property has not previously filed for FHA approval. According to our lawyer, condo developers tend to shy away from getting approval because its a ton of paperwork and time. In fact, in speaking with another lender, we realized that less than 100 condominium developments in all of Queens County are actually FHA approved. Should we include this contingency, we could risk the contract being null and loosing the place if approval isn't obtained.

FHA loan or conventional loan, our monthly payment won't look much different. The longer we would hold onto the home the more attractive a conventional loan becomes. We did some back-of-the-envelope calculations, using interest rate schedules and PMI estimates from Zillow. These numbers are by no means exact, but rather give a broad idea of where these loans differ.

Outside of the loan contingency, there are oodles of points in the contract to negotiate. The two attorneys, ours and the seller's, have officially begun the dance. 

Serendipity... Dollars and sense

Last week the NYTimes published an article highlighting the new programs launched by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to get more first-time home buyers into the market. These new programs are going to allow middle-income buyers to put less money down, acknowledging that the hurtle to ownership can many times rest in the accumulation of down payment cash.

Last week we realized - after doing our due diligence of speaking with multiple lenders, touring other properties in the area and reviewing the new building's DOB filings with an Architect in my office - we had indeed fallen in love. The 2-bedroom, 2.5-bath duplex condo in Belle Harbor has been keeping us up at night for weeks!

We went for it and made an offer. 

The serendipitous encounter of finding a place we would love to call home and realizing we can afford it, has propelled us into the world of real estate faster than either of us thought. 

When I started Where'sMy.House, I had no idea where it would lead, but I did know that I wanted to be transparent throughout the process. Lyle and I both agree that the housing market is changing, particularly for young people, and if we can shed any light on the process or communicate lessons learned, we absolutely want to do that. 

So, after a little back-and-forth with the seller the accepted deal is as follows: 

An accepted offer is just the beginning. We have now begun the daunting review of The Offering Plan, a 500-page document that both attorneys, buyer and seller, will debate before we can officially sign a contract. We're set to meet with our attorney for the first review of this plan Monday morning. 

In the meantime, we had our engineering inspection done yesterday. Because this is a new building and the water wasn't yet turned on in the property, the inspector suggested that we also do a pre-closing inspection to check-out all things liquid and follow-up on any commentary outlined in the first inspection. The good news is most things he noted are minor! We'll get the official report in a few days and our attorney will incorporate any findings in our contract. 

Standing in the house again, feeling the excitement, we both knew we're making the right choice. 

A proper tour... The Rockaways

For anyone that has worked with a realtor previously, it will come as no surprise that we were completely overwhelmed by our whirlwind day-tour of the Rockaways. This was the first time we had looked at any properties outside of the casual, open-house atmosphere. Nia, our agent from Rockaway Properties, did an amazing job of showing us six very different homes, all within our price range. We had a blast, but by the end of the day we were exhausted.

We began in Rockaway Park.

181 Beach 117th St.; $399,000 with $309/month maintenance (Top floor 2-bedroom, 2-bath)

Ocean Grande, 136 Beach 117th St.; $389,000 with $639/month maintenance (2-bedroom, 2-bath)

The Seavon, 118-20 Ocean Promenade; $439,000 with $605 month/maintenance (2-bedroom, 2-bath) 

And then headed to Arverne.

The Reef, 221 Beach 80th St.; $325,000 with $798/month maintenance (3-bedroom, 2-bath) 

467 Beach 68th St.; $399,000 (5-bedroom, 3-bath)

Seascape Condominiums, 229-231 Beach 99th St.; New units ranging from $329,000 - $445,990

At the end of the day we realized that we are still swooning over 12411 Rockaway Beach Blvd. The clarity prompted us to make an offer! Let the games begin.

To the end of the line

Before Super Bowl kickoff, we're taking 12411 Rockaway Beach Blvd. to the 10 yard line.  On Wednesday night we went out to Great Neck to meet with the seller's preferred lender and talk numbers. No photos of the meeting itself, but I snuck a few of the nondescript office building. 

He explained that he himself is not the lender. He represents the seller and should we move forward with an offer he would hook us up with a bank that's part of the Federal Savings Bank loan association. Because an offer hasn't been made yet, he ran the numbers at the listed purchase price, $470,000,  and with a 3.25% interest he confirmed that morning, he says we're looking at $2,774 a month, inclusive of mortgage, interest, taxes, PMI and common charges. Understanding that enhanced homeowner's and flood insurance isn't included, we rounded to an even $3,000.

The next logical step? To ride the commute, of course. Thursday night I left the office at 6:24pm and boarded the A train for the end-of-the-line.

Stopwatch rollin' along, I got all the way to Euclid Blvd. shocked I had made it so far out in such a short amount of time. By the time I passed JFK I was an hour in. The exit at 116th Beach St. Station happened at the 1hr22min mark and I finally touched the door of the potential new home at 1hr30min on the dot.

Our commute now is 50 min door-to-door. We spent the evening angsting over this compromise. We'd get everything we want - a duplex, a backyard, a parking space, in-unit laundry, a dishwasher, a great public school district and the beach for crying out loud - but would essentially double our commute.

We have an appointment today with a realtor to see more properties in the neighborhood, so who knows!? But if we did put an offer on this place, we may just roll the dice at $425,000 and say take it or leave it. Fate can handle the rest. 

Approved!

It's official. We have a budget! Our credit's been checked and we've had multiple conversations with Avin Samtani, a recommended, well-reviewed NYC lender who specializes in first-time buyers. Hard to believe, but we've been pre-approved for up to $500,000. Half a million house dollars is a TON of money and after diving into monthly costs, alongside Avin, we determined we would be more comfortable sticking to around $400,000. This purchase price would put our monthly payment, all-in with mortgage, taxes, insurance and PMI, to between $2,500 - $3,000.

Suddenly the hunt feels so much more real. Lyle and I could literally put an offer on a place knowing we could get a mortgage. Mind blown. 

Armed with a concrete budget, we had to see some properties! We braved the downpour and headed back to Belle Harbor and Broad Channel to check out some open houses. 

525 Beach 138th St.; $269,000 (2-bedroom, 1-bath)

1307 Cross Bay Blvd.; $339,000 (3-bedroom, 2-bath)

We had lunch at Grassy Point, a community sports bar in Broad Channel where everybody really does know your name. One guy told the bartender to hold onto his beer because he had to go drop off pastries at home. He'd be back before game kick-off. 

Before heading home, we re-visited the new build condo (click link to see photos) we saw last week and got pretty moony-eyed over the property. Although all the units available are identical, the price fluctuates depending on how close each is to the ocean. Last week we saw two units priced at $579,000 and $549,000. This week we looked at the cheapest of the bunch. Listed at $469,000, with a $260/month maintenance fee, the 1,750 sf duplex pushes the limits of the newly minted budget. Although we realize this one might be beyond us, we've agreed to meet with the developer's preferred lender to have a conversation about snagging this beachfront oasis. A girl can dream can't she? 

Smitten... Belle Harbor, Queens

Over the past few months Belle Harbor has been the neighborhood we continue to talk about. The prospect of an affordable oceanside property, commutable distance from Manhattan, almost seems too good to be true. We first toured Belle Harbor over Labor Day weekend. Eating empanadas in our bathing suits, toes in the sand while listening to the crashing waves, Lyle said "where we are is exactly where we want to be." At the time I thought the summer haze could be clouding our brains. What happens when the heat fades and it's the dead of winter??

Well this past weekend we went to the beach... in the dead of winter... and it was love at second sight.

We toured an open house of a new build on Beach 125th Street. Although officially duplex condos, these units felt more like townhomes than condominiums.

12419 Rockaway Blvd.; $579,000 lower unit (2-bedroom, 2.5-bath), $549,000 upper unit (3-bedroom, 2-bath)

Does it get any more amazing than an ocean view from your bedroom?

After the tour, we had brunch at Pico ($10 pitchers of mimosas) followed by coffee and a lobster tail at the cafe next door.

We couldn't leave without walking to down to the ocean. Even though the cold was biting, there were a handful of people walking their dogs by the water. Watching the winter beach fun, we were convinced that our initial vibe wasn't just July wishes and August dreams. 

Maybe Belle Harbor is our future. Next stop? Rockaprop.

Small number = large impact

That letter I wrote to Santa a couple weeks ago? He just may have granted our wish. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have announced that they will begin backing mortgages with down payments as low at 3%!!! For the first time since the 2008 recession, the lending giants are opening up the playing field to first-time home buyers that have had difficulty saving 20%. 

I admit I yelped a little at the office when I first read Trulia's blog post. 

"The catch? Borrowers have to meet strict standards to be eligible, such as a credit score of 620... Further, buyers would be required to undergo home-buyer counseling and purchase private mortgage insurance before signing on the dotted line."

I had no idea there were home-buying therapists, but sign me up! 

We were so excited that we called a lender at Vanguard to get mortgage pre-approval. We've been talking for months about getting a more realistic view of what we can afford. The possibility of 3% down shed the fear of taking the next step. I'm biting my nails while we wait to hear back.

In other news, Lyle and I received our first delivery from Blue Apron today. Recipes and pre-portioned ingredients delivered to your doorstep. Absolutely brilliant. 45 min and we were eating homemade pistachio crusted catfish with israeli couscous. What?! I'm feeling more domestic already. 

A different type of hunt... Chicago, IL

When I'm not on the hunt for houses, I'm on the hunt for architectural commissions. An unexpected business trip took me to Chicago this week. Downside? I didn't get a chance to dive into our family finances as promised last week (will attempt for next week). But the upside is I did have the opportunity to tour the revered University of Chicago campus.

A late arrival and the -20 degree polar vortex didn't leave room for downtown sightseeing. We quickly checked into the lovely Hotel Burnham.  

How could you ever choose which to wear???

The following day was filled with meetings regarding a potential new commission. 

The trip ended with a campus tour of The University of Chicago. I had never been to the campus and hadn't realized how eclectic and integrated within the Hyde Park neighborhood it is. Over the past decade, the University has began numerous multi-million dollar expansion projects and they don't seem to be slowing.

Studio Gang's upcoming residential building on campus

Because of the subzero temperatures, we didn't spend too much time wandering outside, but we did get to check out the inside of Tod Williams + Billie Tsien's Logan Center and Helmut Jahn's Mansueto Library. 

Although Where'sMy.House didn't advance this week, I'm hopeful that Where'sMy.ArchitecturalCommission did. Keep your fingers crossed!

Cue 2015

Lyle and I rang in 2015 with Liz and Alex, friends who used to live in NY, but now live in Mexico City. In town for the holiday, we met up with the two and a handful of other friends for dinner at DOC in Williamsburg followed by dance party at Cameo. We glided into the new year listening to Midnight Magic, optimistic over the twelve months ahead.

German tradition dictated our meal on the 1st. Pork and sauerkraut solidifies good luck for the year ahead and we certainly ate our fill.

Starting in January, my Where'sMy.House resolution is to properly do my homework. We've been talking lots about buying a house, but really how prepared are we? We already know that saving for a sizable down payment is a must, but I'm sure there's more to prep than being able to throw down a boatload of cash in the lending office.

I turned to 'AmIReadyToBuy.com' for some preliminary answers. (Yes, there's a AmIReadyToBuy website.)

The survey conducted by Amitree, a company founded Jonathan Aizen and Paul Knegten (and backed by numerous executives at Yahoo, Facebook, MySpace and Zynga), asks a few simple survey questions to determine a percentage of readiness. Following the survey, the site gives you suggestions on what to do and where to turn next.

Lyle and I? We're 31% ready to buy a house. I thought we'd be at least 50%, but apparently we have a long way to go. 

In reading all we have to do, it's no surprise. In addition to piling up a down payment we need to: 

• Formulate a realistic budget, not just a guesstimate
• Find an agent (this is on hold until we decide on a neighborhood, more tours to come!)  
• Contact a lender and get pre-approved 
• Keep current numerous documents including: employment/income history for the last two to five years, paycheck stubs for the last sixty days, W-2s for the past two years, two most recent bank statements, two months of statements from credit accounts, other asset statements and current landlord contact info (Amitree suggests creating dropbox and updating these docs often) 

In all, no earthshakingly surprising information, but lots to consider, and gather, nonetheless. First step? I'm going to try to tackle the first bullet. Next week on Where'sMy.House... 

All I want for Xmas...

Becki Singer hit the nail on the head with her eloquent letter to Kris. Complete with six-burner range, cabinets with roll-out drawers and numerous floor-to-ceiling built in bookshelves, who could deny her her Christmas wish? She's inspired me to write my own letter to Santa. And although the 2014 holiday has passed, I'm hopeful that we'll see some Christmas Magic in 2015. 

Dear Santa, 

First and foremost, thank you for the health of family and friends in 2014. Even though I have been focused on "mydothouse", I do understand what is ultimately important and am thankful for the continued improvement of those that have had a rough year: my dad, my grandfather and especially Lyle's dad. 

My Christmas wish for 2015 (albeit a tad early) is a converted carriage house, complete with three bedrooms, two baths, first floor studio (where those horses used to be!), arched windows and exposed wood beams galore. These rarified homes are "what real estate dreams are made of" and Santa, I hear you're the just the man to grant them.

I realize I may be reaching and won't hold it against you if this is an impossible request, but please do keep us in mind and if 2015 doesn't work out, I'm not picky, there are plenty of holiday seasons to come. We appreciate any Christmas magic you can provide. 

Very truly yours, Casey

As for 2014, we celebrated Christmas at my parents house in Pennsylvania, where we spent the day with three grandparents, two parents, one aunt, one brother and a partridge in a pear tree. It was a day filled with food, fun and my grandfather singing, "Sant-i Claus did not forget us..."

#1 place to visit?... Queens!

In honor of Lonely Plant naming Queens the #1 place to visit in 2015, Lyle and I spent the day enjoying the neighborhood we already live in. No good Sunday in any of NYC's five boroughs starts without brunch, so we headed to Queens Kickshaw for cold brewed iced coffee and ranchers' eggs. Jalapeno corn bread is the way to my heart through my stomach. 

We then took a walk through Long Island City to get to the LIC Flea & Food Holiday Market where about fifty vendors sell everything from food, to antiques, to hand crafts. Although we didn't buy anything, we did get a fantastic view of Manhattan as the sun was setting on the East RIver. 

As we started our journey back to Astoria, the twang of live folk music drew us into the LIC Bar. We had a beer and listened to Jessi James play to a crowd of 45-45 kids. We were surprised to be asked if we lived in one of the nearby high-rises. Felt like a tight-knit community of neighbors hanging at the local bar, just wrapping up the weekend listening to tunes and having a drink.

Lonely Planet got it right. As the #1 place to visit in the US, they're offering the Queens chapter for free download. I'm looking forward to spending more time in and amongst my own borough! 

Surf and Sand... Cabo San Lucas

No house hunting this week. My best friend, Rachel, and I snatched a Groupon Getaway and went all-inclusive at Sandos Finisterra in Cabo! Located at the tip of the Baja Peninsula, neither of us had been before and we thoroughly enjoyed five days of girl gab, complimentary cocktails and soaking up the sun.

As we sadly drove away from the swim-up bar, beach volleyball and sand chairs, Omar, our driver to the airport, talked about his father-in-law coming on vacation in the 70s and just never returning home to California. Three months later he called his family to let them know where he was and that he was doing fine. When you hear stories like that you can't help but think about how it only takes one decision... 

...and a boatload of $$$! Out of curiosity, I poked around on the web to see what it would take to buy property in Los Cabos. In many countries, including Mexico, financing mechanisms aren't as sophisticated as in the US. If Lyle and I wanted a little piece of paradise, we'd most likely have to pay for it in cold hard cash. Although the International Real Estate Federation is available for advice, perhaps I'll stick to Groupons.

Happy three months!

Happy three month anniversary to Where'sMy.House! 

As expected the last ninety days have provoked more questions than answers, but what a fun kick-off to the journey. Lyle and I have toured just shy of a dozen neighborhoods and although we haven't fallen madly in love with any of them, we did come pretty close once or twice. 

The highs and lows are staunch and I imagine they only get worse as we become more serious about home purchase. None of the press about millennials diving into the real estate market depict a bright outlook. With careers birthed in recession and cost of entry being high, it's difficult to turn dreams into reality. Lyle and I remain optimistic though. 

The highlights of the past three months have included: 

Belle Harbor: We both loved this beachside neighb relatively close to Manhattan. In January, we're going to go back to check it out when it's chilly. 

Cold Spring: We were charmed by this quaint town on the Hudson, but it's too far to commute. Would we relocate? 

Harlem: I dug on Harlem (although I'm not sure that Lyle felt the same). It would be a great investment opportunity annnnnnd incredibly close to the jobs we already have. 

For now, we're going to enjoy the holiday season and look forward to many more neighborhood tours to come!

For which we give thanks... West Orange, NJ

Happy Thanksgiving! 

I kicked off the week with a little pre-holiday hangout with my friend Hannah, who came up to visit NYC for the day. Staying true to Thanksgiving, we ate our way through Manhattan starting with Eataly in the Flatiron district, then Momofuku Milk Bar in the East Village and finally ending up at two holiday markets, one in Grand Central Station and one in Bryant Park. Our day certainly ushered in the holiday spirit. 

Amidst wintery weather Wednesday, Lyle and I headed to his Dad's house in West Orange, NJ. With a couple inches of snow on the ground, it felt nothing but appropriate to huddle inside and focus on food and family. 

We are especially thankful for our family's health this year. After two open heart surgeries and six months of hospital stays, Lyle's Dad is finally recovering and was well enough to thoroughly enjoy our holiday feast! Thursday's menu started with a shredded beef soup, followed by fresh spring rolls. The main course included a traditional turkey (butterflied for faster cooking), short ribs, stuffing, mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce. Meats abound, as there was even sausage in the stuffing and bacon in the brussel sprouts!

The following morning, I rounded out the festivities with a short run to burn off some of those holiday calories and came across a number of houses for sale. Being only thirty miles from Manhattan, many have moved to West Orange for more affordable, suburban living a short, commutable distance to the City. The number of houses for sale here is staggering due to unbelievably high property taxes (over $1,000 a month), but if you can get past the fees there are some pretty adorable homes just waiting to be bought.

55 Wellington Avenue; $449,900 (3-bedroom, 1.5-bath)

15 N. Cobane Terrace; $450,000 (3-bedroom, 3.5-bath)

173 Gregory Avenue; $285,000 (3-bedroom, 2.5-bath) 

222 Gregory Avenue; Under Contract, was for sale at $349,999 (4-bedrooms, 2.5-bath)

A splintered American Dream

Havel Ruck Projects: Inversion (Dan Havel and Dean Ruck), Houston, TX

I've been doing a lot of complaining when it comes to home affordability in New York City. I realize it can become a broken record. If I were talking to myself, one of the first things I'd say is "stop whining and move!" No surprise, there are plenty of places in America that provide affordable homes for middle class millennials. However, in Derek Thompson's recent article for The Atlantic, it turns out that those cities most likely have the worst social mobility for young people just trying to find their come up. "When good jobs for the middle class and affordable homes are living in different cities, it represents a slow-motion splintering of the American Dream."

What a graphic comment. Is my potential American Dream splintered?! If so, where do they keep the sandpaper in this country? 

Thompson compared two studies, one done by Jed Kolko, Chief Economist and VP of Analytics at Trulia, on metro area home affordability and another done by Raj Chetty, Harvard Economist, on intergenerational mobility - "that is, the odds that low-income households can work their way into the middle class and above." The maps below show the direct contrast, the first, Chetty's map of economic opportunity, the second, Kolko's map of affordable housing by city. In both cases red is NOT good. 

When Kolko looked at sub-markets, individual counties within metro areas, Manhattan was declared the #1 least affordable location for the middle class with only 2% of for-sale homes being affordable. Brooklyn came in at #3 with a mere 12% of for-sale homes being within reach.

*Kolko defines "affordable" as  whether the monthly payment, including mortgage, insurance and property taxes is less than 31% of the metro area's median household income. 

"There are only three cities in the United States with (a) at least 50 percent of houses affordable to middle-class millennials and (b) a top-10 finish in Chetty's mobility calculations." Drumroll... Pittsburgh, Minneapolis and Salt Lake City. I had no idea they were stockpiling sandpaper in the Steel City. And why is Minneapolis hoarding from its twin St. Paul? Utah was never on our radar, but maybe it should be??? 

Fried Chicken and Condos... Harlem

Ya know, finding a neighborhood in NYC with affordable home prices is not an easy task. When deciding where we wanted to go this weekend, Lyle and I were determined to check out somewhere realistic. We turned our sites on at least 2-bedroom condos/co-ops with a price of no more than $400,000. Many of our searches on Trulia retrieved not one result! Not the Financial District, not Hell's Kitchen, not Tribeca, not SoHo. One listing is available on the Upper East Side for less than $400,000, but I shutter to think the condition that the place is in. 

So we turned our sites uptown...

Harlem has plenty of 2-bedroom apartments available for under $400k. In order to get us in the mood, we stopped at Melba's for some fried chicken and waffles.

Walking around the neighborhood, we were vibin'. It felt like what I would imagine downtown Manhattan to have been like a generation ago, lively and gorgeous with some genuine grit. It was Sunday, so many were out-and-about dressed to impress, flowing out of church doors as late as 5pm. We hadn't really considered Harlem before, but the more we think about it, the more appealing it sounds. Right off the 123 metro line, the commute time to my office from Harlem would actually be less than it is now. We would have the right to call ourselves Manhattanites, a luxury I never thought we could potentially afford. And we would be sure to be making a sound investment because the neighborhood continues to change as many from lower Manhattan move north. Is it wrong to want to take part in the controversial gentrification of the area?  

We didn't attend any open houses, but we did stroll by some buildings with condos and co-ops for sale inside. Check out interior views by clicking on the images below.

1878 Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Blvd., 21; $450,000 (I know I said under $400,000, but this a 4-bedroom!)

101 West 115th Street, 3A; $425,000 (3-bedroom, 1.5 bath) 

130 Malcolm X Blvd., 1003; $359,000 (2-bedroom, 1 bath) 

56-60 West 119th Street, 1F; $300,000 (2-bedroom, 1-bath) 

29 West 119th Street, 35; $349,000 (3-bedroom, 1-bath) 

I'm not entirely convinced that Harlem is the place for us, but I now have a curiosity that I didn't before. There's something appealing about turning into one of these ladies. 75, strolling around Harlem with your bestie. Is there a better way to spend a Sunday afternoon?