Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The Upper East Side is a big neighborhood. The most expensive Real Estate still is in the UES. Most of the Apartments and mansions that are closer to Central Park and south of 96th street can be super expensive and of higher quality. Then once you cross east on Lexington Ave towards the East River, the buildings and apartments there were mostly built for middle class and of lesser quality. It still expensive by New York Standards but not as expensive West of Lexington Ave.
The Upper East Side is old money and there are some parts that offer some of the most expensive real estate around. Park, Madison and 5th Avenues come to mind. There are luxury shops all about on Madison right in the heart of the Upper East Side and plenty of good places to eat, along with excellent museums. The Upper West Side is new money and the views along Riverside Drive come with a high price tag. There are also great eats there and fantastic cultural institutions nearby such as Lincoln Center.
These two neighborhoods offer great amenities, culture and just about anything else anyone would want. That is why they are so expensive.
The Upper East Side is a big neighborhood. The most expensive Real Estate still is in the UES. Most of the Apartments and mansions that are closer to Central Park and south of 96th street can be super expensive and of higher quality. Then once you cross east on Lexington Ave towards the East River, the buildings and apartments there were mostly built for middle class and of lesser quality. It still expensive by New York Standards but not as expensive West of Lexington Ave.
I was about to say the same thing. I work on the far east side of the UES, past York Ave, you can see a big difference as you walk eastward from Lexington Ave. I don't go west of Lex very often, but when I do, the difference one block makes is massive.
Yorktown is particular is relatively affordable, by UES standards. But west of Park... it's just a different league.
In early 90s, much of Manhattan was pretty run down and ghetto. Hells Kitchen, Lower East Side, Chelsea, West Village, etc.
The well off Manhattan neighborhoods then were Midtown East and the Upper East Side. As major real estate development came into Manhattan, and an influx of money, areas once considered slums became pretty valuable. The West Village, Lower East Side, were not only close to nice clubs and restaurants (and NYU) but they had some cool brownstones that had backyards.
With the exception of certain townshouses owned by people like Bloomberg, yes, UES is where people go to find bargains in Manhattan. New buildings in Williamsburg, Brooklyn can be more expensive than many of the older buildings in the UES, particularly if you're counting Lexington, 3rd, 2nd, and Avenues further East. And yes, these days the West Village, Chelsea, and the Lower East Side is often a lot more popular among celebrities and wealthy people from out of town who chose to buy in NYC.
I think the UES and UWS tend to have older housing stock. Other parts of Manhattan, since they were run down, had many more buildings demolished and replaced with new buildings with amenities. Or even just older buildings that were completely renovated.
Also, I think a variety of movies and tv shows such as Sex and the City popularized the trendier downtown neighborhoods. And lets face it, you don't go to the UES to party.......
In early 90s, much of Manhattan was pretty run down and ghetto. Hells Kitchen, Lower East Side, Chelsea, West Village, etc.
The well off Manhattan neighborhoods then were Midtown East and the Upper East Side. As major real estate development came into Manhattan, and an influx of money, areas once considered slums became pretty valuable. The West Village, Lower East Side, were not only close to nice clubs and restaurants (and NYU) but they had some cool brownstones that had backyards.
With the exception of certain townshouses owned by people like Bloomberg, yes, UES is where people go to find bargains in Manhattan. New buildings in Williamsburg, Brooklyn can be more expensive than many of the older buildings in the UES, particularly if you're counting Lexington, 3rd, 2nd, and Avenues further East. And yes, these days the West Village, Chelsea, and the Lower East Side is often a lot more popular among celebrities and wealthy people from out of town who chose to buy in NYC.
I think the UES and UWS tend to have older housing stock. Other parts of Manhattan, since they were run down, had many more buildings demolished and replaced with new buildings with amenities. Or even just older buildings that were completely renovated.
Also, I think a variety of movies and tv shows such as Sex and the City popularized the trendier downtown neighborhoods. And lets face it, you don't go to the UES to party.......
The Upper East Side is also seen as more conservative and family oriented. Same thing with the Upper West Side to a degree with the baby strollers about, but for people that want night life they move Downtown. When I say conservative, I mean stiff. If you're a cultured type however from old money, the Upper East Side is just fine.
Out of the two, I always preferred the Upper East Side. It feels more like a neighborhood and there's a lot of nice quaint shops similar to Riverdale but clearly on a MUCH bigger scale.
Perceptions are slow to change. In 1950, the UES was the ONLY place for wealth in New York if you extend the word "upper" to mean Sutton Place, Turtle Bay, and even Grammercy Park.
The UWS was a schyttehole, the LES side was worse, the Bowery was for homeless bums, and Tribeca, Soho,Meat Packing district were decaying factories.
So the UES stayed where it was while the UWS got rid of Hispanic gangs and Jerry Seinfeld and Barbra Streisand moved in Soho changed the factory floors for glistening lofts and filled street level with galleries and chi-chi Euro shops. Even the scourge, THE BOWERY now glistens with millions. Remember, Hell's Kitchen wasn't called that because of spicy food.
The UES fell behind a bit and the glitterati have rebuilt the rest of Manhattan for the rich. Only the projects remain for the poor and rent-stabilization and Mitchell Lama for the somewhat less poor and middle class.
But the richest of the rich still court Fifth and Park Avenues in the '60's and 70's.
I was shocked to see the UES had the lowest home prices by a fair margin. Why is it considered so elite then?
I didn't know that the prices on the UES and UWS had fallen below those in Harlem and Washington Heights.This is real news.I'm sure the people who have been paying 10,20 and 30 million for apartments on Riverside Dr,Central Park West and 5th Avenue and those who have been paying up to 60 million for townhouses on the side streets will be happy to hear what deals they got.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
