The Guide to Buying Your First Apartment in NYC

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Heiselmann’s first piece of advice is to find a real-estate agent, preferably someone you trust. The best way to do this is to talk to the friends or family you know who have already bought a home. If they've had a good experience with someone, chances are you will too. You can also find reviews of realtors online. Yelp, for instances, is a great resource. Your agent is going to be with you from start to finish, so it should be someone you like to talk to, can spend hours a day with, and who will happily answer your (many) questions. You’re going to be working with this person everyday for months, so choose wisely. 

Once you choose an agent, the next step, says Heiselmann, is to get your finances in order. The loan amount will determine what sort of places are feasible for you to consider. “Clients are going to be pre-approved for a certain amount, which gives us something to work with,” he says. “Usually first-time home-owners don’t know how much they can actually borrow. They think they can borrow more or they think they can borrow less. It’s good to use the pre-approval amount as a guideline.” Occasionally clients think they are in the market for a million dollar home, when in fact they can't afford anything of the sort. There are also cases where people have better credit than they had thought. 

Now it’s time to start looking. “At this stage we try to see everything that’s in their price-range in their desired area,” says Heiselmann. While that may sound like a lot of places to check out, New York inventory is so low right now that it’s easier than you’d think. “As inventory stands right now that’s not daunting,” he says. “In two weekends you can usually see everything. Not to say that there aren’t people buying apartments, but inventory is very low right now.” 

New York requires that you have a real estate attorney for buying and selling property. This may seem odd to people from California (or many other states), where lawyers aren’t required by law and often don’t come into play for residential properties. It’s an additional cost, but it doesn’t have to break the bank. A real estate lawyer will typically take a flat fee for their services, so make sure you shop around and get a good deal. That said, competency is also key: “It’s important to hire a lawyer based in New York, not your cousin in Pennsylvania who happens to do some real estate law,” says Heiselmann. “Everything in New York moves really fast, so if you’re a buyer, and your lawyer is lagging, it's going to mess up the deal.” 

A weird, New York-specific decision is whether to choose a co-op or a condo. “The difference between buying a co-op and buying a condo usually comes down to if you’re going to want to rent it. If it’s an investment property, a co-op is probably not an option because they usually have rules about how long you can rent it. With a condo, your property is yours so that doesn't matter,” says Heiselmann. There’s also the matter of price to consider: “Co-ops are usually cheaper, but the common charges are more,” he continues. Another factor that plays into cost are down payments; apartments typically require at least 20 percent down, while co-ops occasionally ask for as little as 10. In some neighborhoods, a co-op can be nearly half the price of comparable condo. 

The New York real estate market isn’t like most other places in the country. “People are also buying quickly,” Heiselman says. “If someone finds something they like, they have to be ready to make an offer.” There’s also the fact that all-cash offers have become especially common these days. “In the five, six hundred-thousand-dollar range you see a lot,” he says. "Often, it's someone who’s buying an apartment for their kid." Still, Heiselmann says that financing a one or two bedroom in Brooklyn is still possible—it just requires time. “Having patience is important in this market. If you want something, in a couple of months, you’ll find something.”