When it comes to apartments in NYC, not much has changed over the past 30 years. I distinctly remember when the movie Ghost came out (the 1990 classic with Demi Moore and Patrick Swayze). It completely revolutionized the idea of New Yorkers wanted in a home and “loft-living” became all the rage. I must have had 1000 buyers ask me if I could find them a loft like the one in the movie. That particular loft was 4000 SF of open space located in Soho with majestic, high ceilings and huge windows. The building was cast iron, built in 1882 and like most of the buildings downtown from that era, it was designed for light manufacturing and warehousing. The idea of living in one huge open space seemed ideal for those seeking something new and fresh. Everything was open. The elevator opened directly into a huge open space and at first glance, you could see the living room, kitchen, and bed. It had a wow factor that resonated with people who thought of themselves as artists and who loved being downtown near clubs and the restaurant scene. I sold many of those lofts for under $1M. Today that same home is worth more than $10M.
These downtown lofts were a huge contrast to the Rosario Candela pre-war apartment buildings uptown where the apartments inside were designed to beautifully flow from room to room. These uptown apartments had eat-in kitchens, maids’ rooms, formal dining and living rooms, and bedrooms that were just big enough – but not too big. These apartments were designed in the 1930’s for the lifestyle of that era where people embraced entertaining guests in their parlor. These are still some of the most sought-after and expensive homes in the city.
Both of these types of homes had a strong identity and connection to the people who lived inside of them. They were an extension of their owner’s personality.
Next came homes that developers created to be “all things to everyone”. And still, most of the new housing in the city for the past thirty years fits into this category. A dizzying, uninspired display of rectangles filled with obligatory wood and marble finishes in buildings designed by zoning laws. The layouts are pretty much all the same. The kitchen is open to the living room, (inspired by loft living), but there’s a powder room off the foyer, a master suite with a walk-in closet, and an en-suite bathroom (inspired by the pre-war apartments). The dollar value of these apartments is generally determined by the view, location, and the war chest of amenities the building offers. There is nothing memorable or distinguishable about the inside. Generic box checkers with no real personality. I remember going on tours with buyers who couldn’t afford a huge loft or a classic pre-war, and at the end of the day, after seeing 15 apartments, it was impossible to distinguish one from the other. They had no majesty but served a purpose and checked some boxes.
Times have changed though, and people want different things from their homes. For the vast majority of us, we don’t entertain in parlor floors, and we don’t want our bedroom open to the living room and kitchen. We need other things because we live our lives differently. We work from home. We don’t have live-in maids or cooks. We have hobbies that we want to pursue. We want a zone where we can escape, meditate, stretch, read, and practice that is away from the kitchen, bedroom, and living room. We want flexibility in the use of our homes, and we crave efficiency. We want every square foot in the home to be purposeful and make sure the design intelligently responds to the buyer.
This is an opportunity in time where we can design homes for the future – right now. And these homes need not sacrifice quality or design. Just like the downtown lofts and uptown apartments, these homes of the future can be elegant and beautifully designed to be an extension of who we are and who we will become. The future is now, and we need not let another 30 years go by until we are ready to live it.