For under a million dollars, one can find all sorts of housing configurations: park- and subway-adjacent studios, one-bedrooms hidden in carriage houses or former shoe factories, and even the occasional true two-bedroom. We’re combing the market for particularly spacious, nicely renovated, or otherwise worth-a-look apartments at various six-digit price points.
This week, we’ve found you a pleasant, nicely renovated one-bedroom in Woodside and a sprawling three-bedroom, two-bath in Lenox Hill.
A Brooklyn Heights studio for $475,000
A high-floor studio apartment in a historic Brooklyn Heights former hotel, this little aerie is white-walled and bright with open-sky views. Located in the former Hotel St. George, which was converted to a co-op building in 1984, the studio has a kind of brisk charm: one large room with beamed ceilings and hardwood floors, two closets, and a no-nonsense kitchen and bathroom tucked off to the side (the finishes on these are in good shape but nothing to write home about). The full-service building has a 24-hour doorman, an on-site gym, a roof deck, and bike and basement storage (the latter two with wait lists). The monthly maintenance is a reasonable $1,030 and the apartment is located just a block from the Clark Street 2 and 3 trains. For what it lacks in interior charm, it is in arguably the most delightful neighborhood of Brooklyn, close to the Promenade and Brooklyn Bridge Park.
A Lenox Hill three-bedroom for $849,000
Few apartments in Manhattan under a million dollars can be described as sprawling, but there’s really no better word for this three-bedroom, two-bathroom (!) co-op. There’s a huge living room with a dining area to one side, all the bedrooms are large and have closets (including a massive walk-in off the primary), and the bathrooms and kitchen are reasonably sized. There’s even a little laundry room. The layout is a bit weird — the huge living room’s only windows are in the dining area so it’s somewhat cavernous, and there’s a bedroom jutting off one corner. The building is also postwar, meaning there are nice parquet floors but not much else in the way of detailing. The 1963 co-op is also on leased land. But with so many big windowed rooms and a recent renovation, those trade-offs seem more than reasonable, especially at this price point, in an insanely convenient location by 63rd Street and Third Avenue in a full-service building with highish monthlies of $4,868. Given the size of the apartment, though, that’s to be expected.
A Woodside one-bedroom for $375,000
It’s refreshing to see a nicely renovated one-bedroom for under $400,000. While prices in Jackson Heights and Astoria have shot up, there are still pockets of affordability in Manhattan-adjacent Queens, among them in Woodside, where this prewar co-op is located. It’s bright and cheerful with hardwood floors and a big foyer that has a double-door coat closet (there are three closets total). Other pleasant features include an arched entryway and a big tastefully renovated kitchen with white-tiled walls, stone countertops, and under-cabinet LED lighting. The apartment also has all new wiring and is located in a ten-building complex on 11 landscaped acres with bike storage, laundry rooms, and a wait-listed parking lot. It’s on the border of Woodside and Astoria, so the main drawback is the walk to the subway — both the R and M trains are about a half-mile away.
A one-bedroom in Lenox Hill for $625,000
Located just off Park Avenue on 75th Street, the location of this neat little one-bedroom co-op is pretty much ideal. The apartment itself has a nice, comfortable layout: A small foyer with a coat closet opens onto a large living room with a working fireplace. Off a short hall to the side, there’s the kitchen, bathroom, and a good-size bedroom with built-in shelving and storage along one wall. The apartment faces north and has beamed ceilings, interior shutters, hardwood floors, and a straightforward renovation with classic finishes. Washers and dryers are allowed with approval, as are pied-à-terres (similarly, parents buying for children and co-purchasing are a-okay). Pets are permitted, and there’s an elevator. There’s a live-in super but no doorman, keeping the monthly maintenance to a reasonable $1,596.