Why we moved from Dallas to Battery Park City: We wanted to spend our retirement years in NYC

[ad_1] Eileen and Michael O’Connor have been splitting their time between Dallas/Fort Price and Upstate New York and looking out ahead to retiring in Manhattan. After a four-year search they lastly landed a Battery Park Metropolis rental. Right here’s their story as advised to Kelly Kreth.

I used to be born and raised on the Higher East Facet and my husband, Michael, was born and lived within the Philadelphia space.

We met when our airline jobs relocated to Dallas/Fort Price and shortly found that actual property in Texas was extra reasonably priced, a lot simpler to qualify for and that the price of dwelling was additionally a lot decrease.

Our final residence positioned within the Dallas/Fort Price metroplex city of Bedford was bought in 2001 for $169,000. It was a 2,200-square-foot, two bed room, two bathtub in-built 1996 with a two-car storage. Our quick commute to Dallas/Fort Price Worldwide Airport was a breeze.

[Editor's note: Brick Underground's series The Newcomers features first-person accounts about why a renter or buyer decided to take a chance on NYC.]

We additionally personal a house in Upstate New York; a 1,200-square-foot, two-bedroom, two-bath home. We spent most of our time within the Dallas space and visited New York sometimes.

We liked the nice and cozy climate, the cowboy tradition of Fort Price and the cosmopolitan really feel of Dallas and loved many comfortable years in Texas. We have been capable of make vital contributions to our retirement financial savings accounts.

Why they determined to maneuver A giant draw was the climate: We each just like the a number of seasons and now we have family and friends in New York State. After 40 years as American Airways staff in flight operations, we bought our residence within the Dallas/Fort Price space for $400,000 and determined to maneuver up north to Manhattan.

We stored our upstate residence however wished our major place to be in New York Metropolis. We have been downsizing and selecting to retire in Manhattan as a substitute of dwelling down south in a much bigger house. We wished extra tradition and thought-about Dallas a “NYC Wanna Be.”

Wished: A one bed room for $400,000 to $600,000 We felt {that a} one bed room would suffice. We primarily appeared in door-person buildings with elevators and our funds was $400,000 to $600,000. Our funds have been in good condition: Fortunately we didn’t must take out a mortgage as a result of we'd be dipping into our retirement funds.

Initially we appeared on the Higher East Facet after which determined to prioritize Downtown, specializing in Battery Park Metropolis.

We labored with Kunal Khemlani, an agent on the Corcoran Group who I discovered on social media. After we first met him in the summertime of 2021, he confirmed us residences though he was on crutches as a result of he was recovering from an accident.

We took a break from our seek for two years earlier than reaching out in 2024 to Kunal through Fb Messenger. I wasn't positive if he would keep in mind us, however he did. He stood out from different brokers for his understanding of our wants and his persistence.

What they like about their new place We noticed about 20 models over a span of 4 years and thought of a couple of. After going into contract on a $535,000 Albany Avenue unit, an undisclosed $16,000 evaluation got here up throughout due diligence. We backed out.

We favored one other unit for $525,000 on South Finish Avenue, however then we lastly discovered the one: A one bed room with a balcony in an elevator constructing referred to as The Cove Membership. It’s a well-maintained rental constructing on the waterfront in Battery Park Metropolis, and now we have a big roof deck, fitness center, lounge, and 24-hour doormen. Our rental was $555,000.

Our closing was in Could and we opted to maneuver our stuff ourselves however we needed to downsize in an enormous method, together with eliminating our automobile, however it wasn’t a wrestle in any respect.

The constructing seems to be in good condition and we love the downtown space and waterfront, in addition to being close to the 6, 2 and three trains.

We don’t miss a lot about Dallas besides the Tex-Mex meals, however there's loads of nice meals in NYC. We like Mezze on the River and Treadwell's and we proceed to find new eating places.