It is possible to buy an investment condo for less money – and with better returns – in New York City than in Vancouver, according an expat New Yorker now living here.
Melissa Orozco, owner of Yulu Communications, and her partner had considered buying an investment condo in Vancouver’s West End but are now looking instead at central Manhattan and Brooklyn.
Among the listings that caught her eye: an 800-square-foot co-op apartment in Midtown South Central Manhattan priced at US$305,000. This works out to $394 per square foot. Comparable condo prices in downtown/West End Vancouver average $650 per square foot, according to a recent MLS search.
New York has a much stronger rental market than Vancouver, Orozco explained, and apartment rents are much higher. For instance, she currently sublets her 500-square-foot Manhattan apartment for $3,000 per month.
With 8.2 million people living in Manhattan, she noted, there is never a lack of tenants.
New York co-ops, which make up most of the condo market, can have monthly service fees of from $1,200 to more than $2,000 per month, however.
Typical rent for a Manhattan condominium is around $6 per square foot. In Vancouver it is closer to $2.25 per square foot, even for brand-new units downtown. As an example, Aquillini Developments plans to rent purpose-built rentals in its new tower next to Rogers Arena in Vancouver for from $2.20 to $2.40 per square foot.
This article from the August 2012 Western Investor.
