10 REMB THE NEW YORK TIMES, SUNDAY, JUNE 28, 2020Jane L. Wals has spent much of her life driv-
ing in and out of New York City. Growing up
in Scarsdale, N.Y., she was introduced to the
Upper East Side when her grandmother
lived there. “I learned to drive to and from
the city because of trips to see my
grandma,” Ms. Wals said.
Later, she rented in the neighborhood
and drove to work in Westchester County,
where she is a high school graphic design
teacher. About eight years ago, some neigh-
bors were looking to sell their 900-square-
foot one-bedroom with a dining room and
balcony. She bought it for $490,000.
Over time, her commute to Westchester
worsened. On Fridays, the trip home could
take almost two hours. “I was just miser-
able sitting in traffic,” said Ms. Wals, 46.
She considered moving closer to work,
friends and family, but hesitated. “I was
pretty much paralyzed about the idea of
leaving what I called my city,” she said. “I
didn’t want to live in a house. I still wanted
some kind of citified life where I could walk
to lunch, to grocery stores and to CVS.”
A friend’s mother reminded her that New
Rochelle, south of Scarsdale, was booming.
Ms. Wals knew she could get more space
there. So she contacted Steven Jacobson, a
Scarsdale friend and broker at Hopkinson
Associates, for help selling and buying.
A two-bedroom would be ideal, she
thought, so her brother and his family, who
live in Miami, could stay when they visited.
Parking, she found, was usually available
at an extra cost.
Her budget was $650,000, though she did-
n’t want to pay over $570,000, and it took
months to sell her Upper East Side co-op.
Among her choices:
1.MODERN HIGH-RISE
A 1,300-square-foot two-bedroom in this 39-
story high-rise, which opened in 2007, had a
great view (but a building going up nearby
would change that). It had two and a half
bathrooms and huge windows. The price
was $599,000, with monthly fees of around
$1,500 and annual taxes of around $8,000.
2.CONVERTED DEPARTMENT STORE
This one-bedroom with a den was over 1,100
square feet, in a 1914 building that once
housed a Bloomingdale’s. It had 14-foot ceil-
ings, original hardwood floors and exposed
brick but not much natural light. The price
was $420,000, with monthly fees of around
$460 and annual taxes in the low $4,000s.3.FORMER PUBLISHING HOUSE
A ground-floor one-bedroom in an 1889
building that once housed a printing press
was almost 1,100 square feet, with exposed
pipes and an industrial vibe. But it lacked a
dishwasher and washer-dryer. The price
was $445,000, with monthly fees of around
$400 and annual taxes in the high $2,000s.HER CHOICE
Ms. Wals loved the aesthetic and history of
the Bloomingdale’s building. “I was excited
at the idea that I would be living in ladies’
shoes, or maybe housewares,” she said. But
the lack of light was a problem.
At the former Knickerbocker Press build-
ing, she couldn’t figure out how to make the
soaring space more functional. And she
wondered why previous owners hadn’t add-
ed a dishwasher or washer-dryer.
She was holding out for a real two-bed-
room, unavailable in either building.
Ms. Wals saw several units in the high-
rise. She wasn’t sure she could get a view of
the Long Island Sound until she saw the
apartment she eventually bought.
“It was a beautiful fall day with these big,
puffy clouds, and you could see the colors in
the trees, and it was perfect,” she said.
Six months later, after her co-op sold for
$745,000, she was thrilled that the high-rise
was still available. The construction nearby
gave her some “leverage,” she said. “But
my favorite view over Five Islands Park
will stay.”
She bought her home for $558,000 and did
some renovations, turning kitchen cabinets
into shelves where she can display her Fies-
taware collection. She arrived last fall.
“I love the brine smell of the Long Island
Sound,” she said. “ I wake up every day, and
I open my shades, and there’s the water.”
Her commute is now 30 miles a week
rather than 30 a day — although she has
been teaching remotely since New Rochelle
became an early hub of infection during the
coronavirus pandemic. She misses her stu-
dents but is grateful that she can easily
check on her parents, who are nearby.
“It was so hard for me to leave my city,”
she said. “I knew everybody, from the wom-
an at CVS to the guys at the pizza place who
knew exactly what I wanted when I walked
in.” She added, “I had made a big city into a
little town for myself, and that’s what I loved
about it, but that’s what I’ve started doing
here.”The Hunt
Exiting the Upper East Side for Westchester and More Space at the Right Price
Tired of her grueling commute,
a Manhattanite hopes to find a
‘citified life’ in New Rochelle.
A 1,300-square-foot
apartment in a modern
high-rise had two bedrooms,
two and a half bathrooms, big
windows and a great view.A one-bedroom with a den
in a 1914 building that
once housed a Bloomingdale’s
store had over 1,100 square
feet, with 14-foot ceilings.A one-bedroom on the
ground floor of the 1889
former Knickerbocker Press
building had about 1,100
square feet and exposed pipes.‘I was pretty much paralyzed about the idea of leaving
what I called my city. I didn’t want to live in a house.’
JANE L. WALSBy JOYCE COHEN[email protected]1 2 3The BuyerJane L. Wals, in her new kitchen, where she can display her Fiestaware collection.The OptionsThe list price is the asking price when the property came on the market with the most recent broker.
The time on the market is from the most recent listing to the closing date. Email: [email protected]
COMPILED BY C.J. HUGHES
24 weeks on the market
$619,000list price
3% belowlist priceSize 3 bedrooms, 2½ baths
Details A 39-year-old, 3,256-
square-foot house, with a sunken
living room that has a fireplace, on
3.5 acres.
Costs $11,533 a year in taxes
Listing brokerBerkshire Hath-
away HomeServices New England
Properties$600,000
Connecticut250 Wilton Road East
Ridgefield31 weekson the market
$499,000list price
4% abovelist priceSizeStudio
DetailsThis 350-square-foot
co-op has hardwood floors, a bath
with a pedestal sink, and a win-
dowed kitchen in a nondoorman
elevator building.
Costs$701 a month in mainte-
nance
Listing brokerCorcoran Group$521,000
Manhattan253 West 16th Street, No. 6E
Chelsea15 weeks on the market
$749,000list price
5% belowlist priceSize 4 bedrooms, 3 baths
Details A 95-year-old, 2,497-
square-foot Tudor-style house,
with a living room that has decora-
tive molding and a wood stove,
and a kitchen with stainless-steel
appliances, on 0.38 of an acre.
Costs $21,454 a year in taxes
Listing brokerDouglas Elliman$712,500
Westchester1 Chelsea Road
New Rochelle30 weekson the market
$609,888list price
2% belowlist priceSize 3 bedrooms, 1½ baths
Details A 63-year-old, 1,356-
square-foot split-level house, with
a kitchen that has granite coun-
ters and a skylight, a finished
basement and an attached one-
car garage, on 0.18 of an acre.
Costs$13,942 a year in taxes
Listing brokerDouglas Elliman$595,000
Long Island10 Roxbury Avenue
Plainview5 weekson the market
$639,900list price
Less than 1% abovelist priceSize3 bedrooms, 2 baths
DetailsAn 83-year-old, 1,676-
square-foot house, with a living
room that has a fireplace, a
kitchen with quartzite counters, a
pergola-shaded patio and a deck,
on a fifth of an acre.
Costs$13,582 a year in taxes
Listing brokerWeichert, Realtors$640,000
New Jersey14 Herning Avenue
CranfordAROUND $600,000What’s Selling Now
44 weekson the market
$799,000list price
14% belowlist priceSize1 bedroom, 1 bath
DetailsThis 750-square-foot
prewar co-op has hardwood
floors, a living room with a home
office in an alcove and an eat-in
kitchen in an elevator building.
Costs$1,447 a month in mainte-
nance
Listing brokerWarburg Realty$690,000
Brooklyn
155 Henry Street, No. 6E
Brooklyn Heights