BrickUnderground

Upper West Side co-op owner and broker-blogger Malcolm Carter opens the kimono on life inside a first-floor apartment. Sure, it’s loud and there’s cigarette smoke drifting in from the street. On the other hand:

• Eventually you stop noticing the window bars
• The reflected sunlight from the buildings across the street is  sometimes as bright as the real thing
• Working from home is like sitting at an outdoor café, what with the snatched bits of conversation and cigarette smoke
• Ground floor apartments are cheaper
• Being so close to the doorman is arguably safer than living upstairs
• Guess who’s not taking the stairs when the power goes out?
• UPS etc delivers directly to his door
• It’s easy to pop outside for a weather-check before getting dressed for real