Small Wonder

A Flatiron studio—for under $500,000—stretches into four functional rooms

By Lucy Cohen Blatter  | January 26, 2015 - 2:59PM
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This alcove studio co-op in Gramercy on sale for $499,000 ticks off just about all the boxes of practical small-space living, from a workable layout to multi-functional furniture to built-in storage. (And the location, at 15th Street and Fifth Avenue, within walking distance of buzzing Greenwich Village, the Flatiron District and Chelsea, ain't bad either.) 

Shall we take a closer look? 

Though it's a studio, the living space has been divvied up into three different rooms—a den, a dining area and a bedroom around the corner in an alcove—plus the seemingly newly renovated kitchen and bathroom. 

Hidden above the large windows in the sleeping alcove are built-in shelves perfect for stowing your stuff without taking up precious floor area. (Just be sure to invest in a stepladder!)

In the kitchen, we love the ingenuity of the foldable breakfast bar. Lock it in place and, voila, an eat-in kitchen (or more space to chop). While the room itself is small, it's got two essential components: a dishwasher and microwave. Plus, from the photo above, it looks like the current owner has a pots-and-pans rack above the entrance, and we're  suckers for smart uses of space.

The pop of blue is a nice touch in the bathroom. Too bad there's not more storage space under that pedestal sink, though. (But there are workarounds for that.)

The 21-story, 430-apartment building, dubbed the Parker Gramercy, has a full-time doorman, live-in super, full-service garage and valet, and a laundry room. Unlike many co-ops, it's pet-friendly, and allows pied-a-terres, parents buying for children and co-purchasing.

With monthlies of $732, the 11th-floor studio is a relative bargain compared to sales of studios in the area in the last 90 days, which averaged $1.032 million, according to StreetEasy. Still, it's worth noting that that number is based on only a handful of deals, and may be somewhat skewed by the $1.7 million sale of a sprawling loft (technically a studio) in November. Either way, you'll probably have to see this place in person to see if it's one of those "too good to be true" situations so common in NYC real estate.

Related:

Unfortunate staging aside, this $2,335/month Williamsburg studio has all the extras

How do I find a studio that doesn't feel like a jail cell?

An Upper West Side studio that makes clever use of a Murphy bed

9 questions to ask before renting a mini-storage unit in NYC (sponsored)

8 studios that will make you forget you only have one room

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