Virginia K. Smith

No question, selling your home is no easy process; even for the pros, it can be emotionally draining and fraught with unexpected pitfalls. Of course, selling can also be far easier and more lucrative for brokers than us civilians. So when it comes time to market their own apartments, how do brokers handle the transaction? And more importantly, what can we learn from their successes (and missteps)?

When a movie or TV show is set in New York City—and if the people making it are savvy—real estate becomes part of the story itself. In Reel Estate, we look at some of the more memorable domiciles to grace the screen. We've spent a lot of time this past week plowing through episodes of The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, and while the character doesn't always make a ton of sense—like why would the victim of a traumatic kidnapping stick around to make cutesy chit-chat with a catcalling construction worker?—we can definitely co-sign her apartment choice.

We seem to be in the midst of a busy era for state-sponsored real estate fire sales: last month, Newark staged its headline-grabbing Valentine's Day sale of $1,000 plots of land, and now, New York state is preparing to auction off 150 Sandy-damaged Long Island lots and homes at a steep discount, according to the New York Times. In both cases, the deeds come with serious strings attached.