Chelsea

Chelsea is convenient -- it's downtown, but not too far from Midtown -- and draws a lively mix of hipsters and young families. The neighborhood has undergone a transformation in recent years: Gone are the weekend parking-lot flea markets along Sixth Avenue, having been replaced by luxury high-rise rentals (like 777 Sixth Ave.), which are increasingly attracting the post-college set. (And while there is still a strong gay presence, especially along Seventh Ave., with its numerous rainbow-flagged bars and shops, Chelsea has become increasingly more mainstream.)

Elsewhere in the nabe, the housing stock is a mix of walkups, townhouses, conversions and new construction (many of which blend nicely with the area's big-box stores, including Home Depot, Bed, Bath & Beyond and Best Buy). London Terrace Gardens -- a massive 1930s complex that extends from 23rd St. to 24th St., from 9th Ave. to 10th Ave. -- combines rentals and co-ops in a courtyard setting, and has been the neighborhood's real-estate gold standard for decades.

That's changing, however, with the development of the High Line -- the elevated train line turned 22-block park. Like waterfront property, the area around the park is drawing dozens of luxury condos. Prices at the sold-out Caledonia at 450 W. 17th St. started at $700,000. (Prices have even reached upwards of $2,000 a square foot for buildings like Annabelle Selldorf's 200 11th Ave., which features garages in its units.) Bordering the uber-hip, gallery-laden western reaches of the 'hood, the High Line, though short on amenities, offers lots of promise and is poised to be one of Manhattan's hottest addresses.

CHELSEA

$3.35 MILLION

October 09, 2008 -

Not all cobblestone blocks are created equal. And if we're to believe the brochure for this "magnificent" prewar condo loft, the cobblestone stretch of West 22nd Street on which it is...more >

CHELSEA

$3.35 MILLION

October 08, 2008 -

Not all cobblestone blocks are created equal. And if we're to believe the brochure for this "magnificent" prewar condo loft, the cobblestone stretch of West 22nd Street on which it...more >

CHELSEA

$675,000

October 02, 2008 -

Bedrooms: 1 Bathrooms: 1 Square feet: 625 Maintenance: $702 -- "Worth the walk up" might not be what you want to hear, but this prewar co-op's "dazzling" 400-square-foot...more >

KEYS TO THE CITY

PEEK FOR YOURSELF AT OPEN HOUSE WEEKEND

October 02, 2008 -

It's a game New Yorkers play every day. Walk around a neighborhood, see an interesting building or apartment - and peek inside. Maybe the curtain is open just so, or maybe a door is...more >

ON THE 'LAKE FRONT

September 25, 2008 -

Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel are house hunting together in NYC. The cozy couple recently toured a condo duplex loft at the Lion's Head building in Chelsea. "They were quite...more >

TAKE MY HOUSE, PLEASE!

ANTSY SELLERS THROW IN PERKS

September 25, 2008 -

A familiar refrain was in the air last week - but perhaps with a little more urgency than usual. "Sell! Sell! Sell!" But, wait. Was that the traders screaming on Wall Street? Or was it...more >

NEW ON THE MARKET

ROOKIE NYC DEVELOPMENTS GET READY TO RUMBLE

September 18, 2008 -

23 E. 22ND ST. MADISON SQUARE PARK Put Rem Koolhaas in a box and he will find a way out of it. Case in point: At 23 E. 22nd St., he will transcend a 33-foot-wide footprint by using an arsenal...more >

AFFORDABLE ODYSSEY

AFTER A LONG WAIT, THIS FAMILY MADE IT BACK TO NYC

September 18, 2008 -

ON one level, I was certainly one of the lucky ones. My family and I were paying "below market" rent for a three-bedroom, 1½-bath apartment on West 14th Street. We had found the place in...more >

CHELSEA

$2.149 MILLION

August 28, 2008 -

Bedrooms: 2 Bathrooms: 2 1/2 Square feet: 1,606 Common charges: $1,590 -- If you enjoy hosting dinner parties - especially the "most glamorous" kind - the entertaining space, terrace...more >

CHELSEA

$1.9 MILLION

August 21, 2008 -

Bedrooms: 2 Bathrooms: 2 Square feet: 1,363 Common charges: $1,041 -- Ironic, isn't it, how you can now live freely and spaciously in this former chain factory on West 18th Street? While...more >

THREE'S COMPANY

SHARING AN APARTMENT GETS BETTER WITH AGE

August 21, 2008 -

After the age of 25, a lot of us shy away from the idea of having a roommate. Sure, when we were newly minted college graduates with no money and were just interested in sex and booze, it was OK...more >

CHELSEA

$1.445 MILLION

August 14, 2008 -

Bedrooms: 1 Bathrooms: 1 Square feet: 1,170 Maintenance: $1,121 This co-op loft on West 15th Street has a sleeping alcove bigger than many bedrooms (and set off by a retractable "privacy...more >

CHELSEA

$3.25 MILLION

July 24, 2008 -

For the "true connoisseur" who is looking for an "authentic" loft, but who doesn't want to go as far downtown as SoHo or TriBeCa, there's this newly restored spread on...more >

CHELSEA

$659,000

July 10, 2008 -

Bedrooms: 1 Bathrooms: 1½ Square feet: 700 Maintenance: $736 -- Set in the Gallery District on West 25th Street, this "chic" duplex is quite a show: The first level features a...more >

TEST SITE

RENTERS TRY OUT CONDOS BEFORE THEY BUY

July 10, 2008 -

EVERY once in a while, some of us will wander mischievously into a Mercedes-Benz dealership and ask to take the most expensive car on the lot out for a test spin. We rarely have the intention of...more >

CHELSEA

$419,000

May 29, 2008 -

Bedrooms: 0 Bathrooms: 1 Square feet: 350 -- Maintenance: $604So maybe this "gem" of a co-op only has one room, and maybe that room only has one window, but at least both are...more >

CHELSEA

$1.729 MILLION

May 15, 2008 -

Bedrooms: 2 Bathrooms: 2 Square feet: 1,200 Maintenance: $1,147 -- Touted as "a private oasis," this duplex penthouse co-op on West 22nd Street sits above the fray and offers...more >

UPTOWN VS. DOWNTOWN

IF PRICE WERE NO ISSUE, WHERE WOULD YOU LIVE?

May 01, 2008 -

Time was if you had a huge chunk of change to spend on a home, you lived uptown. All the most luxurious digs had a habit of rising around Central Park. Go figure. "Twenty-five years ago...more >