All articles by Emily Nonko

Emily is a Brooklyn-based writer who has covered New York City real estate, architecture and design for Brownstoner, The Wall Street Journal, Dwell and other publications. You can follow her on Twitter @EmilyNonko.

March 21, 2017

Music exec Sylvia Rhone looks to unload her Tribeca condo for $6.695M

By Emily Nonko

This three-bedroom Tribeca condo at 250 West Street definitely looks fit for a music producer, so it's no surprise this is the home of famous music industry executive Sylvia Rhone. Born and raised in Harlem, Rhone moved downtown after making her name in the business and purchased this pad for $4.3 million in 2013. The apartment boasts 2,500 square feet of space, with a joint living and dining room that looks out onto the Hudson River, and it can now be yours for $6.695 million.
Take a peek

March 20, 2017

Art Deco co-op owned by fashion photographer Paul Sinclaire asks $2.2M

By Emily Nonko

This is a picturesque apartment from a picturesque building, the Art Deco co-op 444 East 52nd Street. The Beekman apartment in question belongs to the fashion photographer Paul Sinclaire, who purchased it in 2014 for $1.35 million. After being listed on the market last year without finding a buyer, it's once again up for grabs at a price of $2.195 million.
Time for a tour

Distinctive Homes

March 19, 2017

Stately Staten Island Victorian hits the market for $1.5M

By Emily Nonko

You can't find homes like this in Manhattan--you're going to have to venture over into Staten Island. This freestanding Victorian, which occupies a large corner lot with a front and back yard, can be found at 309 Guyon Avenue in the neighborhood of Oakwood. Both the interior and exterior have been well preserved, with a turret and framework on the outside and fireplaces galore inside. The second floor holds four bedrooms, and there's a finished attic on top of that. It's up for grabs at a price just under $1.5 million.
Take a look inside

Distinctive Homes

March 17, 2017

$525K Fort Greene studio has pre-war details and a thoughtful layout

By Emily Nonko

Perched atop the 15th floor of the prewar Griffin co-op at 101 Lafayette Avenue, in Fort Greene, is this lovely studio apartment. Although it's modest in size, prewar finishes, large casement windows, and a well-thought-out layout (not to mention the attractive mix of rustic and modern decor) offer a sense of light and spaciousness. It has just been listed for sale at an ask of $525,000.
Time to take a look

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March 16, 2017

54-acre estate with ponds, a cottage, and a 19th century colonial home asks $1.85M upstate

By Emily Nonko

This historic brick colonial is known as the Guilford Bower House, named after the Guilford Bower Farm established here in 1854 (h/t CIRCA). The former farm occupies 54 acres at 707 Albany Post Road, in the upstate town of Gardiner. The property has been restored "true to its beginnings," as the listing says, with stained glass details, pocket doors and tin ceilings. (The reno was so accurate, in fact, the property is now on the National Register of Historic Places.) For this grand, sprawling estate, it will cost you $1.85 million.
Take a look around

March 12, 2017

$825K East Village co-op boasts a blend of prewar and modern charm

By Emily Nonko

There's nothing to hate about this prewar co-op at 199 East 7th Street, a stately brick building in the East Village. Now on the market for $825,000, it holds one bedroom and one bathroom over 750 square feet. Original details like oak floors and high ceilings are coupled with newer upgrades like recessed lighting and a modern kitchen. All together, the mix of finishes makes for one very cute apartment.
Take a look

Distinctive Homes

March 10, 2017

$5M Nomad apartment boasts a skylight with views of the Empire State Building

By Emily Nonko

Talk about a room with a view: the living room of this Nomad apartment comes with a stunning skylight that looks out directly to the Empire State Building. Besides that, the 3,850-square-foot pad features soaring ceilings, a spiral staircase leading to a second level, and a 500-square-foot roof deck. There are plenty of things to gawk over inside this penthouse loft, which has just hit the market for $4,999,999.
So take a look

Distinctive Homes

March 9, 2017

Modest apartment with an incredible transformation asks $699K on the Upper West Side

By Emily Nonko

This 425-square-foot brownstone apartment, at 167 West 73rd Street in the Upper West Side, was transformed a few years back by the archtiecture firm Specht Harpman. Now, it's a sleek, modern pad with plenty of creative storage options and an outdoor space to boot. The owner purchased the apartment for a mere $95,000 back in 1994--pre-renovation--and now the impressive final result of the renovation is on the market for $699,000.
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Distinctive Homes

March 8, 2017

Modern carriage house on an exclusive street of Brooklyn Heights tries its hand at $10M

By Emily Nonko

If you thought Brooklyn Heights only offered blocks of historic townhouses, think again: this carriage house at 6 Grace Court Alley, a private, one-block row that's made up exclusively of 19th-century residential carriage homes. And while the exterior certainly looks historic, the interior has been opened up, modernized, and filled with light thanks to floor-to-ceiling windows and skylights. After last selling in 2011 for $2.7 million, it's now trying for a cool $10 million.
Step inside

March 7, 2017

New rendering emerges for Keith Rubenstein’s ambitious South Bronx development

By Emily Nonko

The massive South Bronx waterfront development planned by Somerset Partners and Chetrit Group is coming together--at least visually. CityRealty revealed a rendering of the second parcel of a two-parcel master plan that will eventually hold six residential towers and park space. Construction on the first three buildings within the first parcel at 2401 Third Avenue was approved last summer. This second parcel at 101 Lincoln Avenue will hold three more towers, 25 stories each, with a grand total of 826 apartments. The developers have long heralded this development as a game-changer for the South Bronx, but faced pushback after Somerset developer Keith Rubenstein attempted to rebrand the area as the “Piano District” and held a party that capitalized on the struggles of the Bronx in the 1970s, featuring burning trash cans and a bullet-ridden car.
See more images of the development site

New Developments

‘Spacious and rambling’ seven-room apartment asks $2.7M on the Upper West Side

By Emily Nonko

This eight-story building at 314 West 100th Street on the Upper West Side was known as The Chateaux when it opened in 1910. Designed as a luxurious residence, there were only four apartments per floor--and each boasted a spacious floorplan typical of prewar co-ops at the time. The building went condo in 2007 but the floorplans and interior details remained. So while this $2.725 million unit is being sold as a condo, it has all the bones of the "spacious and rambling" apartment, as the listing calls it, first envisioned back in 1910.
Walk through the impressive apartment

Distinctive Homes

March 6, 2017

$2.95M for a modernized townhouse with a glass terrace right in Central Harlem

By Emily Nonko

A big renovation left this four-story townhouse at 310 West 137th Street, in Harlem, feeling sleek and modern. Configured as a triplex over a rental apartment on the garden floor, the house boasts an open living plan, a new kitchen decked out with marble finishes, and also a glass terrace that looks out over a large backyard garden. While the inside feels brand spanking new, the exterior still boasts a historic facade. The property is now up for grabs, priced just under $3 million.
See the inside

Distinctive Homes

March 2, 2017

Rent this duplex in the Chelsea Theological Seminary for $28,000/month

By Emily Nonko

This duplex is located within one of the loveliest developments in Chelsea: the General Theological Seminary complex, which still holds a seminary but also now includes condos, community space and a hotel. This condo building, at 455 West 20th Street, offers residents access to the close, a picturesque private garden in the center of the complex. And this apartment up for grabs isn't too shabby, with three bedrooms and three bathrooms over 2,476 square feet. It's asking a hefty monthly rent of $28,000.
Take a look

Distinctive Homes

March 1, 2017

Media mogul Adriana Cisneros looks to unload her $7.85M Chelsea townhouse

By Emily Nonko

This Chelsea townhouse at 332 West 20th Street is being sold off by a power couple: Adriana Cisneros, the CEO of Grupo Cisneros, a Venezuelan media and entertainment company, and her husband Nicholas Griffin, a novelist. They bought the pad in 2004 for $4.005 million and have put it on the market for nearly double, $7.85 million. The single-family, four-bedroom townhouse is decked out with fireplaces and a modern kitchen, not to mention a wall of bookshelves that would impress any writer.
Time to take the tour

Distinctive Homes

February 28, 2017

Spacious $860K loft is in a Bed-Stuy building known for its quirky apartments

By Emily Nonko

This loft apartment comes from the well-known Brooklyn condo the Chocolate Factory Lofts at 689 Myrtle Avenue. (The building was once, not surprisingly, a chocolate factory.) The Bed-Stuy pad, asking $860,000, is much like the other units that have hit the market: spacious, 13-foot ceilings and oversized casement windows. The building's also known for its creative owners who deck out their apartments (just check out this apartment on the market last summer with a "floating" closet and custom staircase) and this latest apartment is no different.
Check it out

Distinctive Homes

February 27, 2017

Upstate waterfront hotel/restaurant with a quirky owner’s apartment asks less than $1M

By Emily Nonko

Now here's an opportunity to own something really unique, if you're willing to decamp New York City to run a historic hotel upstate. The Pleasant Beach Hotel, at 14477 Fancher Avenue in Fairhaven, has hit the market for $975,000. Less than $1 million will get you a nine-room hotel, as well as a bar, restaurant, private pier, and an attached owner's apartment. With incredible views out toward Lake Ontario, this hotel has been in business since 1910... and is looking for its tenth owner to carry on the traditions of the charming waterfront getaway.
Take the grand tour

February 24, 2017

Glamorous modern condo inside a historic Bed-Stuy townhouse asks $855K

By Emily Nonko

Talk about an apartment with good bones. This modern condo was carved from the historic four-story townhouse at 347 Gates Avenue, in Bedford-Stuyvesant. The condo conversion brought sleek finishes to each floor-through apartment, and this one on the third floor is now asking $855,000. It is located on a block of Bed-Stuy lined with picturesque townhouses, just a half block from the main drag of Bedford Avenue and close to the A/C trains on the Nostrand stop.
See more of the apartment

February 23, 2017

Prospect Lefferts Gardens townhouse with lots of woodwork and sunroom lists for $2.4M

By Emily Nonko

This three-story brick townhouse is nestled on a charming street of Prospect Lefferts Gardens, the Brooklyn neighborhood east of Prospect Park. 88 Midwood Street also has some nice surprises inside, like carved woodwork, a big wood burning fireplace and a bonus sunroom. If you're on the hunt for a lovely Brooklyn townhouse with some historic details still in tact—and have $2.399 million to spare—look no further.
See more

Distinctive Homes

February 22, 2017

Impeccably restored apartment in an 1839 Greek Revival townhouse asks $12,495/month in the Village

By Emily Nonko

The listing brags that this Greenwich Village co-op looks like something out of a movie, and we'd have to agree. A two-year restoration of this apartment, which occupies the third floor of the 1839 Greek Revival townhouse 158 Waverly Place, left the 2,000-square-foot space looking gorgeous. Historic details are paired with both intricate wallpaper patterns and modern amenities. The apartment, too, has hosted a notable crew of residents. The townhouse was built for Lambert Suydam, the former president of Manhattan Gas & Light Co., and then the third floor was later occupied by Oscar winning actress Judy Holliday between 1948 and 1952. The latest owner, Thomas Ruff, is a German photographer who purchased it in 2006 for $1.65 million, according to public records. And now the co-op can be rented for $12,495 a month.
Take a look

February 21, 2017

$2.6M for a ‘sleek and sexy’ modern condo right off Union Square

By Emily Nonko

The aren't many glassy condo developments in Greenwich Village, but this one at 3 West 13th Street has an apartment up for sale. The two-bedroom pad occupies the entire eighth floor and is accessed by a private key-locked elevator. Floor-to-ceiling windows, white tile flooring and a modern gas fireplace lend to an aesthetic the listing dubs "sleek and sexy."
See the full apartment

Distinctive Homes

February 17, 2017

Impressive views of 1 WTC from this $3.6M Tribeca loft apartment

By Emily Nonko

The living room of this Tribeca loft offers--through big, south-facing windows--impressive views over Lower Manhattan and One World Trade Center. The apartment, located at the condop building 112 Franklin Street, also boasts its own key-locked elevator entrance, two bedrooms, two bathrooms, all under 15-foot ceilings.
Here's a look inside

Distinctive Homes

February 16, 2017

$2.7M penthouse loft boasts 25-foot ceilings and two terraces in Williamsburg

By Emily Nonko

This is penthouse loft living at its finest at the Williamsburg condo 138 Broadway, also known as the Smith Gray. Constructed in 1884 as the cast-iron Smith and Gray Department Store Building, this building was converted to condos back in 2002. This unit last sold in 2006 for $1.2 million and now it's hit the market for twice that much. The three-bedroom, three-bathroom penthouse boasts ceiling heights anywhere from 9 up to 25 feet, with lots of the building's original exposed brick on display.
Take a look

Distinctive Homes

February 15, 2017

This brick townhouse with romantic backyard and guest house asks $1.495M in Gowanus

By Emily Nonko

Valentine's Day may have just passed but the backyard of this Gowanus townhouse looks romantic for any day of the year. Decked out with greenery, tea lights and a mini guest house, it's a nice perk to the historic brick three-bedroom, two-bathroom triplex townhouse at 112 14th Street. The $1.495 million pad is plenty charming inside, too, with exposed brick walls, four fireplaces and high ceilings throughout.
Take a peek inside

Distinctive Homes

February 14, 2017

One57 apartment underneath the supertall’s arched-glass walls asks $13.94M

By Emily Nonko

Here's your chance to live in an iconic unit of the super-luxury Midtown tower One57 at a relative discount. According to CityRealty, the "usual" average price per square foot for an apartment at the building is $6,120—but this four-bedroom, four-and-a-half bath pad is asking $13.9 million at a price of $3,742 per square foot. It's also located right under the skyscraper’s distinctive arched-glass walls at both the top and middle of the tower.
Take a look

Distinctive Homes

February 13, 2017

$5.5M Park Slope townhouse built in 1906 is drenched in historic details

By Emily Nonko

Mahogany millwork, plaster ceiling moldings, stained-glass windows: these are just a few of the stunning details to be found inside this historic Park Slope townhouse at 566 First Street. A restoration sought to restore as much of the limestone home--which was built in 1906--as possible, while at the same time integrating modern amenities from a dumbwaiter to audio and lighting systems. And now the 4,900-square-foot stunner is on the market for $5.475 million.
Take the grand tour

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