The Club At Turtle Bay Condo (TCATB)

"First and foremost, because this building is a condominium, the most important question people will want to know when looking to purchase is 'is this building a good investment?'.

We owned our unit in the building for 8 years and we have tracked comps in the area and I can honestly say that this is one of the better buildings to put your money in compared to the other buildings in the area. The main reason is because the building is maintained quite well. Even though there are assessments every so often, its a positive because it keeps the building from falling apart. The sales price per square feet is a bit higher than comps and the building continues to maintain that higher end feel.

The percentage of owners living in the building are quite high. I think it was something in the 70%+. As opposed to some other condo buildings that are more investment properties where the majority of tenants are renters.

The roof deck and solarium is top notch. It is communal space so that every resident can go up there versus certain buildings having only unit owned roof access. Also, the flooring on the roof is flat and always has surrounding potted plants. It's not one of those buildings where the water tower or vents are covered in decorations. In the summer times, there are always people relaxing on the tables and chairs eating food or sipping drinks. It is phenomenal for guests.

The doormen and staff are fantastic. You see these guys everyday and they are always friendly and cordial to the point where you treat them like family. The tenure there ranges anywhere from 5 to 20 years.

The hallways are always clean and tidy and there are trash chutes on every floor which makes it very convenient for its residents.

There are 3 elevators which is huge because you rarely have to wait long to get into the elevator. I've been in similar sized buildings where the elevator wait time averages 4-5 minutes where this is a good 1-2 tops.

The building is also technologically up to date. They have implemented the building link system which allows you to do almost everything online. If you need help with maintenance, file it online. If you want to give guest access to your apartment, file it online. If you have dry cleaning or packages delivered to the building, you'll get an email notification. Pay your monthly maintenance fees online. The building is in the 21st century which makes life much easier.

For people who like to work out, being a resident of the building gets you a discount at the YMCA next door. Fun fact is that the YMCA is attached to the bottom portion of the building and takes up about 8 floors. This is why residents get a discount. There is a full gym with cardio machines, full weights, basketball court, swimming pool, showers, full schedule classes like yoga, spin, plyometrics and everything you need fitness wise.

The location of the building itself is in close proximities to supermarkets, restaurants, delis, pizza places, steak houses, bars, coffee shops, grand central, dry cleaning so you have all of your basic city convenience necessities all right there in a 5 block radius. Cabs are usually easy to get too going down 2nd ave."

"In terms of the location of the building, one major gripe I have is the proximity it has to parks and green space. I like trees, parks, gardens, running outside etc so the lack of that in the area is a negative. There is a lot of concrete. It's more of an issue with the neighborhood versus the building.

The building is quite strict with some of its policies compared to other buildings. Everything has to be done by the book such as moving in and out, getting some contract work done. They won't let you do a thing unless all the proper paperwork and the proper people have been notified. It's hard to move fast sometimes when you get slowed down by rules. But you can say it maintains a standard policy for all residents this can be argued as a pro or con.

The board package application is more cumbersome than most other buildings and is also quite outdated. They ask for more information than is needed. And they also like to waste paper by forcing you to print out so many copies.

Also the building has some odd bylaws about what is technically the responsibility of the unit owner versus the building."

This was my first apartment purchase and my first long term home living on my own in this crazy city. As a first time owner, I have to say I had the best possible experience in the building I possibly could have had.