You Can Stay At The YMCA Too!

Those Facebook algorithms are something, right? Last week, I had a big ad on my feed about rentals at the "The Sloane NYC," the former YMCA Sloane House on West 34th Street and my first "home" in Manhattan.

Built in 1930 by the same architects behind the New York Stock Exchange and Saks Fifth Avenue, the William Sloane House originally provided 1,493 for young men and enlisted personnel in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard. Their amenities then included a "barber shop, billiard and social rooms, a physician, and employment services.

It cleans up nice as you can see above. The new ad claims "Location Is An Amenity." That was not the case when I stayed there in 1989.

Steps away was 9th Avenue, a stark, no-man's land I was afraid to walk through at night. Over on 8th Avenue, smelly Penn Station and the back-ass of Madison Square Garden were the "highlights" of that area. You also had the grand old Post Office too, which just last month unveiled a beautiful new "train hall," extending Penn Station's concourse from across the street.

Today the area is more gussied up thanks to the brand new Hudson Yards retail and residential hub, and the Highline, an abandoned, elevated rail line reimagined as a park snaking down to the West Village.

Even better, The Sloane in this newly popular location is on sale now. Lots of renters left town at the beginning of the pandemic. So supply is up; demand is down and so are rental prices. Econ 101. The Sloane now has two studios listed for $1,750 or $1,995. Or you can get a 1-bedroom for $2,350-$3,081. I paid $150 a week for a 7-foot wide room with a communal bathroom. But they have a doorman and a gym now too. Fancy. Let me know if you need me as a reference!

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