Actor Jim Parsons

[stardustmelody]

That real estate blogger uses a lot of tongue in cheek.  She always words things for humor.  I don't take it seriously that she called him a man-friend...but just her weird sense of humor. She does that with all the celebrities...says funny stuff.  But she is amusing at times.   I do think it wasn't meant to be a diss, in other words even though I know some may interpret it that way.   But she often uses weird phrases like that even about married couples so just bear that in mind.

[phantagrae]

Here is the deal...if he were to combine them...it would be the largest by over twice the size of any other unit in the building and he will have paid far more than market value.  While he has the money he can well afford to do is not the issue. The issue is more on whether it would be a wise investment and most investment counselors would tell him a definite no.   Currently the covenants are such that they cannot be combined in that manner.  He would have to go through all kinds of hoops to get that approved and he would have to sweet-talk all the tenants into agreeing to let him do that.   That is quite an undertaking, along with the already overpriced payment he made on the units then you add the cost for the renovations, and it just does not make good business sense.  Jim strikes me as one to make wise business decisions (he has proven that in the past).   Therefore I am not convinced that is his plan with the units.   He may combine the two Penthouse units...that I can see him doing because they are both quite small.  Together they would still only be 930 square feet total.  While far bigger together it still is a small unit and most of the units around that square footage in that building are still only worth about 1-1.5Mil.  He has already put into the unit without any renovation costs over $3.6Mil.   See my point?  He has already well overpaid.  

 

Now if he were to combine all four units, he would have a unit just over 3100 square feet (combining all four unit square footages).   He also has already an investment of $8.6Mil (includes the reno costs he has already put in his 12th floor units) and still has another probably $2Mil reno cost to combine them.   So that means he would have invested over $10.5 Mil in the 3100 square foot unit.   However, the majority of apartments in the building are between 800 to 1200 square feet.   His unit would be outpriced and out square footage for the building.   Something most real estate investors tell you to run away from as it makes it near impossible to turn around if you need to sell it at some point.  

 

Therefore, I am not convinced he will combine into one big unit.  It seems against good business sense and even if he planned to live there for a number of years, he seems the type to still always keep a good business model in mind just in case, kind of like Sheldon...always prepared.  

 

I have no idea what his intentions are, but if it were me...I would definitely not combine the four units. I also would not have purchased the PH units at the price he did.  All the PH units were private (off market) sales by the way...he just happened to pay close to $1Mi more than everyone else.  

 

It doesn't cost millions of dollars to do the kind of renovations he might be looking at.  I doubt that it would cost a million, unless his contractors were ripping him off.  And even if the contractors are more expensive in the NYC area, he's still not looking at millions of dollars.  You can often renovate a whole house for less than a million dollars.

 

Whether or not he combines them, I think he wants to be in that building, with it's coveted private park.  He's had the other two units for some time now and obviously likes living there.  It's private, it's secure, it has some nice amenities.  And it's probably easier to buy more units in that building than to go cold turkey into buying elsewhere and selling his units in that building.

 

If he likes it and wants to spend his money on making one large unit, I don't think it's a bad investment.  After the show is over with, he might be looking at spending more time in NYC, or he may want a larger single unit so he can have friends or family over to visit and not be all on top of each other.  Maybe he'll combine the two lower units into one place, and the two penthouses into one place.

 

Who knows?  But if units in that building are desired, then paying a little extra makes it easier for him to snap them up.  If you get 2 or more parties trying to outbid each other on a piece of property, then the price really can go over market value.

 

It's not just about how much the units are worth on the market.  It's about how much the units are worth to him.

[stardustmelody]

Well those units were never on the market.  They were private sale and no one even knew they were available.  He obviously learned about them before they went on the market.

 

I agree I see him liking the building and location, etc.  I don't think that is likely to change.  But I also think he would be more inclined to stay in the bigger unit he has already and may have other plans for the Penthouse smaller units.  I know every piece of property I buy, I am always thinking about whether or not if I had to sell it would it be a problem to sell.  I can tell you that if he combined those four, given the rest of the units are so much smaller, it would be a hard sale.   I have dabbled in the real estate business for years and have seen many people make that assumption...that bigger is better.  It isn't always and rarely is if the biggest (and in his case it would be significantly bigger) in the building.   It usually means it is going to be one heck of a long sale and usually one you lose money on.  

 

The market is soft in NY right now, but may not always be, of course.  But currently people are losing money on their investments.  Just watch the celebrity market in NY and you will see that nearly all have had to take a loss recently or just barely broke even if they happened to have bought something at a real steal to begin with (which in this case Jim has not done).  

 

It will be intriguing to see what he does and will keep all of us entertained for the coming months.   He may combine all, combine some and leave other the way they are...who knows...but it will be entertainment for us all.

[phantagrae]

Well those units were never on the market.  They were private sale and no one even knew they were available.  He obviously learned about them before they went on the market.

 

I agree I see him liking the building and location, etc.  I don't think that is likely to change.  But I also think he would be more inclined to stay in the bigger unit he has already and may have other plans for the Penthouse smaller units.  I know every piece of property I buy, I am always thinking about whether or not if I had to sell it would it be a problem to sell.  I can tell you that if he combined those four, given the rest of the units are so much smaller, it would be a hard sale.   I have dabbled in the real estate business for years and have seen many people make that assumption...that bigger is better.  It isn't always and rarely is if the biggest (and in his case it would be significantly bigger) in the building.   It usually means it is going to be one heck of a long sale and usually one you lose money on.  

 

The market is soft in NY right now, but may not always be, of course.  But currently people are losing money on their investments.  Just watch the celebrity market in NY and you will see that nearly all have had to take a loss recently or just barely broke even if they happened to have bought something at a real steal to begin with (which in this case Jim has not done).  

 

It will be intriguing to see what he does and will keep all of us entertained for the coming months.   He may combine all, combine some and leave other the way they are...who knows...but it will be entertainment for us all.

 

I know they were never on the market--that's what I was saying.  By offering a little more before they went on the market, he was able to make a pre-emptive strike, keeping them from going on the market where he could have faced a bidding war against others who might want to buy them.

If he had lowballed the seller or offered straight market value, they might have decided to take their chances with other potential buyers and that could have drivin the price up, if he had then had to go into competition with other buyers.

 

If he intends to stay in the building indefinitely, he may not be thinking about immediate resale value.  And if he really likes the units and the building, he may not be considering resale at all.  Whether or not he gets more money for the individual units or one big unit--which could be more interesting to potential buyers than small square footage individual units--could be less important to him at this point than simply having what he wants.

[stardustmelody]

Well as I said before it will be intriguing to see what he does and will keep all of us entertained for the coming months.   He may combine all, combine some and leave other the way they are...who knows...but it will be entertainment for us all.

[stardustmelody]

The Normal Heart to be honored with Stanley Kramer Award at Producers Guild of America Awards in January.

[PatsyR]

As Jim has indicated that he enjoys investing in real estate, maybe he views his recent purchase of the penthouses as just that--an investment.  Perhaps he ultimately intends to buy the entire building.

[mamallama]

Jim is so sweet, honestly, he doesn't need to make a larger space for me when I visit. I don't take up much space, the smaller penthouse, water closet, anything is fine with me. <I lost my emoticons, so insert many smiley faces and winks here>.

[phantagrae]

Jim is so sweet, honestly, he doesn't need to make a larger space for me when I visit. I don't take up much space, the smaller penthouse, water closet, anything is fine with me. <I lost my emoticons, so insert many smiley faces and winks here>.

 

While you're there, will you kindly measure him for a new suit, just to make sure it fits across his chest and shoulders and biceps...

[rachelshamyfan]

I guess if he can't merge the apartments he can either use them as long/short rental and/or use them as guest apartments for when family visit NY, even when tbbt ends he will need a base in NY and LA for work purposes

[vonmar]

Well as I said before it will be intriguing to see what he does and will keep all of us entertained for the coming months.   He may combine all, combine some and leave other the way they are...who knows...but it will be entertainment for us all.

 

Agreed...interestingly enough, Jimmy Fallon is doing the exact same thing next door to Jim at 34 Gramercy Park East.  In September he bought his 5th apartment in that building, a studio apartment on the top floor.  He now owns apartments on the top three floors of that building.  But Jimmy has underspent Jim by about 3 million having spent about 5.7 million so far.

 

I know Jim is a pretty private person, but if he does renovate big time, I would love to see an Architectural Digest spread on the place.

[boys3allc]

How cute is that face

[Andy_90's_generation]

that was after his very innocent (not!) 'big and red' comment lol

[mamallama]

While you're there, will you kindly measure him for a new suit, just to make sure it fits across his chest and shoulders and biceps...

Of course, that's what any good house guest would do. I'll have to take several iterations, he'll want everything to fit perfectly and I don't want to disappoint.

[sheldorslady]

How cute is that face

xD

 

Finally got to watch the interview.  I always think I can't love Jim any more than I do, but then he mentions NPR...

Edited December 20, 2014 by sheldorslady

[frankie]

xD

 

Finally got to watch the interview.  I always think I can't love Jim any more than I do, but then he mentions NPR...

Yup...that's how I felt when I saw Jim's instagram pic of him doing the Sunday NY Times crossword puzzle. Swoon....

[rachelshamyfan]

Where is the interview with Craig? Is it on YouTube?

[stardustmelody]

Rachel, the full interview is here

Edited December 20, 2014 by stardustmelody

[rachelshamyfan]

Thanks!

[Deb Ranquist]

And JIM DANCED.  Front and center.  So excited for video.

Me too!  That's awesome!  So glad he danced for this one!  

[Deb Ranquist]

I am so going to miss those two together, always a terrific interview.  Last night was no exception.

 

From thebigbangtheory_cbs IG

 

This is a fantastic photo of them together!  I love both their smiles and spirit in this pic.  

Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.

 

Parsons picked a pair of puny penthouses.

 

I think the article said the second pair of apartments were an "off-market" purchase, which means, I think, that they snatched them up before they were publicly listed.  If they paid a bit more for them, it may have been to get them before anyone else had a chance to start a bidding war for them, which could have jacked the price up even more.

So, they go in with an offer the sellers can't refuse and they close the deal before anyone else has a chance to try.

 

I watch too many HGTV shows...

Cute.  You have the cutest rhymes, Phantagrae!  

It "seems" he really enjoys being on Craig's show.

Yes, I would say he is the most relaxed on Craig’s show of any talk shows he has been interviewed on through the years; though he was pretty relaxed with Lauer, and it has been pretty relaxed on Letterman before, too.  Still, he seemed most at home with Craig, so it is a shame that that on air relationship will end.  I didn’t know Craig was going to have another talk show.  I thought he was just going to do the game show full-time now.

[rachelshamyfan]

Don't think we will get much of Jim on IG over the next week or so, is fair enough though the man is entitled to time off! Maybe we will get an Xmas day selfie but I'm not holding out for it

[vonmar]

Don't think we will get much of Jim on IG over the next week or so, is fair enough though the man is entitled to time off! Maybe we will get an Xmas day selfie but I'm not holding out for it

 

I'm always kind of amazed by his ability to vanish.  In this day and age where just about eveyone is involved in some sort of social media you rarely see pictures of him that are not work related or his own IG posts.  In and out of airports, roaming the streets of NYC, out and about in LA, you rarely read Tweets about people spotting him or getting pictures of him. 

 

Next time someone at Comic Con asks him what his super power is, he can claim invisibility.  

 

I hope we get at least a few IG pictures, but more importantly I hope he and Todd enjoy the hiatus.

Edited December 21, 2014 by vonmar

[Jamie]

Knock on wood, vonmar?

: Sitting next to Jim Parsons at BLT Prime

Edited December 21, 2014 by Jamie

[vonmar]

Knock on wood, vonmar?

: Sitting next to Jim Parsons at BLT Prime https://twitter.com/readysetbret/status/546814015339757568

 

That's hilarious....glad I used "rarely" instead of "never".  If it's true, we now know that they are in NYC.  BLT Prime is like three blocks from their apartment.