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Thread: Things in NYC real estate ads I don't understand

  1. #31
    I was mainly going through some nuances for individual apartment owners that make it extremely difficult/expensive in many situations.

    Landlords for renters can, but there are similar building code and cost issues. Also, many NY apartments are just too damn small.

    The ideal setup in my view is having shared units in the basements. Maximum efficiency by sharing a capital expense and having a machine used to full capacity sharing it among multiple homes.

  2. #32
    Surely your "ideal" setup isn't living in the basement, but having laundry facilities in the basement.

    If you're looking for maximum efficiency with shared capital expenses.....is laundry really the best metric? The answer depends if you're asking as a member of the supervisory board, or as a tenant, and how contracts have been structured.

  3. #33
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dreadnaught View Post
    I was mainly going through some nuances for individual apartment owners that make it extremely difficult/expensive in many situations.

    Landlords for renters can, but there are similar building code and cost issues. Also, many NY apartments are just too damn small.

    The ideal setup in my view is having shared units in the basements. Maximum efficiency by sharing a capital expense and having a machine used to full capacity sharing it among multiple homes.
    ? Not Really actually ; you get to subsidize the use of people who use the facilities more than you. The only argument is room and one really has to wonder how big of an issue that is with a machine that washes and dries.
    Congratulations America

  4. #34
    shared units charge per use. its another reason landlords don't allow building modifications for driers, laundry services are just another way building owners pad their pockets
    "In a field where an overlooked bug could cost millions, you want people who will speak their minds, even if they’re sometimes obnoxious about it."

  5. #35
    Senior Member Flixy's Avatar
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    Oh right, we have a shared washer but it doesn't charge.
    Keep on keepin' the beat alive!

  6. #36
    I've never seen one that didnt charge. Every apartment I lived in used units that charged per use. My friend lived in a neighborhood of duplexes, as in the entire neighborhood was owned by the same company. Even though the dwellings were homes in every other sense of the word washers and driers were not installed/allowed. They did provide a community location though, next door to where all the mail for the neighborhood was dropped. She hated having to hunt down quarters for those stupid machines. She'd do laundry at my place, on the other side of the city, while watching netflix to avoid using the machines that charged.
    Last edited by Ominous Gamer; 01-04-2016 at 10:42 PM.
    "In a field where an overlooked bug could cost millions, you want people who will speak their minds, even if they’re sometimes obnoxious about it."

  7. #37
    Quote Originally Posted by Ominous Gamer View Post
    I've never seen one that didnt charge. Every apartment I lived in used units that charged per use. My friend lived in a neighborhood of duplexes, as in the entire neighborhood was owned by the same company. Even though the dwellings were homes in every other sense of the word washers and driers were not installed/allowed. They did provide a community location though, next door to were all the mail for the neighborhood was dropped. She hated having to hunt down quarters for those stupid machines. She'd do laundry at my place, on the other side of the city, while watching netflix to avoid using the machines that charged.
    My current place doesn't need quarters - they are chip-enabled cards that are recharged by CC. But the downside is that it costs me $3 for each wash and another $3 for each dry. Communal laundry machines are awful for all sorts of reasons - they break down all the time when people overload/misuse them, they are often unavailable, are wildly inconvenient, etc. My old place had in-unit wash/dry and that is one of my biggest daily annoyances that we no longer have that luxury. Once I have $1-1.5 million I might be able to enjoy that luxury again. Ah, someday.
    "When I meet God, I am going to ask him two questions: Why relativity? And why turbulence? I really believe he will have an answer for the first." - Werner Heisenberg (maybe)

  8. #38
    Quote Originally Posted by Hazir View Post
    A washing machine works perfectly fine the way I described it. The reason why I mentioned that way of operating one is that there is NO way you can technically stop people operating a washing machine or a dryer in their house as actual changes to the plumming are not necessary. So, why make such a big deal out of the washer-dryer thing. It's tantamount to telling the real estate you're selling has doors that actually can be locked.
    Of course you can stop them. There is a HOA or a building association, guaranteed, and you'll operate that thing for precisely as long as it takes the lawsuits to start flying. Tehnical capability has nothing to do with it. And frankly, if you're buying an apartment in that range, you're not going to be trying to use any of the workarounds in the first place. As one of the others said, you probably don't do your own laundry in the first place at that point. And as Flixy half-referenced, there also won't be all that much room for it in the first place.
    Last night as I lay in bed, looking up at the stars, I thought, “Where the hell is my ceiling?"

  9. #39
    Quote Originally Posted by wiggin View Post
    Communal laundry machines are awful for all sorts of reasons - they break down all the time when people overload/misuse them, they are often unavailable, are wildly inconvenient, etc.
    What kind of a savage wilderness do you live in anyway?
    "One day, we shall die. All the other days, we shall live."

  10. #40
    Tragedy of the commons. For what it's worth my communal machines (in my building) are fine, with the occasional idiot who misuses them. I get some comfort from the idea that this big, expensive and technically complex machine is being used a lot more. Efficiency gives me endorphins.

  11. #41
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dreadnaught View Post
    Tragedy of the commons. For what it's worth my communal machines (in my building) are fine, with the occasional idiot who misuses them. I get some comfort from the idea that this big, expensive and technically complex machine is being used a lot more. Efficiency gives me endorphins.
    A washer is good for a number of cycles. It doesn't really matter if it goes through it's life cycle over a great number or years or just a couple of years.
    Congratulations America

  12. #42
    That's not true or at least a over simplification Machines also age if you don't use them.

    I still have my own machine though. On the other hand, I share my car. Which is a much bigger more expensive 'machine'.
    "Wer Visionen hat, sollte zum Arzt gehen." - Helmut Schmidt

  13. #43
    rubbers and plastics crack and split with age. washers and driers are full of them. Hello drier belt!
    "In a field where an overlooked bug could cost millions, you want people who will speak their minds, even if they’re sometimes obnoxious about it."

  14. #44
    Quote Originally Posted by wiggin View Post
    My old place had in-unit wash/dry and that is one of my biggest daily annoyances that we no longer have that luxury. Once I have $1-1.5 million I might be able to enjoy that luxury again. Ah, someday.
    You're kidding, right? Why would you need a million bucks to do your own laundry, in your own home?

  15. #45
    I need a million bucks for the home. The laundry itself is rather less expensive.
    "When I meet God, I am going to ask him two questions: Why relativity? And why turbulence? I really believe he will have an answer for the first." - Werner Heisenberg (maybe)

  16. #46
    Quote Originally Posted by Hazir View Post
    A washer is good for a number of cycles. It doesn't really matter if it goes through it's life cycle over a great number or years or just a couple of years.
    As mentioned, I think parts wear over time as well. Especially belt-driven things like washing machines (though I admit I don't know if modern machines have gotten rid of belts to improve long-term reliability).

  17. #47
    Quote Originally Posted by wiggin View Post
    I need a million bucks for the home. The laundry itself is rather less expensive.
    You know that's crazy logic, right? You don't need to have a million dollar home in order to do your own laundry.

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