“NoHa” homeowners refuse to sell despite price jumps

As the price of housing in Central Harlem climbs, homeowners are refusing to sell brownstones they bought cheaply in the 1980s and 1990s.

Brokers have rebranded the area “NoHa,” a newly hip destination despite having the highest overall death rate in the city. Average sale prices have doubled over the last 10 years, an unidentified Douglas Elliman analyst told the New York Daily News.

For example, two-bedroom condominiums at 50 West, located at 50 West 127th Street, sell for nearly $1.1 million and rent for about $4,000 a month.

Former data processor Joseph Wardally bought a nearby four-story Brownstone On West 127th Street for $85,000 in 1995. He told the Daily News he expects he could sell it today for $1.8 million, though he has no plans to do so.

Elsewhere in the neighborhood, a Fifth Avenue townhouse is asking $3.5 million and a three-bedroom Apartment On Riverside Drive Near West 150th Street listed for more than $1 million, the newspaper said. [NYDN] — Mark Maurer