Welcome to the latest installment of our ongoing interview series, Meet the Neighbors! For the past two years, Tracie Hamersley has been the top broker at Citi Habitats and made the top five in 2005, 2006 and 2007. With listings all over town, there is nothing she can’t sell–with the help of her sister, of course, as they work together in the perfect team. She even specializes in Miami real estate.
Where do you live?
In a two-bedroom condo with my sister and business partner Elizabeth in Flatiron.
How is work these days? What is your latest deal?
Thank God, work is great! Busy and to good purpose, which hasn’t always been the case these past two years. My team has just closed on a beautiful truly XXX-mint penthouse on Mercer Street, as well as two duplex apartments in a boutique new construction condo building on West 20th Street.
What was the best meal you’ve ever eaten in New York?
This is a tough one… I have had many memorable meals in this fabulous gastronomical capital of ours. A delicious dinner at Craft sticks out, as does one evening on my old company’s expense account at Le Bernadin. And then last night I tried Marea with client friends of mine and everything, from the appetizers, to the champagne, to the dessert, to the service & atmosphere, was superb!
What was your first apartment like?
I was 21 years old, and had just moved to the City from Florida. I lived in a two-bedroom, one-bath railroad walk-up apartment on East 89th between 3rd & Lex, with three-to-five of my best friends from college. There weren’t any outlets in the bathroom, and our one flight attendant roommate lived in a makeshift loft in the lone hallway of the apartment (for which she paid $400 a month). We always joked that we were the ugly cousins of our nearby Carnegie Hill neighbors.
What is your recession war story?
My most personal recession story is my own… The condo my sister and I live in and love was almost never ours. We bought off a floor plan in June of 2007 and blithely put down our 10 percent without even a thought of a financing contingency. Fast forward to early 2009 when we were supposed to close and, due to the declining NYC market, hadn’t saved enough money for the 30 percent down payment all the banks were now requiring. Were it not for our 11th hour miracle loan, we would have had to have left our deposit on the table and walked away. So grateful to God and our wonderful loan officer Adam Sherman!
How do you get around town?
Subway, taxi or by my own steam (which often includes running to catch that cab, make the light, or squeeze on the subway). There are many brokers who bike, but I’m one of the few who Forrest Gumps it around town from time to time.
What is your favorite building in the city and why?
The Chrysler Building–I just think it is so beautiful and unique in all its Art Deco splendor. The Flatiron Building is a close second because of its amazing shape. And location!
If you weren’t a broker, what would you be?
A rock star! Or at least a wannabe one. Perhaps a professional karaoke artist?
What is your dream home?
Single-family townhouse on Gramercy Park. Much as I’m a condo girl at heart, this private park is so special, and I’d love to live on it in one of those amazing prewar houses.
You just won the lottery. What store do you stop by and what do you buy?
The Mercedes dealership, and then I’d go to the chauffeur store next. You so don’t need a car in New York, and I’ve always said I will only get one when I can afford the driver to go with it.
If there was one thing you could change about New York, what would it be?
It sounds trite, but it’s true–I love this City just the way it is!
