52 East 4th Street
1. BUILDING OVERVIEW (ANALYST FRAMING)
Building Type: Boutique Postwar Condo (Built 2008)
Scale: 15 Floors, 14 Units (Full-floor identity)
Classification: Yield-Oriented
Justification: Post-sponsor resale data identifies 52 East 4th Street as a "Cash Flow Sanctuary" but an "Equity Trap." While the building captures elite rental income (surpassing $130–$150 per square foot in 2025), capital appreciation has severely underperformed the NYXRCSA benchmark over the last decade. For example, the Penthouse (PH1) sold in 2025 for nearly the same price it traded for in 2009 ($2.65M vs. $2.54M), despite the broader market index nearly doubling in that timeframe.
2. UNIT MIX & COMPOSITION
Data Basis: Actual inventory (14 units).
Composition:
1-Bedroom (Lines 4N, 5N, 5S): ~21% of units. Entry-level inventory (~680–900 SF).
2-Bedroom Full-Floor (Lines 6–12): ~57% of units. The core product (~1,359 SF). Private elevator access.
Penthouses (PH1, PH2, PH3): ~21% of units. Duplex/Triplex layouts.
Impact: The dominance of full-floor units creates a "binary" liquidity environment. The asset behaves like a luxury boutique: high exclusivity, but when liquidity dries up (as seen in 2021–2025), these large units sit for months, whereas the smaller 1-bedroom units remain comparatively liquid.
3. LINE (STACK) PERFORMANCE — RESALE ONLY
Sponsor normalization applied: Excluded 2009–2010 initial closings from liquidity metrics.
A. Liquidity (Speed)
Rank 1 (Fastest): Small 1-Beds (e.g., Unit 4N cleared in 24 days in 2023).
Rank 2 (Slowest): Full-Floor & Penthouses.
Recent Shift: Bifurcation.
Unit 4N (1-Bed): 24 Days (2023).
Unit 8 (2-Bed): 134 Days (2021).
Unit PH1 (2-Bed): 161 Days (2025).
Conclusion: The entry-level stock is liquid; the premium stock is sticky.
B. Appreciation (Durability)
Full-Floor Lines (6–12): Mean-Reverting.
Prices peaked around 2015–2017 ($3.1M–$3.25M).
Recent trades and asks (Unit 8 at $2.95M, Unit 11 active at $2.7M) show a regression to 2012–2013 pricing.
Penthouse Lines: Stagnant.
PH1 2025 Sale ($2.65M) is barely above the PH1 2009 Sponsor Sale ($2.54M).
Result: Zero real appreciation over 16 years.
4. BUILDING-WIDE PPSF TREND (NORMALIZED)
Growth Phase (2009–2015): Strong velocity. PPSF grew from ~$1,500 (Sponsor) to ~$2,300.
Correction Phase (2017–2025):
2017 Peak: Unit 10 sold for $2,391 PPSF.
2023–2025 Reality:
Unit PH1: $1,949 PPSF (Jan 2025).
Unit 4N: $1,867 PPSF (Dec 2023).
Unit 11 (Ask): $1,986 PPSF (Nov 2025).
Trend: Cyclical Drawdown. The building is currently trading ~15-20% below its 2017 peak PPSF, decoupling negatively from the NYXRCSA index which hit all-time highs in 2025.
5. RENT CAPTURE ANALYSIS
A. Rent Capture by Line (2024–2025)
Full-Floor 2-Beds (The Yield Engine):
Unit 9: Rented Mar 2025 for $17,000 ($150 PPSF).
Unit 11: Rented Apr 2025 for $15,000 ($132 PPSF).
Unit 11: Rented Apr 2024 for $12,000.
Growth: +25% YoY rental growth for Unit 11 (Driver: Market Regime).
Yield Calculation (Unit 9/11 Proxy):
Approx Sale Value: ~$2.75M.
Annual Rent: ~$180k–$204k.
Gross Yield: 6.5% – 7.4%. (Exceptional for Manhattan Condo).
B. Conclusion Rent capture is elite. The building offers rare amenities for its size (pool, garage) which command massive rental premiums ($150 PPSF), even as resale values stagnate.
6. B³ SCORING SYSTEM (0–100)
(Scores 0–100 based on Normalized Data)
A. Liquidity Score: 45/100
Penalty: Recent large unit sales (PH1, Unit 8) averaged ~148 days on market.
Support: Small units clear quickly, preventing a lower score.
B. Rent Capture Score: 96/100
Strength: $130–$150 PPSF rents are top-tier for the East Village.
Strength: Rapid rental absorption (Unit 9 rented in 343 days? Note: Data says 343 days for Unit 9, likely an anomaly/re-list. Unit 11 rented in 43 days, Unit 10 in 36 days. Adjusted median ~40 days).
Strength: High gross yields (7%+).
C. Appreciation Score: 25/100
Penalty: PH1 showed +4% nominal gain over 16 years.
Penalty: Unit 4N sold for less in 2023 ($1.27M) than in 2017 ($1.425M).
Penalty: Severe underperformance vs NYXRCSA benchmark.
7. COMPOSITE SCORE & CLASSIFICATION
Composite Score: 57 (Liquidity 45 × 0.35) + (Rent 96 × 0.30) + (Appreciation 25 × 0.35)
Classification: Yield-Oriented
Definition: A high-income, low-growth asset. The "Pool + Full Floor" combination allows owners to charge exorbitant rents, but the resale market has rejected price increases since 2017.
8. TRANSACTION EXAMPLES
Resale Stagnation / Depreciation (The "Leakage"):
Unit PH1 (Penthouse):
Bought Aug 2009 (Sponsor): $2,548,003
Sold Jan 2025: $2,650,000
Result: +4% Total over 15.5 years.
Real Value: Adjusted for inflation, this is a massive loss.
Driver: Sponsor Price Normalization (Sponsor priced it perfectly at peak) & Liquidity Shift.
Unit 4N (1-Bed):
Bought Apr 2017: $1,425,000
Sold Dec 2023: $1,270,000
Result: -11% Loss over 6 years.
Driver: Market Regime Timing (Bought at 2017 peak).
Unit 8 (Full Floor):
Bought Jan 2015: $2,980,000
Sold Dec 2021: $2,950,000
Result: -1% Loss (Nominal) over 7 years.
Driver: Line-Level Premium Persistence (Failed to hold).
Resale Appreciation (The Exception):
Unit 10 (Full Floor):
Bought Nov 2009: $2,168,872
Sold Jun 2017: $3,250,000
Result: +50% over 8 years.
Driver: Market Regime Timing (Captured the 2009–2017 bull run perfectly).
9. RISKS & RED FLAGS
Red Flag: The 2017 Ceiling. Almost no unit has successfully traded above its 2017 valuation in the 2020–2025 period. Buyers paying near 2017 PPSF (~$2,100+) are likely entering a negative equity position.
Risk: High Amenity/Low Unit Count. With a pool and elevator for only 14 units, common charges are likely high and volatile (though not explicitly provided in source, this is structural to the building type). This depresses resale values while keeping rents high (tenants don't pay CCs).
Opportunity Cost: The NYXRCSA index rose from ~175 in 2010 to ~330 in 2025. Unit PH1 moved from $2.54M to $2.65M. The building has failed to participate in the last decade of NYC wealth creation.
10. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
52 East 4th Street is a Yield-Oriented boutique condo that functions as a high-performance rental machine but a stagnant equity asset. Post-sponsor analysis reveals a stark disconnect: while the "full-floor with pool" product commands elite rents ($17,000/mo or $150 PPSF in 2025), resale values have reverted to 2012–2013 levels. Long-term holders, particularly of the Penthouse and 1-bedroom lines, have seen nominal losses or zero real growth over 15 years. Investors should approach this building strictly for its 6.5%–7.5% cap rate potential, understanding that liquidity for large units is slow (130+ days) and appreciation is historically non-existent.
DISCLOSURES & NORMALIZATION
Sponsor Normalization:
Sales from 2009–2010 (Units 4S, 8, 10, PH2, PH1) were identified as Sponsor/Developer sales.
These were excluded from Resale Liquidity (DOM) calculations to prevent skewing the "Speed" score.
They were used as the baseline for Long-Term Appreciation calculations (e.g., PH1 2009 vs 2025).
Data Note: Unit 9 rental DOM of 343 days (2025) was treated as an outlier (likely a combined listing period) and de-weighted in favor of the median rental DOM (~40 days).