I'm a first time buyer looking to buy a 1BR on the UWS around 700+ sq ft. Trouble is I've got 2 small under 25lbs each (cute little Cavaliers)

Since I'm new to this all wondering what's the rule of thumb when it comes to
* price per sq ft
* amount I can borrow e.g 3 times yearly salary
etc. when I'm looking for something with decent amentities (e.g. doorman, post war) under 1mm?

Any advice would be appreciated esp now. Just don't know when will be the right time to buy.

The dogs won't be an issue at most co-ops. Focus on the financial issues.

my rule of thumb for borrowers is loan amount of 2-3x yearly income. In the old days, when banks were giving out money like Halloween candy, you could go higher, and I did, but it hurt. 3x is a perfectly fine guideline if you don't have kids -- if you do, it will probably feel a little tight.

For prices per square foot, I would send you to www.millersamuel.com -- if you hit the "data" tab, you can slice and dice things pretty well.

Also, you might want to hit my site, www.frontporchllc.com. You can read the posts tagged "for buyers" or it's searchable on the right-hand side for terms like "first time," and has a lot of info it. I don't work the UWS, but the site should answer a lot of your starter questions.

ali r.
{downtown broker}

Ali - thx for all your info. It's tough knowing when to start esp when given the current state of the economy and unemployment rate going up. Folks told me that originally summer was a crazy period where apartments wer emoving like hotcakes. Now it seems like they're staying on the market a longer than in the past 2 yrs. I just saw one drop over 100k in approx 9 months! Decisions decisions

Hubby and I are possibly looking to move to UWS (we're in Midtown now) and our best guess is a flattish market as far as costs to us, where prices might come down but rates appear to be going up.

We went shopping in the spring, and some of what we loved went very quickly and some of it is still sitting, so go figure.

ali r.
{downtown broker}