Financial District

Location: The Financial District is located in Downtown Manhattan. It lies to the south of City Hall and to the east of Broadway.

Sub-divisions: The Seaport/Fulton Street area and its surroundings are included in our definition, although some consider it a separate neighborhood. Ditto for the area adjacent to City Hall, sometimes referred to as "Civic Center".

Character: For most of the 20th century the Financial District was a 9-to-5 kind of neighborhood that emptied out at night. No longer! Thanks to the myriad building conversions, new residential towers, and NYU dorm additions, the number of local residents is higher than ever. Nowadays, it is entirely possible to bump into a neighbor on the way home around midnight, especially on the massively "residentialized" streets like John Street.

That said, the neighborhood is not as lively as, let's say, the East Village.

Apartments & Real Estate

Most building (the most recently constructed towers excluded, obviously) are conversions from office towers. This may be an advantage (most of those buildings were built in an age when builders knew what they were doing, so the quality of construction was generally high), or a disadvantage ("amenities" such as light were not considered crucial for office space back then), depending on the building/location and other specifics. Layouts vary from small studios to palatial apartments and (again, thanks to the conversion phenomenon) include all manner of weirdly shaped "loft-style" configurations.

The market is cyclical. Generally, when rentals slow down, managers in the area tend to become flexible and willing to throw in various "perks," from free months and broker fee reimbursements (should you decide to use a broker) to... well, other perks. When the Downtown Manhattan occupancy rate plunges and demand skyrockets, though, don't expect too many extras.

Selected Rental Buildings

• 10 Hanover Square (Financial District) [30 available no-fee apts]
  A post-war high-rise concierge building offering a gym. The apartments have high ceilings.
• 100 Maiden Lane (Financial District) [11 available no-fee apts]
  Former headquarters of Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft converted into a residential building in 2005. The centerpiece of 100 Maiden Lane is its 100-foot high atrium, which is top....
• 71 Broadway (Financial District) [11 available no-fee apts]
  A landmark turn-of-the-century high-rise doorman building offering a gym and laundry facilities. The apartments have high ceilings.
• 95 Wall (95 Wall Street, Financial District) [18 available no-fee apts]
  A post-war high-rise doorman building offering a gym. The building, which once served as JPMorgan Bank headquarters, was (re-)designed by P. Starck.
• Renaissance at 100 John (100 John Street, Financial District) [18 available no-fee apts]
  A 221-unit luxury apartment building offering a variety of apartment layouts, many with terraces (over 30% of all apartments) and home offices. Ample natural light - a rarity ....

See all Financial District Rental Apartment Buildings (33 buildings)

Selected No-Fee Rental Listings

• $2,575 Studio at 95 Wall
  available 14/Jun/2012 posted 17/May/2012.
• $2,600 Studio at 200 Water Street
  available 07/Jun/2012 posted 17/May/2012.
• $4,800 2-Bedroom at The Setai
  posted 17/May/2012.
• $2,705 Studio at 71 Broadway
  available 10/Jun/2012 posted 17/May/2012.
• $3,595 1-Bedroom at Liberty Plaza
  available 17/May/2012 posted 17/May/2012.

See all Financial District No-Fee Rental Apartments (165 total)

Condo & Co-op Buildings

• 15 Park Row (Financial District)
  A landmark turn-of-the-century high-rise condo building. For a good eight years the tallest residential building in the world, 15 Park Row is architecturally unique. In fact,....
• 99 John (99 John Street, Financial District)
  A high-rise concierge condo building offering a gym, a garage and laundry facilities. Originally an office building, 99 John has been converted into luxury rentals in 1999 an....
• William Beaver House (15 William Street, Financial District) [10 available no-fee apts]
  A modern high-rise doorman condo building offering a gym, a pool and laundry facilities. The apartments have high ceilings.

See all Financial District Condo Apartment Buildings (29 buildings)

• 3 Hanover Square (Financial District)
  A high-rise doorman building offering laundry facilities.
• Seaport Mews (264 Water Street, Financial District)
  A historic warehouse building converted to a residential one.

See our list of Financial District Co-op Apartment Buildings (2 buildings)

NAME

The Financial District (sometimes called the "Wall Street area," or, more annoyingly, the "FiDi") is named quite appropriately in that it's an area where many financial institutions are concentrated, although less densely than in the past.

Additional Links

Please note that the site(s) mentioned below are not affiliated with NYBits

• 17/Aug/2011: Rez complaints about W.T.C. construction (Downtown Express)
• 22/Jun/2011: Iconic building landmarked (Downtown Express)
• 11/May/2011: DT businesses getting makeovers (Downtown Express)
• 10/Dec/2006: Win-win-win (StartsAndFits.com)