FIRST, BIATCH!

No doubt it will be a lovely apartment when it is done. But for that kind of money, where I live and work I could have 4500 square feet and an acre of land, and still have a fair amount of change.

Granted, I won't be earning $2 million + in profits when I make partner. So what? I'll be able to afford my dream house and--here's the kicker--actually spend some time in it with my family.

You talk about this home as if it were a reward for being a Biglaw associate, when in actuality it is a partner's future home. Chances of making partner at many Biglaw firms are below 5%.

"You would think that with so many apartments in New York, there would be much more out there.” Yeah, they sound really excited.

What's the deal with Shulte Roth & Zabel anyway? They have been regularly posting eye-popping PPPs and they seem to be top dogs in the hedge fund sector. Yet they aren't even in the top 50 of Vault. It seems to be a good place to be a partner at the least. Perhaps being an associate there isn't so good and all the partners lateral in from more prestigious firms?

calling this "palatial" is laughable by any other standard than NY. $2.5 million for what amounts to a galley kitchen just doesn't work for me.

My midwestern house is bigger than this, cost less than $150,000, and comes with a garage, a basement, an attic, and real live grass, trees and flowers to boot.

does the bedroom with the private bath have no closets?

To the Anxious Reader:

Remember this:
(1) Its not as miserable as most people make it out to be; and
(2) most of the BIGLAW lawyers I know aren't motivated to buy luxury goods but they do spend their money lavishly on their friends and family (especially children).

This is not to say that there aren't miserable people at BIGLAW who only do it to have the material things that make themselves feel better about their lives. They exist alright but they're rare. Believe it or not, most BIGLAW lawyers (at least in New York) are generally nice, hard-working, driven, people who aren't motivated by buying the latest bag or car. Most of these men and women would drive themselves insane sitting in a cubicle from 9-to-5, doing the same tasks everyday. They (me included) don't like working crazy hours but honestly, it comes in waves. My advice to you is when you have downtime (you're in between deals, cases, etc), take off early, let people know you're available by email and get out. It will make those nights sitting there till midnight a lot easier. And, if you're in a practice group that regularly goes to midnight, year after year...get out. There are too many practices in this city that have decent (2000-2200) hours to kill yourself year after year.

Well, I like my McMansion in the middle of Podunk much more than this. Sometimes I like to stroll around my 1/8th acre of crabgrass and think about how lucky I am that I didn't get into any good law schools so I didn't have tot work in NYC.

Oh.my.god.

Who ARE these people? They post photos of their new homes on the net? I'd love to have seen their wedding website and their gimme registries. This kind of bragging is so unattractive and nouveau riche. The kind of indiscreet behavior that may make him an equally unattractive candidate for partnership.

4:38,

No all the bedrooms have closets. Even the maid's room. And you definitely need a maid, who can keep 2000sf clean all by themselves?

Actually 4:45, this isn't bragging over a mega-mansion in a suburb. NYC is just expensive. The original NYT article was about people in NYC with children and the lack of apartments large enough for a family. I'd be happy to have a partner who wanted to live close to work so he could see his children before bedtime.

4:48: No, they don't. The bedroom closest to the master, with the en-suite bathroom, doesn't have a closet.

The closet across the hall looks like a linen closet.

Well, that money could get 4500 square feet and an acre of land in the New York suburbs as well as your Podunk suburbs. And many of the partners at my firm bill from their laptops on the train in so the commute isn't exactly time lost.

Seems like a good match, but he's a little bit cuter than she is, right?

4:53,

when you walk into the bedroom, turn right and walk towards the CLOSET. stop doing doc review, it's destroying your eyes.

Dont forget--2million/year in NYC is nothing; the real players in this city wouldn't even consider these people rich. Remember 'Bonfire of the Vanities'? Having to share the floor with another apartment is just embarassing.

My bad. I thought that was part of the master bath!

453 -

There is a closet for the bedroom with the en-suite bathroom. It just looks like it is part of the master bedroom's bath. Note the CL directly adjacent to the bathtub. That is the closet for the second bedroom.

I love this apartment. I live in NYC (Brooklyn) have a 2 bedroom with one bath and would kill for a second bathroom and more closet space. Of course, I'm not a partner, I don't make $2M+ per year and I don't have two kids. But, still, it would be nice.

Never mind 453. 505 beat me to the post. Sorry for the unnecessary duplication.

How about an article about Lawyerly rides? You can live in your car, but you can't drive your house.

He went to Tulane and made partner in nyc! He must be a hard worker/have a relative at SRZ....never fear, L2L, there is hope!

He went to Tulane and made partner in nyc! He must be a hard worker/have a relative at SRZ....never fear, L2L, there is hope!

i did it all for the nookie

Sorry, 4:50, this is most certainly bragging. Don't be so naive. A mega-mansion in the suburbs has nothing over that apartment.

I am quite aware NYC is expensive. It is my hometown. It's still vulgar display.

This is rediculous. $2.5mm for a teardown?

Proves the point I always make, especially when it comes to housing costs - If you must work in Biglaw, do it in a smaller market. You can literally buy a mansion for that sum in many "secondary" legal markets which have Biglaw satellites. Plus in most cases, you actually get home to enjoy it on the weekends.

That guy looks gay. Not that's there's anything wrong with it unless you're in the closet with a wife and 2 kids and a GREAT apt with much closet space to hide it.

Wow people, the wife isn't that bad. I have seen lots of lawyers who look a lot worse.

5:18-

You try squeezing out two full-term fetuses and we'll see if you look anywhere near as good as she does. But 5:02 is right- he's aged well, rawr.

3 million where I live buys 4 acres with a 6000 square foot house decked out with every possible feature.

I live in Texas, but I think a lot of you are missing the point that many people who live in NYC would rather pay $2.5 mil for a small fixer-upper than live in a huge mansion in a smaller legal market. As you are all bragging about what huge houses you own in other parts of the country, all of the Manhattan-ites who read ATL are groaning and thinking, "yeah, but you have to live in the Midwest," etc.

Just one more reason why I don't live in NYC. I know people love it, but c'mon! And the next time associates start b!tching about not making more because of NY's COL - remember, you choose to live there knowing this is what your future is like.

Gimme a break!

He's like a 3d year partner--he doesn't make anything CLOSE to the $2.1 million average PPP. I'd be a little surprised if he made half that last year.

I think they saved for the apartment by shopping at H&M. That's the Madonna dress designed for H&M. Not that it isn't a lovely dress, but if I were being photo'ed for the Times, I'd wear something a little more unrecognizable (or something not immediately recognizable as coming from H&M).

My moronic ex lives in NYC and is a biglaw associate. She takes home about $8000 a month after taxes and pays $4000 a month in rent for a one bedroom in a doorman building in mid-town. What an idiot!

Where is the hidden room for the S&M/diaper fantasies?

In my third-tier market (Jackson, MS), a mere 2.5M will get you this: http://mlsoj.com/mls/ListingsDisplay.php?MlsNum=173149&AID=5325990000001738#

The Realtor rambles:

Stunning French Country courtyard-style home in exclusive Meadowbrook Highlands. Pleasingly appointed interior w/ 12'ceilings & antique oak floors; formal rooms; butlers pantry; broad logia, archways & French doors; large kitchen (VIKING,Sub-Zero) w/ office, pantry, & adj.hearth room; spacious den overlooking a host of outdoor enjoyments, incl. screened porch, loggia Viking Kitchen & saltwater pool in a sweep of bluestone decking. 4 or 5 BR, 4 full & 2 half baths. 6700sf. of the ultimate in style & comfort.

Anyone else read the Times article and notice that the only attractive wife is "completing her college degree online from the University of Phoenix?" I don't know why I find that funny.

You all should think carefully before deciding that the time and stress of "biglaw" is not worth the effort. Perhaps you are harkening back to the days when your parents had a "9 to 5" job that was "9 to 5." They don't exist in any commercial profession.

I had a friend who decided to leave the biglaw life for the more tame life as an in-house lawyer. He left for a relatively modest $30,000 pay cut, departed his Manhattan rental and moved to an "inexpensive" $900,000 house in Rockland County. Now, he leaves his house at 6:30, drives 15 minutes to the train station, takes the 7 am train to Grand Central, and he is in his office by 8:15. He works until 6:30, takes the train, drives home, and he is home by 8. Previously, he slept until 8:30, left his apartment at 9, and was sitting at his desk between 9:30 a.m. and 9:00 or 10:00 p.m. most every day.

The long and short of it he spends more time commuting/working now (13.5 hours per day) than he did working/commuting at biglaw. Of course, he does not see it that way. According to him, he is "out of work" at 6:30, living it up at Grand Central and on the Metro North.

2.5M for an apartment in NYC is not a lot of money. The average apartment in Tribeca costs 1.35 million. And forget what you're reading about downturn, this time next year it will be 1.4 million.

seems that lawyers don't much understand economics - how expensive a place is to buy or rent is a function of supply and demand - the places that people most want to live, like nyc, are the most expensive, the places people least want to live in, like mississipi, are the least expensive.

7:00 PM: "2.5M for an apartment in NYC is not a lot of money."

True but (1) it was 2.5 M for a fixer-upper and (2) they probably are putting in another 500K for the renovation (looks like they're gutting the place).

In the end it will probably be a 3.5M apt.

6:59

Your friend could have kept his apartment, and had a great deal more free time. He is an idiot for having a 3 hour commute.

Also, there is a difference in stress between being inhouse and in biglaw.

"I'm a 2L about to start the whirlwind of OCI at my law school. So I've been following the recruiting threads, if not eagerly, at least with an acute sense of anticipation and dread for what life will be like after the honeymoon of next summer.

I'm left with an overriding question: What keeps people in these high-compensation, high-stress jobs? Is it costly court settlements to pay ex-spouses? Mob debts?

I guess it could just be the overwhelming urge to consume luxury goods, but I can't comprehend someone making their lives hell for 60-80 hours a week just to buy a bag with a fancier pattern on it. Those who leave within three years make sense to me, but what about the tortured, hollow souls who soldier on?"

This would have been an awesome open thread but the real estate porno derailed it.

Basically, young whippersnapper, a lot of people realize that ALL jobs kind of blow. They all have assholes to deal with, and facetime, longish hrs, if nowhere near as bad as biglaw. Also shit gets expensive, and let's face it: do you want to be 40 and live in a shittier house than your friends? Do you want your kids to have "less" than your friends' kids? It sounds dumb now but it affects people's choices.

For men, too, more money can mean more ladies. So that plays a role.

I for one would love to know the female attrition rate versus the male attrition rate.

Why do people allow themselves to be profiled like this in the NY Times?

Have they no shame? Are they under the misguided impression this is "classy"?

Anyone remember the asshole middle-aged couple last year who blathered on about how they "like to pay for their friends to go on vacation with them?"

Every damn month there's some smiling 28 year old douchebag with his arms around his parents, blathering about how MOM AND DAD BOUGHT ME THIS CO-OP AS AN INVESTMENT!!!!!

People, just cause the New York Times calls, doesn't mean you have to pick up.

6:59, if it was only time that mattered, perhaps you might have a point. However, I think what is important is how the time is spent. Commuting on Metro North allows you to read, listen to your Ipod, nap, read the paper, or, on the way home, have a few drinks (roadies). Compare this to selling those extra few hours in six-minute increments, dealing with clients, colleagues, etc. That commuting time (on a train) allows you to recharge, decompress and not be a bitter f**k who wants to hit the bottle the minute he gets home. IMHO.

Also, for what it's worth, I have *never* heard of anyone who regretted leaving biglaw (or the law itself), and I know a few that have made the leap (and have heard plenty of additional anecdotal evidence to confirm this).

I think it makes NYC associates sleep better at night to think we are jealous of them.

$2.5M+complete renovation for a 2000- square-foot apartment?? 60-80 hours per week???

$160K starting salary.

HAHAHAHAHAHA!

10:08--
How many people do you know who have regretted leaving any career? That's some wicked sample bias you've got there--people who leave something will just about always be the people who don't like it. And even among those who made a mistake by leaving, some fraction will convince themselves they made the right choice.

how can less than 5% of big law associates make partner? there wouldnt be any partners then ...

maybe at their original firm, but people DO change firms you know ...

In the next lawyerly lairs entry, I will describe my LA pad. Sad thing (for you NYC people) is that despite my tier 2 existence, my domicile is probably a lot nicer than yours.

He's really cute, and she's kind of busted. He could have had cuter girls even without the money, so sucks for him.

1:49, Are you joking? She is one of the most uniquely beautiful women I have ever seen. I've stared at her picture for like 20 minutes today. Her face is a hypnotizing mixture of character and beauty. From the perfectly proportioned nose and chin to her "a bit worn from hard work but still dazzling" eyes.

If you know of another woman like her please sign me up.

Hey Lat, why do you edit these posts so heavily. Stuff appears and then goes away....are you "shaping" these threads?

Unless crippled by debt, people who soldier on are typically people who are not intertested in much. If you happen to be interested in anything other than biglaw law, there comes a point where the money cannot compensate you anymore for that "sophisticated work" that we hear so much about. If you are interested in anything else and are doing this for the money, it will start to eat your soul.

You already know the types that could get made partner. The types that get off on "working for a big client" even though the work is rather mundane and repetitive. For the most part, over the past 8 years that I have been around/in law firms and people who work there, I've noticed that everyone I find remotely interesting (outside of the "i read the newspaper so i can make conversation and argue with people, not necessarily because i care" people) leaves. GENERALLY, people who are content making money, are risk averse, and think it is worth sacrificing personal relationships stay. That's the general profile in my experience.

The bigfirm route has become almost a reflex for those of us "lucky" enough to get the opportunity. If there is not much of a debt consideration, people really need to think about what they want to do and if they go in for financial reasons, they need to have a plan (financial and career) to get out. Otherwise, you are just wasting years of your life that you will never get back.

Think about it this way: Think of all the people you know who have left a law firm. Now think of any of them that regretted it. Your answer is probably that no one regretted it. Whether you leave to take care of kids, go in-house, into gov't, non-profits, etc., leaving a firm is probably one of the best moves you can make for your life/happiness. Now what does that say about law firms??

MAID'S ROOM? Are you kidding me? Seriously? You can't keep a 2000 apartment clean by yourself? And wtf, the maid doesn't rate a bathroom sink?

Is the maid not expected to wash her hands after she uses her private toilet? Or is she expected to take a shower after every toilet usage?

Most partners need the money to buy a little wife-ee. Generally not the tye that get any nookie for free. Give this metrosexual dude two years and he's out. Wife-ee takes the apt. and re-renovates with the child support. Spends the alimony to dress up an illegal or a college boy as her new man.

If you knock up a model in NYC, she can make you pay $4500/month in child support. It seems a bit much... Anyway, that'll keep you in biglaw for a while.

"Every damn month there's some smiling 28 year old douchebag with his arms around his parents, blathering about how MOM AND DAD BOUGHT ME THIS CO-OP AS AN INVESTMENT!!!!! "

So true, so true. And then we all have to read about how trying it was to find the perfect apartment.

Also - what are you people talking about? Boyfriend is no great shakes. His wife is perfectly attractive.

Ah yes, NYC. A third world country with real estate topping $1000/ft. Where your kids go to school with children named Skylar and Taelan. Where dinner out always entails a table-full of Guidos in the proximity.

Fuck NYC.

The people who are up in arms about the "Maid's Room" are showing their naivete. Many building floorplans for NYC apts refer to a "maid's room" rather than calling it a bedroom or office. They tend to be very small rooms and often don't have a window (though this one does). This doesn't necessarily mean that these people actually have a maid living in their apartment.

Go figure -- some people take the "maid's room" and use it for something else. Hope your feeble minds can grasp that.

Eh, I'd do her.

OK I understand that the maid's room could be used for, say, a study. But why have a bathroom (regardless of its placment or the use of the room) with a toilet but without a sink? I really don't understand that. Especially since there does appear to be a shower in there. How could someone think it was a good idea to put in just a toilet and a shower? It would have been more useful (and cheaper and there certainly would be room) to put in just a toilet and a sink (i.e. a regular half bath instead of this head-scratching craziness).

WTF is up with the censorship in the comments? Lat, that's awfully pussy of you. Can't wait for this comment to be deleted, douchebag.

NYC is the best city in the world. Anyone who doesn't agree is stuck in their podunk little crappy markets most likely because they have no drive or brains. It has the best restaurants, awesome entertainment, the most interesting people, and the best sports teams.

Once I finally visit NYC for the first time I will laugh at how country all you bumpkins are.

Criticizing those who have chosen to live the NYC lifestyle doesn't make your life seem better, it actually just makes you sound bitter. Not everyone who lives in nyc spends their "fortunes" on designer goods and luxury apartments... most have the same mortgages, college debts, family stuff to pay for like the rest of the country. Some people just like the urban lifestyle, while others just prefer the suburban or country lifestyle. To each his own...