The Days of A Bedroom Fireplace Fade

We recently listed a beautiful property at The Imperial at 55 E 76th Street on the Upper East Side , and we have spent the last 2 days showing it to dozens of interested buyers. The apartment is probably considered "estate condition", but to our surprise, most of the visitors are interested in the two fireplaces. They were "virtually" staged to look like a roaring fire was burning at the photo shoot, but we were not actually burning wood when the photographer came.

In fact, we received an almost instantaneous email from a concerned neighbor, as the building requires a full refitting and inspection before the fireplaces can be used, and although we knew that the prior owner had not used the fireplace over their 30+ year residency, there was concern we had availed ourselves of the warmth of these magnificent wood burning hearths. 

In 1883 , fireplaces were not a luxury. They were a necessity. Today, now that there will be no more fireplaces in any new building, these hearths will become a most coveted amenity. The NY Times recently printed an article about them, and its a truly sad story about yet another era passing.