The Catskills are getting hotter, weatherwise and propertywise, as stir-crazy house hunters search for residences outside big cities. For those in the New York City area, one of the more sought-after spots in the state is the southeastern city of Kingston. A surge of potential buyers is buoying the area’s latest revitalization effort.
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For Rony Zeidan, 42, and his partner, Jonathan Meizler, 56, who live in Manhattan’s Hudson Yards, it was the right time to buy in a less congested area. They are concerned about having to ride out a second pandemic wave, and they don’t think their apartment and terrace provide enough outdoor space for living or for working remotely. They are also avid travelers with no immediate travel plans.
“Now we have to figure out our world in a more localized way,” said Mr. Zeidan, founder of Ro New York, a branding agency. He added that he sees homeownership as a similar adventure: “The house is a form of travel. It kills time.”
Jens Sogaard and Katrin Björk with two of their three children.
Photo: Dorothy Hong for The Wall Street JournalThey found a historic stone home in a hamlet close to Kingston that they first saw three years ago but weren’t ready to buy, he said. But when the three-bedroom, two bath home went on the market three weeks ago for under $1 million, they didn’t hesitate.
“We put the offer on it that morning,” said Mr. Zeidan, and it was accepted. He and Mr. Meizler plan to turn the property into a second home and a work outpost. Mr. Meizler is the founder of Title of Work, a luxury accessories brand for men.
“We have an affinity for Kingston because of the cultural renaissance that’s happening there,” Mr. Zeidan added.
Their property was among the 29 homes in the area recorded from mid-March through June 22 as having an accepted offer or going into contract, according to Hayes Clement, an agent at Berkshire Hathaway in Kingston. The median list price of those properties was $299,000, he said, with 13 listed at $375,000 or higher, and three priced at more than $500,000. The median time on the market was 16 days, he added.
“The high-end market in Kingston has been completely redefined in a matter of months,” said Mr. Clement, describing the area as one of the hottest markets in the Hudson Valley. “You’re now routinely seeing $500,000-plus listings, and they sell, often in days, sometimes to the first prospect through the door.”
Comparing first-quarter sales and median figures, the number of single-family home sales in the area rose to 47 this year, from 31 in the year-earlier quarter. The median price jumped to $193,000 from $180,200. And sales happened faster, to a median period of 100 days from 106 days in the 2019 quarter.
The family’s home is a four-bedroom, 2,700-square-foot Victorian.
Photo: Dorothy Hong for The Wall Street JournalLarge homes, once ignored in favor of smaller weekend getaways, are now receiving the most attention from out-of-town buyers. “In the age of sheltering, these homes are allowing individuals or couples to have space for a home office or two if necessary, and space to bring extended family and grandparents with them,” said Jeff Serouya, an agent with Berkshire Hathaway in Stone Ridge. Agents were able to resume in-person showings on June 9.
Kingston has a population of about 24,000. It is roughly 90 miles north of New York City with no direct rail service from Manhattan, although private buses from TrailwaysNY operate with city service. The trip takes about two hours.
Buyers, said Mr. Clement, tend to be younger home-seekers and small-business owners. “And especially those with flexible schedules who only needed to go into the city one to two times a week,” he added. In addition to being the biggest town in the area, it also has a wider assortment of dwellings than other towns in Ulster County, or in neighboring Dutchess County, which also have seen a rise in interest.
Konstanze Zeller bought the fire-damaged shell of a 3,400-square-foot, 300-year-old stone house in nearby Marbletown for $265,000 and did a gut renovation.
Photo: Clemens Kois for The Wall Street JournalThe charm of a stone farmhouse with wide plank floors, exposed beams and quaint architectural details appealed to Paul Thompson, an anesthesiologist, and Evan Chodos, a media executive, who purchased their property in the adjacent town of Marbletown in November.
“It checks the boxes,” said Mr. Thompson, 56, of their two-story, circa-1800 Colonial home with a private pond on 29 acres. It is a weekend retreat for the Manhattan residents, but for now it is their primary residence. “[The lag] permitted us to get better acquainted with the property and home to see what’s really warranted,” said Mr. Chodos, 46. “We did focus our energies on sprucing up the exterior to enhance its curb appeal. We’re just now completing a stone wall revitalization project along Lapla Road, built a gentle horse fence and removed several overgrown trees.”
The couple had a property in nearby Kerhonkson but sold it in 2017 with the goal of owning an authentic antique home. They spent two years looking before they bought their current three-bedroom property for $805,000. “Being away for two years, we have seen a renaissance in the area,” said Mr. Chodos. “The two-hour escape from Manhattan to the fresh air of Ulster County provides the perfect getaway.”
Ms. Zeller is a fashion-industry makeup artist and food entrepreneur.
Photo: Clemens Kois for The Wall Street JournalThe rapid development of Kingston’s shops and its blossoming restaurant scene are part of its attraction. Two restaurants launched even as the pandemic hit the city: Lunch Nightly, a butcher shop and a deli that offers whole roast chickens and dinners to go, and Turkish Mediterranean spot Masa Midtown, originally intended as a catering and event space.
“We’ve since shifted gears to take-out style and have been adjusting as the situation changes,” said Ozlem Oguzcan-Cranston, the owner and chef of Masa Midtown.
Lola pizzeria, another recent addition to the culinary scene and the latest dining enterprise from restaurateur Taavo Somer is in the Uptown Stockade District, one of Kingston’s three main neighborhoods and a major draw. It is an eight-block area known for its walkability and characterized by slate sidewalks and pre-Revolutionary Dutch stone buildings housing coffee shops, bookstores, vintage clothing boutiques and art galleries. A $10 million revitalization grant from the state in 2017 helped spur the change.
The Zeller property was once a cattle farm.
Photo: Clemens Kois
Ms. Zeller rents out the barn for special events.
Photo: Clemens KoisOne major project slated to begin in early 2021 is an expansive mixed-use development called the Kingstonian, spearheaded by JM Development Group LLC in partnership with Herzog Supply Co. Plans include an open-air pedestrian plaza, restaurant and retail stores, 143 apartments, a 32-room hotel and parking for 420 cars. The site was originally home to the historic Kingstonian Hotel.
It isn’t the first time the city has undergone a revival. In the second half of the 20th century it was considered a sprawling rural tech hub, fortified by the presence of IBM in the nearby town of Ulster until the company’s departure in the 1990s.
“Kingston will continue to adapt to future changes but also continue to keep the history and preservation in mind,” said Nancy Chando, board of directors president of Friends of Kingston. She said she has fielded several requests for information on historic properties.
The historic home is on 6 acres.
Photo: Clemens Kois for The Wall Street Journal
The Zeller home has four bedrooms and 2.5 baths.
Photo: Clemens Kois for The Wall Street JournalMidtown, which features a housing stock of smaller, single-family homes and converted loft buildings, is a popular option for artists seeking more space and value. The Rondout, a waterside area alongside Rondout Creek, is a draw for those who prefer historic homes, niche boutiques, antique stores and family restaurants.
Katrín Björk and her husband, Jens Sogaard, first saw their four-bedroom, 2,700-square-foot Victorian in Uptown Kingston last year. They liked its spacious front porch, original wood flooring and 10-foot ceilings on every level.
“We had been looking to buy a house in the Hudson Valley for a long time,” said Ms. Björk, 38, who works as a lifestyle photographer and cookbook author. “It was large enough to fit all our needs, old enough to accommodate our style, affordable, and in a great and vibrant school district.”
They bought the property for $460,000 and in May 2019 moved in with their son and daughter, now ages 6 and 2, respectively. Mr. Sogaard, 39, is a software engineer. After their third child arrived in February and amid the pandemic, they turned their focus to growing food and created a garden with kale, cauliflower and tomatoes.
“We are planning on redoing our kitchen sooner rather than later. As a family of five being home 24/7 and having all our meals at home, we have really experienced how unfunctional the kitchen is,” said Ms. Björk.
Manhattan residents Paul Thompson and Evan Chodos found a rural retreat in the Kingston area.
Photo: Morton Adams PhotographySarah Copeland, former food director at Real Simple, and author of numerous cookbooks, moved to Hurley, just outside of Kingston, 10 years ago when she and her husband, András Gipp, bought a 1930s cottage style home with a unique 200-year-old blacksmith barn on the property. They paid less than $200,000. Ms. Copeland and Mr. Gipp, a furniture maker, have found a new and thriving community for their family since leaving the city full time in 2015.
The desire for more reasonable family living space wasn’t the only thing driving her and like-minded artists and entrepreneurs north. “There’s a real sense of community and camaraderie here,” she said. “There is so much creative interchange and collaboration, so much opportunity. Everyone here is hungry—to grow, to leap, to take risks—and at the same time relaxed enough about it not to lose sight of the big picture.”
The Kingston area was an instant draw for Konstanze Zeller, 50, a fashion-industry makeup artist and food entrepreneur who bought the fire-damaged shell of a 3,400-square-foot 300-year-old stone house that was once a small cattle farm. She purchased the Marbletown property, including 6 acres, for $265,000 in 2016 and did a gut renovation, including room redesigns and a new kitchen and bathrooms. She declined to estimate the costs.
The transformation into a luxe rustic haven with four bedrooms and 2.5 baths allows Ms. Zeller to welcome friends and their children. “I wanted a big house,” she said.
The historic home is on 29 acres.
Photo: Morton Adams PhotographyBefore the pandemic, she rented her property as an event space and as a backdrop for advertising photo shoots, special events and private culinary gatherings hosted in the home’s professional kitchen.
Ms. Zeller has spent the past months building-out the event space and barn, planting vegetables, and cleaning up her riverfront to allow access for swimming, kayaking and fishing.
She also has been developing recipes for her company Cocorau.com, which makes Raw Cacao Bites and a line of food-based powders.
In mid-June in Kingston, Mr. Serouya, the real-estate agent, listed a single-family stone house, built around 1800, with five bedrooms and two baths for $795,000. It has updated interiors and 8 acres of private land.
At the same time, a single-family brick house with two garages and a pool on just over one-third acre in Midtown was listed for $389,000. It sold in less than a week, above asking price and with multiple offers.
Another recent sale in the area is a four-bedroom, 3½-bath bath Colonial stone-and-brick Freer-Eddy-Wurster House in the hamlet of Eddyville that sold in November for $1.45 million. The buyers were a Manhattan couple. It had been on the market 41 days.
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