Rvr Vus

By the way, the owners of the co-op next to the retaining wall that fell on the Henry Hudson Parkway are on the hook for paying the costs of the cleanup:

For years, the Castle Village apartments in Washington Heights have practically sold themselves. The five-building co-op complex lures buyers to 181st Street and Cabrini Boulevard with its backyard park, indoor gym, roof decks and spectacular views of the Hudson River and the George Washington Bridge.

But many buyers and sellers are not talking about those “Rvr Vus” anymore, not since a retaining wall owned by Castle Village collapsed onto the Henry Hudson Parkway last Thursday, leaving behind a gaping pit of mud and rock and a mess that will probably cost the complex millions of dollars to repair. Because costs in cooperatively owned buildings are divided among apartment owners, each owner could be on the hook for thousands of dollars.

“We were scheduled to close this week, and all of a sudden, this happens to us,” said Michael Lugassy, who is buying his first apartment with his wife. “We were like, ‘What are the odds?’ Had the building completely fallen into the river, things would have been different.”

Now, residents and buyers are fretting about repair costs, calling their lawyers and researching the co-op’s insurance coverage. But even though the collapse has swamped the building’s management office and postponed a few sales closings, residents and real estate brokers say it has not sunk any deals.

That must have affected sales, right? Wrong! See how:

In Manhattan’s overheated, bargain-hungry real estate market, the focus on Castle Village may have actually improved business, said Gus Perry, who owns a real estate agency in the neighborhood. His agency, Stein-Perry, is showing two apartments in the complex, and fortunately, he said, neither faces the pit.

“We have had calls from people who didn’t realize this place existed,” Mr. Perry said. “The following day, we were up there showing apartments.”

I think he’s lying! But no matter . . .

Rebuilding the wall will reportedly cost between $3 and $5 million — this in addition to the several million it will take to clean up the mess. But it’s such a good deal — and such views! — one can’t resist it:

Brenda Copeland was not so sanguine when she turned on the news Thursday night and saw dirt, boulders and trees spilled onto the parkway. Ms. Copeland, a book editor for Simon & Schuster who lives on the Upper East Side and is buying her first apartment, said she had made frantic phone calls to friends who had helped her find the apartment. It is a one-bedroom on the ninth floor with sweeping views of the city and the Hudson, but suddenly she was worried about her purchase.

“I thought, ‘What do I do, what do I do?’ ” Ms. Copeland said. “I bought all of the books, like ‘100 things a New Apartment Owner Needs to Know.’ They told you about falling interest rates, not falling rocks.”

She had already signed a contract and paid a 10 percent down payment on the $449,000 apartment. But she said she calmed down and decided to go ahead with the deal, even if she had to pay for the damage or repair.