Leigh Kamping-Carder

Mustard: great on hotdogs, not so great as a color scheme for your toilet, sink and bathtub. But if you’re selling, particularly with so few apartments on the market, is a more contemporary redo worth the money and hassle?

Quite possibly not, according to the New York Times, which tackled the issue in response to a seller’s question about renovating bathroom fixtures in a “very retro shade of mustard.”

Getting more than you pay for is such a rare occurrence in the search for a New York City apartment that we couldn’t help but notice this Hell’s Kitchen studio, which comes with an extra half room that makes the place seem a lot more functional than your average one-room abode.

Q. We're about to close on a co-op with a washer/dryer. The sellers' broker told us repeatedly that it was installed legally, but has never provided proof. Recently the board asked the owners to take it out before they sell. We have two very young, very messy children, and we would have never made an offer on a place without a washing machine. We're about to go for our board interview this week. What can we do?