Teri Karush Rogers

Over on StreetEasy, one NYC-dweller is craving a fireplace (aren't we all?). He says a real, woodburning fireplace isn't an option for his apartment, and he wants to avoid cheesy overly-fake-looking pseudo-fireplaces.

Before we list a few alternatives, some background on the state of the woodburning fireplace in New York City is in order.

Q.  My fiance and I are looking to buy a co-op on the Upper East Side, and we're running into one big hitch: Although we meet all other requirements, we do not meet the standard 25-28% debt/income ratio. Part of this is because we are young.

Should we just give up (sad day!), or are there any kinds of buildings or areas that we could look at that would be more likely to be lax in this department?

All other things being equal (square footage, apartment condition, layout, etc.), how much more is a higher-floor apartment worth?

That's the question under discussion on StreetEasy.com, where efforts to assign an exact number--in the $5k-$10k range?  1% per floor?--come to no clear conclusion, and some even argue that apartments that are too high up (say, above the 15th floor) suffer from impaired river views and should get a demerit instead of a boost.

Q. We are undertaking a room by room renovation of our prewar.  First is the guest bedroom and bath. There are 4 doors and door frames which are metal.  

We would love to keep at least the door frames but they are in desperate need of stripping.  We can't find anyone who does that work and we cannot do ourselves.  

What is the going rate to strip metal door frames and how do I locate such a service in the Midtown area?