[bardam]

In NYC the cost of buying/selling an coop/condo can be more than 10% of the total purchase/sale price. See for reference:

https://www.brickunderground.com/blog/2015/03/closing_costs

So the cost to buy/sell a $1mm apartment could be in the range of $110,000 after broker fees and all taxes are accounted for. An apartment at that price would rent for maybe $4k for month, though that will rise at a faster price over 30 years than a fixed mortgage + common charges. Unless the value rises at a pace much faster than the rate of inflation, you're going to lose money if you don't hold on to the place for a few years. See this fun calculator to find the inflection point:

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/upshot/buy-rent-cal...