Best Upstate Listings: Catskill, Phoenicia, Greenville

Part of living in New York City is thinking about moving out of New York City. Each month, we’ll round up the best listings within commuting-ish distance, places where entire houses go for the cost of a “junior one-bedroom” (or less) but you’ll have to fix your own toilet.

This week we have some ancient houses, plus a mid-century modern on a creek.

$750,000: 4-bedroom, 2-bath

This listing photo highlights one of the best parts of the house — an eat-in bay-window nook.
Photo: Rouse + Co

Here’s a disgustingly charming Gothic Revival. We love the built-ins and the pointed Gothic-style windows throughout the house. The highlight is an incredible bay with arched windows where you can bathe in light and drink your morning coffee. The house was built around 1862, but everything that matters seems to have been renovated; the kitchen has a Bertazzoni five-burner stove for when you need to heat five things at once, and the full bathroom upstairs has a marble shower. Other details: The living room has the original marble mantel and crown moldings, and there’s a pretty cozy sitting room with exposed beams in the back. It’s higher priced for the area, but it’s on a large lot with a two-car garage and is one of the best kept.

How do I get back to the city?

It’s a ten-minute drive to the Hudson Amtrak station, then two hours by train.

So, what do I do if I live there?

Watch the boats go by at the landing. Go birding at the RamsHorn-Livingston Sanctuary. Get coffee at Willa’s.

$1,495,000: 6-bedroom, 4-bath

The exteriors of the house as shown in this listing photo were transported all the way from Pennsylvania.
Photo: Four Seasons Sotheby’s

There’s a lot of old — and we mean very old — details in this house, such as the reclaimed bricks highlighted in this listing photo.
Photo: Four Seasons Sotheby’s

If you’ve been dying to buy a house that was actually a barn built in Pennsylvania in the 1800s, disassembled, then rebuilt in upstate New York in 1990, this is the listing for you. For fans of old stuff, this house is full of it — wood paneling from a 1780s English manor, brick floors from a 19th-century Hudson factory, Delft tiles from 1760, and hand-carved wood beams throughout. Don’t worry, there’s new stuff, too — Bosch appliances in the kitchen and solar panels to supplement your energy. Is it expensive for the area? Maybe, but it has six bedrooms. Go buy it with some friends. It’s a gardener’s dream, with an 11-acre lot next to woodland.

How do I get back to the city?

A two-hour drive, or just 20 minutes to the Hudson Amtrak.

So, what do I do if I live there?

Cool off at Lake Taghkanic State Park, and then stop at the West Taghkanic Diner for a sandwich after.

$635,000: 4-bedroom, 2-bath

The listing photo shows off the dollhouse exterior of this Queen Anne Victorian.
Photo: Howard Hanna Rand

The interiors of this house, like the kitchen featured in this listing photo, will probably have to be updated.
Photo: Howard Hanna Rand

This Queen Anne Victorian was built in 1894 and has a turret — basically a house out of a children’s picture book. There are lots of original details to love throughout, like stained-glass windows, pocket doors, and parquet floors. Some of the interiors will have to be updated (looking at you, kitchen), but you can keep the tin ceilings and original woodwork. The house even comes with a 2,000-square-foot outbuilding that could house a studio or woodshop or, say, store materials for a renovation. It’s a small town, but you’ll have neighbors on your street.

How do I get back to the city?

It’s just under a three-hour drive.

So, what do I do if I live there?

Watch Twisters at the Greenville drive-in.

$735,000: 2-bedroom, 2-bath

The creek captured in this listing photo is one of the main draws of this house in the woods.
Photo: Compass

The mid-century modern house is wide open and full of light, as seen in this listing photo.
Photo: Compass

A nice mid-century modern find, this house, built in 1959, has an excellent stone fireplace and a beautiful creek running through the backyard. The interiors are airy, with an updated open kitchen and floor-to-ceiling windows in nearly every room framing the forest views. Highlights include a stone-covered patio, wide-plank floors, and skylights in the living room. As a single-story home, it’s one you can grow old in. It’s tucked in on a quiet road.

How do I get back to the city?

It’s a 2.5-hour drive.

So, what do I do if I live there?

Go fishing in your backyard or hiking in the Catskills (also in your backyard). The tiny town of Phoenicia is a ten-minute drive away.