Reality Estate

When you watch TV shows set in NYC or other great places, if you're like me, you wonder how much the characters' home or apartments might cost to own or rent. Never mind the plot -- what about the digs?

Sadly, for us New Yorkers, real estate always wins out.

That's why you must check out this piece from Vanity Fair by New York real estate legend Barbara Corcoran appraises the values of fictional TV dwellings past and present?

Would the Jeffersons still be able to afford their dee-luxe apartment in the sky?

How much would the rent on Carrie Bradshaw's apartment be -- and could a newspaper columnist afford it?

What about the 2 Broke Girls?

And do you know it would be cost almost a quarter of a billion dollars to buy Downton Abbey?

For shows set in NYC, some do a more realistic job than others in portraying the homes of New Yorkers. For example, in Mad About You, the size of Paul and Jaime's one bedroom was realistic -- except for the size of their bathroom which was enormous. Friends, on the other hand, was roundly criticized for having several minimally employed twenty-somethings living in apartments the size of Australia. Seinfeld was mostly realistic -- although how Kramer ever payed rent remains a mystery.