Jordan Pacitti and his husband, Ben Griffiths, former professional dancers who arrived in New York City in 2020, recently purchased an apartment in Washington Heights after plans to move to Italy were derailed. The couple, who previously lived in Seattle while dancing with the Pacific Northwest Ballet, had intended to relocate abroad but shifted their focus back to New York City following changes in Italian citizenship laws.
Mr. Pacitti, 45, a third-generation Italian American and founder of a skincare company established in 2013, was pursuing Italian citizenship when, in March 2025, Italy revised its policy to restrict citizenship by ancestry to only first- and second-generation descendants. With Mr. Griffiths, 42, working for Mr. Pacitti’s company and both able to work remotely, the couple had anticipated a move to Italy. However, with their lease at a Sutton Place apartment set to expire in March, they reevaluated and decided to purchase a property in Manhattan instead.
With a budget of $600,000, they sought a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment close to subway access and with manageable maintenance fees. Initially considering options in Queens and Brooklyn, they ultimately focused on Manhattan neighborhoods north of Harlem, specifically Washington Heights and Inwood, based on their existing lifestyle and location preferences.
The couple explored three main options. Two were sponsor units in a co-op building in Washington Heights — a renovated two-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment on the third floor priced at $529,000 with $1,379 monthly maintenance fees, and a similar unit on the fifth floor listed for $489,000 with the same maintenance costs. The third option was in an elevator building in Inwood, a two-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment priced at $575,000 with higher maintenance fees of $1,635, situated near the No. 1 and A subway lines but requiring climbing several flights of stairs to reach the station.
They ultimately opted for the Washington Heights third-floor sponsor unit, citing its combination of lower maintenance fees, ample natural light, spacious bedrooms, and easier access to public transportation. The couple acknowledged that while the fifth floor offered better light, navigating stairs could become challenging over time. They also wished to avoid the board approval process required for the Inwood unit, which might not align with their lease timeline.
After negotiating, the couple closed on the apartment on February 25 for $515,000, securing concessions on closing and transfer taxes. They moved in within a month and have since integrated into a like-minded community of neighbors, including creatives and small business owners of similar age.
Mr. Pacitti highlighted the neighborhood’s abundance of parks and independent shops, while Mr. Griffiths noted that the move helped them expand their social lives diminished during the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing them to reengage with the city more fully.