Heading Uptown

With former President Clinton taking office space in Harlem, a few Friends of Bill and Hollywood types are following his cue. Some high-profile shoppers in the neighborhood: actor Wesley Snipes and poet Maya Angelou. The 73-year-old author of “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” was outbid on a four-story townhouse that needed a gut renovation, with an asking price of $475,000. Instead, she opted for another building in the neighborhood, people close to the situation say. And just three years after Mr. Snipes bought a West Village home for $2.4 million, he’s looking in Harlem, where his fictional character in Spike Lee’s “Jungle Fever” lived. Despite market doldrums, bidding wars are still common to Harlem, says Bob Eychner, of real-estate company Harlem Homes, because prices are lower than in other parts of Manhattan and there is a limited inventory. The record for a townhouse: $850,000, but several are on the market for more.