The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

The godfather of the modern commercial brokerage

Posted: 18 Feb 2019 02:00 PM PST

Agents with specialties. Electronic databases that track tenants. Shiny shoes and suspenders. In ways both substantive and superficial, the Edward S. Gordon Company, a firm that came to prominence in New York in the 1980s, was instrumental in creating the modern-day commercial-brokerage business. A clear line can be drawn from that legacy to the firm’s namesake: a colorful character who generated tremendous good will before his death at the age of 65 in 2000, according […]

Thanks to oversupply and a slew of regional issues, Dubai is experiencing a big drop in property prices

Posted: 18 Feb 2019 01:00 PM PST

Once the hottest housing market in the world, Dubai is experiencing a fall from grace. Property prices in the Emirati capital have dropped more than 25 percent since their peak in 2015, according to a new JLL report cited by the Wall Street Journal. Low oil prices, political turmoil and weaker currencies across the Middle East have all contributed to the slowdown. Oversupply has also played a pivotal role in the downswing. According to JLL, […]

When the glass ceiling won’t break

Posted: 18 Feb 2019 12:00 PM PST

If ever there was a time to talk about sex and gender issues in New York City real estate, it’s now. The topics were thrust onto the national stage in October when news broke that Hollywood boss Harvey Weinstein had allegedly sexually harassed and abused dozens of women for decades, using his power in the industry to threaten their careers if they didn’t comply with his demands. The sordid details of his reported manipulation clearly […]

Luxury brand-name residences are growing in popularity — and commanding a premium

Posted: 18 Feb 2019 11:00 AM PST

If you brand it, they will come. That’s the lesson luxury residential developers are learning as more and more buyers are purchasing properties in high-end branded towers. More than 400 properties are stamped with luxury brand names across the world, and 110 more of these developments will open by 2023, according to Alexandros Moulas, a director of international development at Savills Plc, Bloomberg reported. Such developments include the 60-story Porsche Design Tower in Sunny Isles […]

Behind real estate’s red tape nightmare

Posted: 18 Feb 2019 10:00 AM PST

UPDATED, March 2, 5:17 p.m.: It was the spring of 2015, and New York City developers were madly rushing to get their residential projects approved before the popular 421a tax abatement program expired. But in the midst of the frenzy, the city’s development world hit an unexpected snag: A government employee went on vacation. While that might seem like the punch line of a joke, for developers with millions of dollars of tax breaks on […]

As rent and tax reforms sweep US, real estate industry braces for fight with progressive lawmakers

Posted: 18 Feb 2019 09:00 AM PST

After making significant gains in the midterms elections, Democratic lawmakers now have their sights set on curbing big real estate players. Bills are being introduced in states like New York, Illinois and California to strengthen rent controls and change tax laws, according the Wall Street Journal. In New York, where the real estate lobby holds enormous power, progressives like U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have vowed not to accept donations from the industry. “We don’t make […]

Dissecting the real estate legacy of the-once-powerful-but-now-disgraced Sheldon Silver

Posted: 18 Feb 2019 08:00 AM PST

Sheldon Silver may have had just one vote, but a “no” from him carried more weight than any other politician in the state legislature. For developers, it could be the kiss of death. The former state Assembly speaker — who was recently convicted on federal corruption charges involving $4 million in kickbacks — was one of the three most powerful men in Albany, along with the governor and Senate majority leader. (The last two Senate […]

Long Island Cheat Sheet: Amazon’s LIC withdrawal causes development concerns, Central Islip rental project secures $65M in financing… & more

Posted: 18 Feb 2019 07:30 AM PST

Amazon pullout could hurt Long Island development Economic officials on Long Island are worried that Amazon’s surprise decision to not build its second headquarters in Long Island City, Queens, will have a chilling effect on out-of-state businesses pursuing new development in the region, Newsday reported. “Some people will equate Long Island with having made this big mistake,” William Mannix, executive director of the Islip Town Industrial Development Agency, told the outlet. Mannix and other economic […]

Deal fit for a president? Illinois farmland once owned by Abraham Lincoln sells at auction

Posted: 18 Feb 2019 07:00 AM PST

A 30-acre plot of Central Illinois farmland once owned by Abraham Lincoln was sold at auction on the former president’s birthday. Retired farmer Ron Best and his family sold the land for $300,000, or $10,000 an acre, according to the Journal-Gazette and Times-Courier. The plot was part of an 590-acre parcel that sold for a total of $3.9 million to an anonymous buyer, according to a representative. Lincoln in 1841 bought 40 acres of land […]

Murdoch moves on Zillow: Is the media mogul StreetEasy’s one true threat?

Posted: 18 Feb 2019 06:00 AM PST

“What the hell does Zillow mean?” It was 2015, and the bull-headed media mogul Rupert Murdoch was speaking at a gathering of 4,000 real estate agents in Midtown Manhattan. “We know what ‘realtor’ means,” he said. Murdoch had made a career out of big-game hunting, and this time his target was Zillow. Ever since buying StreetEasy in 2012, the $7.5 billion real estate giant had reigned over New York’s listings market. A few months before […]

Page not found: Yelp is hiding reviews for iBuyers like Opendoor and Offerpad

Posted: 18 Feb 2019 05:00 AM PST

Yelp is making it harder to find reviews for home-flipping companies like Opendoor and Offerpad. Business pages for the two iBuyers cannot be found through Yelp or Google searches, Inman reported. The reviews can only be accessed through this link. Industry experts and reviewers argue removing pages makes it harder for consumers to compare iBuying programs with traditional brokerages, which are more visible on Yelp. Opendoor’s Yelp page comes with nearly 500 reviews and a […]

All in the family: Alex Sapir turns to relatives to complete Surfside development

Posted: 17 Feb 2019 06:54 PM PST

Alex Sapir, through his investment firm, the Sapir Corp., is seeking shareholder approval on a deal that will let his relatives bail him out on a luxury condo development under construction in Surfside, a sleepy town north of Miami Beach. Alex Sapir’s publicly traded company is proposing to use $6 million in deposits for condo units at Arte by Antonio Citterio, to fund overrun costs tied to completing construction of the 12-story project, according to […]