Myths & Realities. Data vs Media. What’s Going on in New York & Its Population?


Wherever you live, if you live in America, every decade you suffer through the onslaught of the information gathering of the Census.  It’s slightly less bad than the cycle of locusts, but presumably as messy for those who have to recycle the mounds of paper wasted during the collection of data. What happens?  The government
READ MORE

VIDEO: Buyers Are ALWAYS Hoping To Time The Market- And Maybe They Can, Again!


Will buyers be able to time the market?  There is always the idea that when the market dips, that buyers will know and be able to take advantage of it.  However, rarely are buyers that brave.  Courage is what’s required in that moment, just when everyone is screaming, running in the other direction… Right now,
READ MORE

Living In New York Is Hard Enough. Might Vaccination Be a Requirement For Your Next Apartment Rental or Purchase?


A few years ago, clients started asking me if they could purchase only in buildings that had banned smoking.  On the flip side, some landlords wanted to only have tenants in their units that didn’t smoke. This seemed like a really, really hard thing to enforce.  Now, a few years later, not only is smoking
READ MORE

VIDEO: Happy Vs Unhappy In New York? Try Super Optimistic!


    I was a bit shocked to hear during an interview that, when asked about his feelings on New York City, best-selling author Ryan Holiday had this to say about New York (around 1:32:00): “I did spend some time in New York.  I went there after my first book sold.  I thought that ‘Oh,
READ MORE

Buyer, Beware! Appraisers Are Going Really, Really Sideways and May Mess Up Your Deal!


One of my favorite movie scenes is from “Anchorman,” featuring Will Farrell.  Rival news teams suddenly are embroiled in a massive gang battle, with crazy weapons and over-the-top violence, all done with a smirk. “Well, that escalated quickly,” Farrell’s character, as they contemplate the medieval weapons that had just stopped being hurled (over a cold
READ MORE

New Apps Arriving on the Real Estate Scene


I’ve been peppered with introductions, postcards, and interview requests to discuss the variety of new businesses cropping up to help homebuyers lock down properties, refinance and take cash out of their properties, and other creative models.  On one hand, I’m petrified about the fine print of these programs and shudder about who won’t read it. 
READ MORE

I Sound Like A Broken Record, But Records Are Breaking (VIDEO)


The timing could not be better to share our latest inventory report.  What you’ll notice in it is that that launching of new units to market cannot keep up with the pace of sales.  Our current market remains stronger than where we were this time in 2020. Across all price points, this market activity exceeds
READ MORE

The COVID Real Estate Narrative – And What Is Missing From It


The Narrative: “The New York Times is working on a story about New Yorkers who left the the city for the suburbs (or perhaps for another city) when Covid hit. Now, with businesses reopening and bosses insisting on seeing their employees IN PERSON rather than on Zoom,  at least a few days a week, some
READ MORE

Less Than One Month Later, So Much Has Returned To Normal! (5 Little Things Revisited)


Just last month… I wrote about five little things that, if improved, would help our real estate market get back to full health more quickly (you can read it all here).  They were: Bringing Back Normal Open Houses Getting Managing Agents back to Full Speed Eliminating COVID forms Brokers Making Themselves Readily Available for Appointments
READ MORE

$30 Million In 30 Days (VIDEO)


Here, I share what a difference a year makes. Our team is poised to close over $100 Million in business in the first half of 2021, and in the last thirty days, we did more business than we did in ALL OF 2020. While we never freaked out, we certainly cannot believe how DESPERATION in
READ MORE

Recent Blog Posts

The End of Rental Broker Commissions As You Know It. The Beginning of Even-Higher Rents.
The Sometimes Secret to Dealmaking? Waiting. (Our Deal of the Month @ 52 Riverside Drive)
(VIDEO) Don’t Take My Word For It. The NYC Housing Market is Better Than You’ve Heard.
How Much does Overcustomization Cost? (Our Deal of the Month)
A New Way To Save Real $$ on your Prewar Apartment Renovation—by Using Smart Home Systems (and Calling the Electrician)
(VIDEO) The Win-Win Window is Closing
What Happens when Your Agent Becomes an Advisor? Our Deal of the Month: 24 East 82nd
The Nothingburger of the Buyer Representation Scandal
The Non-Binary Housing Market
(VIDEO) How Lower Rates Are Already Impacting the NYC Housing Market

Archives