What most excites me about 2013? The election is behind us. If we’re all still here on Saturday, the Mayans were wrong. The Hobbit and Les Miserables are in theatres. What else is there, really? Well, New Development. We will see more and more in 2013, thank goodness. While much will be made of the
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Sensational articles sell newspapers, so there is never a surprise in the real estate section to read about the biggest deals, the tallest towers, the best of this neighborhood or that one, the best apartments, the smallest apartments, etc. However, the New York Times finally landed on the realities which I’ve been writing about here
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Mortgage rates actually dipped a little more over the last few weeks, leaving mortgage brokers with a large number of applications for refinances and new purchases. With inventory low and buyers perhaps waiting for the new crop of apartments in the new year, refinances will be more than enough to keep underwriters busy. With new
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I addressed the fiscal cliff in a very limited way in another post. How will it impact the mortgage market? For a year, rates have been moving down, where we’re seeing unheard-of numbers. This is one of the big market drivers in the real estate market for many who had been on the sidelines, and
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One of my early memories growing up in New Orleans was getting a canoe ride home from pre-school to my grandfather’s house, in a flooded Garden District. That is, a canoe ride down the street. Soon thereafter in 1979, was the famous “May 3rd Flood,” during which I received a harmless snake bite. Floods and
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The Presidential election became a bit of the sideshow attraction to Hurricane Sandy. I was supposed to do a small gather and chat on the impact of the election on the New York City Real Estate Market, but it was scheduled for October 30th. Coincidentally, this was the day the hurricane did its worst. I’m
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The last time I was thinking about 200 East 79th street before 2 months ago, it was preparing for construction- the part of the work that seems endless, producing nothing, as the crews create the foundation- I was across the street at 201 East 79th, an established cooperative building- Many owners there were more than
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Our team has been busy this month viewing new development with buyers. There are two projects in particular which have garnered some attention. Both benefit from an utter lack of inventory- which I’ll cover in my broader discussion. We’ll chat about 141 East 88th street (Part I) and 200 East 79th Street (Part II). The
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I was lucky enough to run my 11th marathon this past weekend in Minneapolis (translation: Cloudy Water, for those who didn’t know). A gorgeous town before the snow hits, with neighborhoods that are built around lovely lakes. And as I head to Boston while I’m writing this for a conference, I’ve got the “Love
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There is no better way to understand your clients’ adventures with lenders than to be a borrower yourself. I took that to heart this month as I closed a refinance on an investment property. My learnings, especially compared to the perspective of purchasing investment property in 2006-2007, were as interesting as they were frustrating. This
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