Condo Buzz NYC

ARCHITECTURE FOR WEEKEND HIDEAWAYS

2007-03-16T15:35:00.000-04:00

This Appalachian Mountain House situated in Dillard, GA was designed and built in 2001, the creative output of Mack Scogin and Merrill Elam Architects, Inc. It's 1000 square feet with another 1000 square feet of open deck. The architects call it an inside-outside place. Jump here for the full scoop.

THE POWERHOUSE LIC

2007-03-16T09:19:00.000-04:00

Want to see some really cool visuals? Go to The Powerhouse Condominium and click on construction progress then 'view our updated construction progress gallery.' You get a snippet of the construction process and what the construction workers are looking at on a clear day! Those lofts are going to have some awesome views!

UNION SQUARE VIEW

2007-03-16T09:16:00.000-04:00

RECENT SALES DOWNTOWN MANHATTAN

2007-03-14T07:30:00.000-04:00

1 Morton Sq $2.65 mil 1736 SF closed 2/07 $1527 per SF
124 Hudson $2.45 mil 2057 SF closed 2/07 $1191 per SF
62 Beach St $2.45 mil 1528 SF closed 2/07 $1603 per SF
44 E 12th St $980k 984 SF closed 2/07 $1000 per SF
421 Hudson $855k 755 SF closed 2/07 $1122 per SF
138 Reade St $2.95 mil 2237 SF closed 1/07 1319 per SF
9 Murray St $2.2 mil 2272 SF closed 1/07 968 per SF

All information from Property Shark

FLORIDA PROPERTY TAXES = ZERO?

2007-03-14T06:57:00.000-04:00

According to Mark Zilbert of the Zilbert Realty Group, the Florida government has property tax reform at the top of their agenda. They expect an initiative to pass next year reforming the property tax code and to pay for it the general sales tax would increase by 2-2.5%.

The proposal is that if you own a residence in Florida and it is your primary residence your tax bill would be ZERO. If you have a Florida residence as a second home or a commercial proeprty, the taxes would be rolled back to the 2000-2001 levels, with future increases limited.

To get the full scoop go to www.nomorepropertytax.com and read on.

IT'S THE SUB PRIME LOANS, STUPID

2007-02-28T06:42:00.000-05:00

What they're saying:

Moving From Housing to Lending - Matrix - Jonathan Miller

Sub-prime lending shakeout heats up - Los Angeles Times

As home values fall, is the US heading for the much-feared 'hard landing'? The Independent UK

Freddie Mac Toughens Sub prime Standards - Rismedia

Options Trader: Tuesday Morning Ideas - Seeking Alpha

RECENT SALES DOWNTOWN MANHATTAN

2007-02-28T05:51:00.000-05:00

BUILDINGS:
12 Thames St/108 Cedar St School $64,360,000 closed 1/07
5 Spring St 5 Floors/Walk-up $3,800,000 closed 1/07
12 Howard St 12 Floors $59,000,000 closed 2/07
22 Murray St 5 Floors Office Bldg $10,000,000 closed 2/07

CONDOS:
150 Nassau St $1.662 mil 1483 SF closed 2/07 $1121 per SF
99 Reade St $1.395 mil 1063 SF closed 2/07 $1312 per SF
104-108 Reade St $1.48 mil 1192 SF closed 2/07 $1242 per SF
69 Hudson St $710k 572 SF closed 2/07 $1241 per SF
80 Chambers St $1.465 mil 1650 SF closed 1/07 $893 per SF
345 W 13th St $2.85 mil 2080 SF closed 1/07 $1370 per SF
100 Reade St $1.65 mil 1550 SF closed 1/07 $1065 per SF

Closing information provided by Property Shark

MADISON SQUARE PARK- MANHATTAN

2007-02-25T22:11:00.000-05:00

THAT WORD - INVENTORY

2007-02-23T14:13:00.000-05:00

Jonathan Miller's graph this week for Curbed is "Manhattan Monthly Listing Inventory Survey" and it's well worth looking at if you're following our housing market. Here is a summary:
Feb 1 2001 4426 units
Feb 1 2002 4619 "
Feb 1 2003 6096 "
Feb 1 2004 3994 "
Feb 1 2005 4494 "
Feb 1 2006 6372 "
Feb 1 2007 6000 "

But better to see for yourself - jump here to get the big noodle!

TRIBECA - GOINGS ON

2007-02-18T22:27:00.000-05:00

Six new properties came on the market in Tribeca so far this month, penthouses on Beach Street and in the Atalanta Building along with a two bedroom in the Ice House. Most notable is the penthouse in the Atalanta Building. The outdoor views are extraordinary. Asking $1667 per square foot compared to Beach Street that's listed at $2154 per square foot. The Ice House loft is $1570 per SF. Three other more traditional Tribeca lofts are for sale: 258 Broadway ($938 SF), 1 Worth. a walk-up ($789 SF), and 81 White(more like East Tribeca or Ebeca - below canal and east?) asking $1075 SF.

RECENT PROPERTY SALES DOWNTOWN MANHATTAN

2007-02-19T11:41:00.000-05:00

January & February 2007 Residential Closings:
96 Warren St $815k 797 SF Closed 1/07 $797 per SF
10 West St $5.25 mil 3951 SF Closed 1/07 $1328 per SF
18 East 12th St $2.521 mil 2640 SF Closed 1/07 $954 per SF
130 Barrow St $1.155 mil 1113 SF Closed 1/07 $1037 per SF
166 Duane St $4.3 mil 2311 SF Closed 1/07 $1860 per SF
357 W 12th St $1.05 mil 786 SF Closed 1/07 $1335 per SF
359 W 11th St $1.8 mil 1599 SF Closed 2/07 $1126 per SF
109 Greene St $3.835 mil 2042 SF Closed 2/07 $1878 per SF
164 Pearl St $557,600 803 SF Closed 2/07 $694 per SF
1 Hubert St $5.7 mil 4120 SF Closed 2/07 $1384 per SF
160 Wooster St $6.4 mil 3205 SF Closed 2/07 $1997 per SF
692 Broadway $980k 1176 SF Closed 2/07 $838 per SF
150 Nassau $2.4 mil 2365 SF Closed 1/07 $1015 per SF
12 East 12th St $4.6 mil 2778 SF Closed 1/07 $1656 per SF
96 Warren St $645k 669 SF Closed 1/07 $1000 per sf
225 Lafayette $2.435 mil 1735 SF closed 1/07 $1404 per SF

All information is from public records and organized by Property Shark. They are a great source, check them out!

SOLD & CLOSED: BUILDINGS DOWNTOWN MANHATTAN

2007-02-12T16:43:00.000-05:00

8 Stone St - parking lot - $17,000,000 closed 1/07
750 Greenwich St - converted dwelling - $4,850,000 closed 1/07
403 Greenwich St - two-story office/store - $6,100,000

HEAT MAP BY TRULIA

2007-02-15T11:56:00.000-05:00

Great new service by Trulia called the Heat Map gives average homes prices across the country. You can zoom in for a state breakdown by county. New York looks like Allegany, Genesee and Niagara are the least expensive with topping out averages of $128,000 to $133,000. Manhattan leads of course, at $1,720,000. Colorado offers proof on the axiom - location location location - with Pitkin county coming in at $3,320,000 average and Bent county $73,000. Check it out here.
Shown here: Wellsville, NY and Snowmass, CO.

THE NEW HOTTIE ON THE BLOCK

2007-02-15T16:17:00.000-05:00

Who? Abigail Michaels Concierge Services. Why? Your time is worth too much to go chasing for restaurant reservations, best seats on Broadway, housekeepers, a manicurist, dog walkers, car service, laundry & dry cleaning, lost passports, or as Abigail Michaels Concierge says "anything else you need from the ordinary to the outrageous." All the new best buildings in Manhattan are getting it, why not you? Check it out here Abigail Michaels Concierge.

NO EXTRA CHARGE FOR THE SOUNDS

2007-02-09T08:44:00.000-05:00

Who lives in Manhattan that is not familiar with those too early in the morning sounds of garbage trucks! Soon to come to tony Hudson Square/West Soho is a 150 foot condo tower personally designed for - Manhattan Garbage!! Jump here for the full story from The Villager.

COTE D'AZUR SUMMER HOME

2007-02-07T14:36:00.000-05:00

Three bedrooms, 930 square feet,corner unit on the fourth floor of a very charming building in the heart of Nice, on the Cote d'Azur in France. Walk to the beach and swim in the beautiful blue Mediterranean Sea. Four miles to Nice International Airport. How much? Less than a good studio apartment in Manhattan, $438,673 + 6% to the notary. Click here and see for yourself!

RECENT PROPERTY SALES DOWNTOWN MANHATTAN

2007-02-06T10:40:00.000-05:00

354 Broome St $1.53 mil 1735 SF closed 1/07 $882 per SF
15 Broad St $1.87 mil 1750 SF closed 1/07 $1069 per SF
1 Morton Sq $2.75 mil 1734 SF closed 12/06 $1586 per SF
22 Warren St $1.96 mil 1800 SF closed 1/07 $1089 per SF
21 Astor Pl $1.785 mil 1471 SF closed 1/07 $1214 per SF
542 LaGuardia Pl $1.75 mil 1400 SF closed 1/07 $1250 per SF
692-694 Broadway $1.2 mil 1101 SF closed 1/07 $1090 per SF
62 Beach St $2.7 mil 1722 SF closed 12/06 $1568 per SF
150 Chambers St $1.685 1454 SF closed 1/07 $1159 per SF
1 Morton Sq $2.55 mil 1693 SF closed 1/07 $1506 per SF
150 Nassau St $690,000 692 SF closed 1/07 $997 per SF

Information supplied by Property Shark

GOOGLE'S NEVILL-MANNING TAKES BEST NYC PENTHOUSE

2007-01-29T19:54:00.000-05:00

According to public records Craig Nevill-Manning, engineering director at Google, and his wife Kirsten have purchased one of the most stunning architectural beauties in New York City,the penthouse at 150 Nassau. And they got it for a cool,$6,450,000. The original asking price was $10,000,000 in 2002. The views are tremendous, overlooking City Hall, the Woolworth Building, the Brooklyn Bridge and all of Manhattan. It's a movie set at night. Over 7,000 square feet and 1000 sf plus outdoors. Here's a pix of one of the ditties on the terrace. Cheers to them. I couldn't believe it hadn't been snapped up long ago. How appropriate someone at Google would see the possibilities!

GRAND CENTRAL STATION NYC

2007-01-20T01:14:00.000-05:00

LOVE ARCHITECTURE: SAVE MARRIAGE

2007-01-17T21:45:00.000-05:00

During the late 1990s when the loft love-in began in Tribeca, buyers wanted only to buy raw lofts and redo them according to their dreams. Problem was people didn't realize renovating and modernizing 2000 and more square feet of space isn't all that simple. In fact it becomes a full time job. The details can be overwhelming: architects, expediters; the building department; building permits; bonded and insured plumbers & electricians; decisions; compromises; many a marriage/partnership didn't survive. Soon word got around and the raw loft quickly became a no-go and now is a relic of the past. Well way back when - 18th century to be exact, a couple in Northern Ireland were very much enthralled with architecture. Of course then the rich didn't have to go to work in the morning and sell shares of Intel and bother with building permits and all that nonsense, they just called up the architects and said this is what we want, please build it. It seems Viscount Bangor and Lady Anne Bligh did just this, however, they couldn't agree on an architectural style. He liked the classical style and Lady Bligh was set on having quatrefoils and centre pointed windows of the Gothic tradition. Simple enough, the clever architect built the front in the Classical Style and the rear in Gothic, thus came into being "Castle Ward" now a National Trust property in County Down, Northern Ireland located near the village of Strangford. Lady Bligh and the Viscount lived happily ever after.

This little story popped up in the wonderfully entertaining book "The Architecture of Happiness" written by Alain de Botton. Here's a pix of both.

RECENT PROPERTY SALES - DOWNTOWN MANHATTAN

2007-01-15T13:35:00.000-05:00

120 Water Street - 5 story building - $3,900,000 11/06
15 Mercer - 2908 SF Condo - $4,350,000 (sold at asking price) 12/06
150 Nassau St - 650 SF Condo - $649,000 (asking price $699,000) 8/06
275 Greenwich St - 692 SF Condo - $680,100 (asking price $695,000) 10/06
15 Gold St - 15 Floors - $50,475,000 11/06
380 Broome St - 6 family walk-up w/stores - $10,000,000 11/06
123 Watts - 4 Floors - $5,800,000 11/06
446 W 14th St - 4 Floors - $13,000,000 10/06
505 Greenwich St - 698 SF Condo - $900,000 (asking price $920,000) 11/06
130 Barrow St - 706 SF Condo - $850,000 (asking price $969,000) 11/06
369-373 Broadway - Loft & Retail Stores & Offices - $36,616,300 10/06
113 Nassau St - Store Building - $10,518,800 6/06
523 Greenwich St - Garage/Gas Station -$17,500,000 11/06
21 Astor Pl - 2025 SF Condo - $2,900,000
23 Barclay St - Office Building - $170,050,000 12/06

PROPERTY FOR SALE - FINALLY SELLS

2007-01-15T13:26:00.000-05:00

44 White Street 1st floor and below level has sold. Selling price $2.1 mil. This property first came on the market around 1998. The price was $1.6 mil. Far too aggressive for the time, as it is a coop and first floor and below level. A few years and brokers later, in 2004, the price became $3,495,000. That broker was able to hang on and finally in August of 2006 they reduced the price to $2.25 mil. and bingo a buyer appeared. Confirms that the market makes the price, not dreams.

WHAT YOUR NY REAL ESTATE DOLLAR WILL BUY

2007-01-12T12:46:00.000-05:00

You can buy 10J at 225 Fifth Avenue for $3,990,000 and have $1,452,000 left over to completely furnish it for $5,442,000, the price that Shakespeare's The Comedies, Histories & Tragedies, Published according to the True Orginal Copies recently brought at a Sotheby's auction.

The night view from 10J:

See more at www.5th-avenue-nyc.com

MANHATTAN REAL ESTATE - QUARTERLY REPORTS

2007-01-12T10:09:00.000-05:00

Jonathan Miller in his blog Matrix has posted a page of charts, (a perfect vehicle for the time challenged individual), of the 4th quarter condo and co-op real estate activity in Manhattan. These will tell you most everything you want to know about the current real estate environment in Manhattan for condos and co-ops. Charts included are:

Median Sales Price (unadjusted)
Average Sales Price (unadjusted)
Inflation Adjusted Average Sales Price (current dollars)
Listing Discount v Days on Market
Dow Jones Industrial Average v Manhattan Average Sales Price
CPI Adjusted Manhattan Average Sales Price v 1 Year Adjusted Rate Mortgage
Manhattan Average Sales Price (unadjusted) v 30 Year Mortgage Rate
Manhattan Listing Inventory v Days on Market
Prior Year Quarter Gain (loss) in Inventory v Change in Median Sales Price
Manhattan Co-op/Condo Supply (listing inventory) and Demand (number of sales)
Manhattan Market Strata by Number of Sales
Manhattan Market Strata by Dollar Volume
Manhattan Co-op and Condo Listing Inventory

Jump here to take a look and visit Miller's blog at matrix.millersamuel.com

MANHATTAN REAL ESTATE

2007-01-05T10:28:00.000-05:00

Healthy year for Manhattan Real Estate published by RISMEDIA is just one more article touting that despite the national turndown in the housing market, Manhattan property prices actually rose 6% in 2006. Jump here for the full story.