The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

Another J-51 lawsuit has been granted class action status

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 02:30 PM PDT

Tenants at a Forest Hills building in the midst of a J-51 lawsuit have been granted class action status as they move forward with their case. Queens County Supreme Court Judge Timothy J. Dufficy handed down the ruling in favor of tenants at 111-32 76th Avenue, a rental building owned by landlord Landau Real Estate. The suit claims that the company destabilized units in the 73-unit apartment building while still getting tax breaks under New […]

Keller Williams Midtown downsizing offices amid belt-tightening

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 02:00 PM PDT

Keller Williams Midtown is downsizing — the latest indication of how the residential firm is tightening its belt amid a tough market. The brokerage informed agents earlier this week that it would leave 1155 Avenue of the Americas and relocate to 575 Fifth Avenue on Aug. 26. “This decision underscores our commitment of minimizing expenses and maximizing the amount we are able to profit share back to our agents,” Elizabeth Cho, the office’s team leader, […]

At luxury building where tenant was crushed to death by elevator, there were signs of trouble

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 01:40 PM PDT

A 30-year-old man was crushed to death by an elevator Thursday morning in a Kips Bay luxury apartment building called “Manhattan Promenade.” The New York Times was the first to report that a man, later identified as resident Samuel Waisbren, was caught between the lobby and the basement floors at 344 Third Avenue. He was pronounced dead at the scene. In May, the city’s Department of Buildings shut down one of the building’s two elevators […]

Clayton Orrigo on the mansion tax and the market’s “tectonic” shifts

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 01:30 PM PDT

The mansion tax. The proliferation of listings platforms. A softening luxury market. The Real Deal talked to six players in New York City’s residential space about the new pain points they’re feeling in a sector that’s getting squeezed from all sides. Below, Clayton Orrigo of Compass describes the flurry of deals he saw before the mansion tax took effect — and what he expects to happen long-term. Read the full story — “Tales from the […]

Fosun in talks for $1.1B loan, WeWork rival Industrious raises $80M: Daily digest

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 01:00 PM PDT

Every day, The Real Deal rounds up New York’s biggest real estate news, from breaking news and scoops to announcements and deals. We update this page at 9 a.m., 12:30 p.m., and 4 p.m. ET. Please send any tips or deals to tips@therealdeal.com This page was last updated at 4:00 p.m. The Obamas may soon be neighbors with the Kennedy family — in Martha’s Vineyard. Barack and Michelle Obama have reportedly made an offer […]

Joseph Brunner lands $130M refi for massive Bushwick rental building

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 12:15 PM PDT

Joseph Brunner’s Bruman Realty has secured a $130 million refinancing package from Starwood Mortgage Capital for a large rental development in Bushwick. The loan includes a gap mortgage for $20 million, according to property records. The more than 200-unit development sits on the corner of Himrod Street at 871 Bushwick Avenue. The owners bought the site in 2014 for $15 million, and the project contains more than 200 apartments overall. Representatives for Starwood and Brunner […]

Co-working firms confident ahead of WeWork IPO

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 11:47 AM PDT

Executives at three co-working firms say they expect to see the industry grow despite a looming recession and questions about WeWork’s business model following the release of its IPO prospectus last week. “We’re not scared of a recession,” said Nick LiVigne, Convene’s head of product. “We think this is a sustainable model, whether that’s domestic or international.” The comments were made during a panel discussion with IWG’s Michael Berretta and the Yard’s Richard Beyda at […]

The Daily Dirt: Getting creative with the new rent laws

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 10:15 AM PDT

As landlords wait for a legal challenge to make its way through the courts, some are finding other ways to cope with the rent law changes. In the two months since the passage of the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019, landlords have employed a few different strategies to curb the financial impact of the measure. One is to combine adjacent, vacant apartments in order to create a new first rent. This isn’t a new […]

Elevated risk: Malfunction at NYCHA is putting public housing residents at greater risk of being injured in its elevators

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 09:15 AM PDT

On New Year’s Day, Gina Gutloff and her boyfriend were headed out for breakfast when they stepped into the elevator on the 13th floor of their building at 1595 Madison Avenue in East Harlem. As the doors closed, the pair broke into a two-step dance, playfully bopping from side to side, when suddenly, Gutloff recalled, her stomach lurched. The elevator lost power and went dark. “So I started to panic,” the 25-year-old said in an […]

How do brokers get listings from the Department of Justice?

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 08:45 AM PDT

In early July, after an unsealed criminal indictment revealed that New York prosecutors would move to seize Jeffrey Epstein’s Upper East Side mansion, broker Jason Haber, of Warburg Realty, put in a phone call to the Southern District. “I said if there is going to be a process for the disposition of real property, I’d like to be considered for that,” he said. In the wake of the financier’s suicide, there has been intense speculation […]

Low mortgage rates boost homebuilding stocks despite recession anxiety

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 08:15 AM PDT

Signs may be pointing to a potential recession, but low mortgage rates have boosted homebuilding shares, which are nearing their highest levels of the year. A composite of homebuilding stocks — known as the SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF — is up 29 percent in 2019, far surpassing the S&P 500’s 17 percent gain, according to the Wall Street Journal. Texas-based LGI Homes, which focuses on first-time buyers, has seen its stock jump 77 percent this […]

StreetEasy launches new app, software to ease manual listing entry

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 08:00 AM PDT

UPDATED Thursday, August 22, 2019 12:11 p.m.: StreetEasy is doubling down on manual entry. Today, the Zillow Group-owned listings platform is rolling out a dedicated app and upgraded back-end tools for agents to enter and manage their listings. Now agents can edit open houses, as opposed to just adding or deleting, and more expansive amenity fields that allow agents to specify details like rental concessions, wheelchair accessibility, types of views, fireplaces and hardwood floors. The […]

The story behind the disappearance of New Canaan developer Fotis Dulos’ wife

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 06:30 AM PDT

The only thing certain in the mystery involving a Connecticut developer is that after more than two months, Jennifer Farber Dulos has yet to be found. On the morning of May 24, the estranged wife of Fore Group CEO Fotis Dulos dropped her children off at school in New Canaan and was due in New York for doctor appointments. She never made it to a single one. Later that evening, having not heard from her, […]

WATCH: Amenities masters in action

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 05:00 AM PDT

Private tutoring, kids concierges, meditation, dog services and more. New York developers are throwing more and more cash at amenities and services to lure in buyers and renters in today’s increasingly tough market. While fitness centers and concierges have long been mandatory for luxury condo buildings in New York, today’s services have taken things to the next level. The Real Deal recently wrote about the phenomenon — check out “NYC’s amenity battleground” for the full story — but now […]

The new rent reality: Lawsuits, lobbyists and Advil

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 04:30 AM PDT

It was standing room only at 1 MetroTech Center in Brooklyn in mid-July. More than 100 landlords and investors packed into a conference room that Marcus & Millichap scrambled to reserve after receiving a flood of registration requests. “I hope you brought a bottle of Advil,” Belkin Burden Wenig & Goldman’s Daniel Altman told the crowd. “And we have social workers and counselors in the back.” It wasn’t long before someone from the crowd yelled, […]

Kelly Killoren Bensimon went from modeling to “The Real Housewives.” Now she’s taking a crack at real estate.

Posted: 22 Aug 2019 04:00 AM PDT

Kelly Killoren Bensimon is perhaps best known for the few seasons she spent on Bravo’s “The Real Housewives of New York City.” But since she left the show in 2011, Bensimon has taken on editing, writing, social media influencing and — most recently — luxury real estate in Manhattan. Bensimon chatted with The Real Deal about her jump into the industry, her love for social media and her take on all those reality real estate […]