Market Snapshot

As you’ve probably noted, several real estate market reports were recently released. The data analyzed sales for Manhattan during the last quarter (October through December 2011). There was a plethora of information but the key take-away is that while the market overall is stabilizing, there are some weak spots. Here’s a compilation of the various data:

· Luxury sales of $3 million and up price tags rebounded in early 2011 and continued strong.

· Continued activity by foreign buyers – the most since the 2007 peak.

· Housing prices have stabilized, with the median sales price of $855,000, 1.2 percent above 2010’s median price.

· Q4 2011 sales volume was down 35.3 percent from Q3 2011.

o Analysts point out that the Q4 2010 total may have been inflated due to a last minute surge of buyers who expected the Bush capital gains tax cuts to expire.

· Sales of new condominiums declined most steeply, down 27 percent from Q4 2010 and down 45 percent from Q3 2011. Some causes:

o Fewer new condos have come on the market as development has slowed.

o Lack of condo inventory has hurt sales.

· The median condo price rose 10 percent from last year to $1.197 million.

· Buyers had difficulty getting mortgages for homes in the million-dollar price range.

Manhattan’s real estate market, especially the mid-market price range, continues to be mixed, but prices are stabilizing. The silver lining is that New York continues to outperform other real estate markets and remains highly desirable domestically and globally. We believe there will be good opportunities in 2012 for informed buyers and sellers.

I’d be happy to discuss these reports and Manhattan’s real estate picture in greater detail. Please call or email me to set up an appointment. You can reach me at either (crystal.greencr@gmail.com). I would also welcome the opportunity to discuss your 2012 real estate needs and plans.

I look forward to hearing from you.

247 CPW was a record selling townhouse which closed at 22.38M now slated to set the highest rental record asking only 110,000 per month

[Updated at 11.20 a.m. with revised price] A 13-room townhouse at 247 Central Park West recently sold by Keith Monda, the former president of handbag company Coach, is now set to hit the rental market for a staggering $110,000 per month, listing broker Matthew Lesser of Leslie J. Garfield told The Real Deal yesterday.
Despite the sale having hit public records last month, the identity of the new owner of the property, who is being represented by Lesser in the rental listing, still remains a mystery; he’s in public records as a LLC. Lesser declined to comment on his client, saying just that the owner currently lives abroad.
“My client purchased the house to live in it,” Lesser said. “Because he and his family live overseas his plans changed and he has chosen to lease the house for a certain period of time. My client absolutely plans to move here at some point in the future.”
Read full story here: http://therealdeal.com/blog/2012/02/14/just-sold-cpw-mansion-to-hit-rental-market-for-90000-a-month/ 

Record setting sale for Brooklyn Heights

February 10, 2012, 2:33 pm

Big Ticket | Sold for $11,000,000

By MARC SANTORA

Frances Roberts for The New York Times The brownstone at 212 Columbia Heights has 7,000 square feet of space.

A five-story Italianate brownstone in Brooklyn Heights with sweeping views of the New York Harbor and Manhattan skyline that sold for $11 million was the biggest sale of the week, according to city records, and the highest price ever in the neighborhood.

The 7,000 square-foot, seven-bedroom home, at 212 Columbia Heights, has five gas fireplaces, 14-foot-high ceilings on the parlor floor and “a stunning garden facing the Brooklyn Heights Promenade,” according to the listing on the Corcoran Group Web site.

The seller, according to city records, is Nina Collins, a literary agent. When she bought the home with Marek Fludzinski, a hedge fund manager, in 2005, they paid $8.5 million, then the highest price for a town house in Brooklyn.
Read full story here: http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/10/big-ticket-sold-for-11000000/?ref=realestate



Earl Johnson — A Grassroots Politician Who Made A Difference

Earl Johnson fell in love with Clinton Hill in the 1970s, despite the fact that banks had redlined the neighborhood, crime was high, and the streets were dirty.
Mr. Johnson knew the potential was there. So with the Pratt Area Community Council, he worked with landlords to improve conditions. Eventually, banks started making mortgages, allowing a new wave of brownstoners and small business owners who owe it all to him and others like him.
“Young people moving in today should read the history to see what the old-timers like us have accomplished,” said Mr. Johnson, 78.
His story is the story of Fort Greene and Clinton Hill.

Read Full Story Here: http://fort-greene.thelocal.nytimes.com/2012/02/01/earl-johnson-%E2%80%94-a-grassroots-politician-who-made-a-difference/