Page 4 - NY Cooperator May 2019

4 THE COOPERATOR — MAY 2019 COOPERATOR.COM Industry Pulse Transactions Trump Sells $2.9M NYC Condo Donald Trump apparently is still commit- ted to the art of the deal. Forbes reported that according to public documents, the president sold a condo unit at Trump Parc East for $2.9 million. The identity of the buyer has not been revealed, but rather is named Koctagon LLC. The Trump Organization offered no comment about the transaction. Last January, the president sold a different Trump Parc East apartment for $2.15 million. $60M ‘Billionaires Row’ Condo Hits the Market A condo at Manhattan’s One57, located on 57th Street across from the southern bor- der of Central Park – nicknamed ‘Billionaires Row’ – was put on sale for $60 million, said Mansion Global. Highlights of the 6,240-square foot, full-floor four-bedroom apartment include a master suite and a great room. The seller has not been publicly iden- tified. If you prefer not to buy, you can just rent the fully-furnished condo for $150,000 a month, according to its listing. Greenspan’s Former UN Plaza Co-op Lists for $1.48M A co-op at 860 United Nations Plaza that was once owned by ex-Federal Reserve chair- man Alan Greenspan was listed for $1.48 million, the New York Post reported. The 1,610 square-foot, two-bedroom residence has floor-to-ceiling windows, an eat-in kitch- en, and views of the East River. Among the amenities at the building are a bike room and a 24-hour doorman. Greenspan bought the condo in 1989 for $672,000. Karlie Kloss and Josh Kushner Seek $7M for Nolita Condo Couple Karlie Kloss and Josh Kushner are reportedly selling their Nolita condo for $6.995 million, according to Variety. Kloss, a supermodel and current Project Runway host, and Kushner, a venture capitalist who is the brother of White House adviser Jared Kushner, bought the two-bedroom/two-and- a-half-bathroom condo six years ago for $4.5 million. Features of the apartment include walnut wood floors, an eat-in kitchen, and an en suite guest room. Other celebs who own units at the same residential building include actor Gabriel Byrne and singer Billy Joel. Development Brooklyn Botanic Garden Opposes Proposed Condo Buildings A bid to build two condo towers in Crown Heights, Brooklyn is getting pushback from the Brooklyn Botanic Garden over zoning changes, said The Real Deal, citing a previous Wall Street Journa l story. The garden argues that the proposed towers – which, if built would span 39 stories approximately 150 meters from the garden – would bring three hours of additional daily shade that would impact the health of trees, shrubs, and flow- ers. Brooklyn Botanic Garden president Scot Medbury told the Journal: “We’re worried that less light can lead to poorer plant health, and greater problems with fungal diseases.” Hudson Yards’ Opening Boosts Online Searches for Nearby Homes The much-hyped opening of the Hudson Yards retail, cultural, and residential devel- opment in March has apparently prompted prospective homebuyers to look for prop- erties in and around the new addition to Manhattan’s far West Side. Crain’s New York Business reported that there was a 257 per- cent increase in searches on the StreetEasy website for homes in Hudson Yards from March 12th to 15th, compared to just the week before. 15 Hudson Yards is the only building so far officially opened for occu- pancy; sales for units at 35 Hudson Yards are expected to launch in June. Harlem Church-to-Condo Development Kicks Off Sales Sales have launched at a new condo- minium building in Harlem that replaced a neighborhood church, Curbed reported. Two years ago, the Second Canaan Baptist Church agreed to a deal with a developer to tear down its building on Lenox Avenue to make room for a new development consist- ing of 29 condos, as well as a new space for the church’s congregation. Prices for a studio apartment at the new 10 Lenox development begin at $595,000, while a three-bedroom unit starts at $2.35 million. The church will reportedly occupy the first two floors, while the condos will start on the third floor; ame- nities will include bike storage and a fitness center. Trends Manhattan Homes Linger on Market, Forcing Sellers to Cut Prices Real estate marketplace StreetEasy said in a March 21 press release that many sellers across the city cut prices on their homes this February as late winter brought a chill to the sales market. In Manhattan, more than one in 10 homes had their prices cut, and inven- tory increased by 11.7 percent from last year. With the share of price cuts and inventory levels high across the borough, prices cooled, too. The StreetEasy Manhattan Price Index dropped 4.3 percent to $1,119,183 – its low- est level since July 2015. Even with prices down and an abundance of inventory, buyers’ hesitance to make deals persisted. Manhattan homes spent a median of 117 days on the market — up 27 days year-over-year, and the highest level in seven years. This trend appeared in all areas and price points across the borough. Downtown Manhattan saw the largest increase in medi- an days on market – up 31 from last year, to 117 days total. “With a strong economy and home- shopping season right around the corner, plenty of New Yorkers are well-positioned to buy this spring,” says StreetEasy Senior Economist Grant Long. “However, many are willing to walk away from deals that just aren’t financially attractive and continue renting instead— creating a market poised to punish sellers who don’t price their homes sensibly. When the inevitable wave of new inventory hits the market this spring, inter- ested buyers should expect to see an uptick in price cuts as the market forces ambitious sellers to accept reality.” You can read StreetEasy’s February 2019 key findings for Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens by visiting https://streeteasy.com/ blog/february-2019-market-reports. NAR: Existing Home Sales Surge 11.8% in February Existing home sales rebounded strongly in February 2019, experiencing the largest month-over-month gain since December 2015, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) in a press statement. Total existing home sales completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co- ops, shot up 11.8 percent from January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.51 mil- lion in February. However, sales are down 1.8 percent from a year ago (5.61 million in February 2018). Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, credited a number of aspects to the jump in February sales. “A powerful combination of lower mortgage rates, more inventory, rising income and higher consumer confidence is driving the sales rebound.” The median existing-home price for all housing types in February was $249,500, up 3.6 percent from February 2018 ($240,800). February’s price increase marks the 84th straight month of year-over-year gains. Total housing inventory at the end of February increased to 1.63 million, up from 1.59 million existing homes available for sale in January, a 3.2 percent increase from 1.58 million a year ago. Unsold inventory is at a 3.5-month supply at the current sales pace, down from 3.9 months in January but up from 3.4 months in February 2018. Single-family home sales sit at a season- ally adjusted annual rate of 4.94 million in February, up from 4.36 million in January and down 1.4 percent from 5.01 million a year ago. The median existing single-family home price was $251,400 in February, up 3.6 percent from February 2018. Existing condominium and co-op sales were recorded at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 570,000 units in February, and down 5.0 percent from a year ago. The median existing condo price was $233,300 in February, which is up 3.1 percent from a year ago. n CAL EN D AR May-June 2019 PULSE/CALENDAR Wed., May 15, 2019 The Cooperator Expo New Jersey Meadowlands Exposition Center, 355 Plaza Dr., Secaucus, NJ 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. A must-attend for all board members, property managers, condo & HOA decision makers and apartment building owners. Learn about the latest services from more than 300 exhibitors. Attend educational seminars, network with your peers and get free advice from industry experts. For information, visit www.nj-expo.com. Tuesday, May 14, 2019 Bisnow: NYC’s Hottest Investment Opportunities Location TBA 7:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. Neighborhoods in New York City tend to start out on the fringe with some great founda- tions, grow in popularity, see continued capital investment pour in, and then get too expensive for most of the initial residents. How can one best time this cycle and find a way to get in on an emerging market before everyone else knows? Join us and find out! For information, visit www.bisnow.com. Thursday, May 16, 2019 CAI-LI Membership Meeting and Educational Seminar: “Fire Safety” Fairfield at St. James HOA Clubhouse, 1 Fairfield Dr., St. James, NY 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. For information, visit www.cai-li.org Tues., June 4 and 11, 2019 CNYC: Introduction to Co-Op Board Responsibilities: An Intensive Seminar for New Directors 6:00 p.m - 9:30 p.m. In this 2-session class, attorney Marc Luxemburg and property manager Gregory Carlson examine all aspects of operating coop- eratives. The class is limited to board members of housing cooperatives. It is jointly spon- sored by CNYC, the Federation of New York Housing Cooperatives and Condominiums and the Association of Riverdale Cooperatives, each of whose members attend at the member rate. Advanced registration is required. For information, visit www.cnyc.coop. Thursday, June 13, 2019 Anderson Kill’s 17th Annual Directors and Officers Liability Insurance Conference D&D Building, 979 Third Ave., 14th fl., New York, NY 3:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. We will provide a review of 2018 and an overview of D&O liability and insurance “hot topics” for 2019. In two hours, our panel of attorneys, brokers and risk managers will dis- cuss the intricacies of insurance protection for directors and officers and the companies for which they’re responsible. For information, visit www.andersonkill.com. Please submit Pulse items to David Chiu at david@cooperator.com