11/23/08

July 2008

Developers falling into a Catch-22

It's a tough time to be a residential developer, as The Real Deal explores in a series of stories. Projects are taking longer to sell out, placing developers in a bind as lenders typically won't let them lower prices. And as units sit, developers find themselves with additional costs. Some developers are choosing to go with Plan B and switch from condos to rentals, but even that is far from a safe bet these days...

Real estate sites rise in 'Bloglyn'

Over the last few years, the number of local Brooklyn blogs has multiplied exponentially; May's Brooklyn Blogfest drew more than 100 bloggers, and some have even begun to call Brooklyn, 'Bloglyn.' For the bloggers, though, this is not just filling time -- it's about having a say in the development of the borough.
By Katherine Dykstra

Summer doldrums take hold of residential market

The pace of residential sales in Manhattan continues to slow, causing a backlog of inventory. The rest of the summer doesn't look any more promising. Sales activity is down by roughly one-third from the same point last year, Jonathan Miller, president and CEO of appraisal firm Miller Samuel, said last month.
By Lauren Elkies

Developers in a bind over prices

Developers of flagging residential condo projects in the city may be faced with a new real estate Catch-22: the prospect of having to provide additional equity to lenders or take out more loans if they want to cut prices to attract buyers.
By Adam Pincus

Crisis or correction?

Although the Federal Reserve has tried to stimulate the market by lowering rates and making it easier for banks to borrow money, brokers and economists have noted that developers, building buyers and consumers continue to struggle to get loans, particularly from large banks.
By Avi Salzman

Selling in pieces

As the credit market tightens, demand is slowing for multi-property portfolios — the most expensive investment sale category. Of the property packages that do sell, more and more are being split into smaller pieces when they change hands.
By James Kelly

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The biggest problems in New York City real estate

In the wake of the subprime and credit crises, problems are becoming apparent even in New York City's usually buoyant real estate market. For this supplement, The Real Deal has chosen to bring some plaster: First, we home in on macro difficulties, as well as some less-discussed problems.
By Dorn Townsend
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Did "Real World" boost Belltel deals?

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Located in Downtown Brooklyn, Belltel is not without its conveniences, subway access being one of them. This was one of the major selling points for "The Real World" team. Another? The fact that they could have as much elbow room as they needed because the upper units are still empty.
By Katherine Dykstra

The Closing: Sam Chang

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President and CEO of McSam Hotel Group, a Great Neck-based hotel development, construction, management and investment company, which has built over 30 moderately priced hotels in New York City, has 29 under construction and 20 in the pipeline.

Survival of the retail fittest

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Typically, the extreme ends of the market -- luxury stores like Saks Fifth Avenue and discount mass-merchants like Wal-Mart -- prove recession-proof. By contrast, mid-market chains like the Gap usually suffer. Here in New York, many generalities hold true, but the massive influx of free-spending foreign tourists and the huge population of office workers add slightly different nuances to the demand picture.
By Catherine Curan

In Hamptons, it's no vacation

Multimillion-dollar homes are still finding takers in the Hamptons, but the notoriously tony vacation destination is showing serious signs of softening. While the market there does not mirror the meltdown in the rest of the country, the Wall Street cash that has long flooded into the East End is clearly not flowing as freely this summer. This month, The Real Deal offers a series of stories on what's happening on the South Fork. By Jill Gardiner

Staving off commercial foreclosure

This time, the mortgage banking industry is not taking any chances. Stung by the subprime mortgage crisis, the tightening credit market, Wall Street layoffs and other bleak economic indicators, banks are nervous. And this time around -- in contrast to other periods in real estate history -- lenders are not waiting for the owners of commercial properties to go into foreclosure. By Alex Ulam

Cheap digs help office market

In the face of an anticipated slowdown across the office market, Midtown's Class B leasing activity soared in the first five months of 2008, more than double the amount during the same period a year ago.
By James Kelly

Architects drafting a better office space in Garment District

Once a thriving manufacturing area where an immigrant influx spurred the growth of the apparel industry, the Garment District, bounded roughly by Fifth and Ninth avenues and 34th and 42nd streets, by the 1990s had become one of the most depressed parts of Midtown Manhattan with the gradual loss of clothing factories, suppliers and wholesalers due to pressure from cheaper clothing imports. But it seems that at least one industry has quietly taken over the area over the past few years: architecture, along with its counterpart, engineering.
By The Real Deal Staff

Will rental market get a new lease on life?

For this month's Q & A, The Real Deal talked to brokers who said that while landlords are bending over backwards to maintain their monthly rental prices, they are offering more concessions than they were even six months ago in the form of a month of free rent, wiggle room on move-in dates and perks like free gym memberships.
By Melissa Dehncke-McGill

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