44 F
New York
Friday, March 29, 2024

Hottest New York City  Real Estate Stories for 2016

Related Articles

-Advertisement-

Must read

Douglas Ellimanu2019s Toni Haber moved to Compass
Mr. Trump, and his son-in-law and top advisor Jared Kushner, will certainly continue to have a big impact on New York real estate, in more angles than before.

As first reported by the Real Deal, here is a recap of the hottest real estate news for the year ending 2016. 

The year began with the official expiration of the 421-a property tax break, which is provided to developers who set aside affordable housing units. Prolonged negotiations between the Real Estate Board of New York and the 100,000 members of the Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York, to revive the initiative had an adverse effect on investment sales and new rental projects. Finally on November 10, Governor Cuomo reached a deal. 

He appeased unions by increasing the minimum wage for construction workers up to $60 an hour for large Manhattan projects, and $45 an hour in other boroughs. In exchange, developers who set aside affordable housing units were rewarded with tax breaks for 35 years, as opposed to the previous 25 years. The legislature, however, is still in limbo as we enter 2017.

In 2016,the market for luxury apartments saw considerable discounts. Developers had a difficult time obtaining loans to build up the city’s luxury inventory. The boom is officially over now, and developers are now setting their sights on building housing for a more average budget.

Last January, the U.S. Treasury announced it would start tracking cash purchases made in NYC by LLCs, with focused on high-end residential purchases. This was an attempt to discover money-laundering activities. As yet, the initiative has not touched upon commercial real estate, which is where the real scandals lay hidden.

In 2016, we watched the top investment sales brokers jump from brokerage to brokerage. Sotheby’s International Realty’s Brenda Powers and Douglas Elliman’s Toni Haber moved to Compass, the aggressively expanding brokerage. Powers soon after returned to Sotheby’s. Doug Harmon and Adam Spies left Eastdil Secured to pursue more lucrative positions at Cushman & Wakefield. As two of Eastdil’s main breadwinners, the brokerage is now at a loss. On the other hand, Bob Knakal, Chairman of Cushman & Wakefield, has renegotiated his contract for a shorter term and his founding partner from Massey Knanal Realty may be busy with his quest to become the next Mayor.

November’s election of Mr. Donald Trump as the 45th President of the United States was a historical moment and came as a shock to many. Trump faces unprecedented conflicts of interest entering the White House, as he has investments and personal interests all around the globe. Mr. Trump, and his son-in-law and top advisor Jared Kushner, will certainly continue to have a big impact on New York real estate, in more angles than before.

By Hadassa Kalatizadeh

balance of natureDonate

Latest article

- Advertisement -