NY to Atlantic Yards Developer: Finish By…2035?!

February 1, 2010 by Neil · Leave a Comment 

What will happen by 2035?
Muslims will outnumber Christians in Britain.
China will surpass the U.S. economically.
Jerusalem will lose its Jewish majority, if those predictions are accurate.
In addition, 2035 is also the deadline the City and State of New York have given to Forest City Ratner to complete the Atlantic Yards project.
In the event that developer Bruce [...]

Which New York City Multifamily Developer Heads To Prison For 4 Years? (Hint: It’s Still Not Sam Chang)

January 28, 2010 by Neil · Leave a Comment 

Manhattan developer Michael Hershkowitz was sentenced to four years in prison and ordered to forfeit $27.2 million for his role in a Ponzi scheme involving fraudulent loans secured by nonexistent mortgages.
Prosecutors had alleged Hershkowitz and others induced about 70 individuals to lend more than $27 million to Kingsland Group Inc., purportedly to fund the renovation [...]

Apartment Vacancy Rates & Apartment Rent Rates: New York City & Long Island

January 28, 2010 by Neil · Leave a Comment 

As vacancy rates increase, rents should drop. Right? Not exactly, according to the latest data from REIS.
If the relationship was inverse, as expected from the data, then the lines would more definitively approach a V- or an X-shape.
In 4Q 2009, NYC rents dropped another 0.7%, while the vacancy stayed firm from the previous quarter, at [...]

New York City Cash To Help Apartment Building Investors?

January 23, 2010 by Neil · Leave a Comment 

New York City’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development, or HPD, will lend $750 million over the next five years to qualified investors of 267 buildings containing 3,564 apartments that are deep in a state of disrepair and in or close to foreclosure. According to HPD, 100,000 apartments citywide are in buildings that are upside [...]