Posted by Leonard Steinberg on December 7th, 2011 Are the banks messing things up again? Surely it makes sense to try shifting homeowners in trouble who cannot pay their mortgages into more affordable mortgages that may prevent foreclosure? Apparently not…. The Treasury Department said that JP Morgan is still doing a poor job helping people… [Read More]
NEW WHITNEY MUSEUM TO BRING AT LEAST 300,000 VISITORS ANNUALLY
Posted by Leonard Steinberg on December 6th, 2011 The opening of the Crystal Bridges Museum of Art in Bentonville Arkansas reminded me of the power a strong art museum has in attracting the crowds…. The Whitney Museum currently attracts 300,000 visitors annually to its uptown location. When the new Whitney opens on the West Side… [Read More]
GOLDMAN SACHS SAYS NEW YORK REAL ESTATE TO DROP 6% IN 2012
Posted by Leonard Steinberg on December 6th, 2012 Analysts at Goldman Sachs predict in a new report (published on Friday) that the end of the crash in home values is actually within view……and will bottom out in mid to end 2012. The report however forecasts price declines of at least 6% for New York and Atlanta…. [Read More]
LEFRAK SAYS FUTURE IS BRIGHTER THAN THE PAST
Posted by Leonard Steinberg on December 5, 2011 Richard Le Frak, one of New York/New Jersey’s great developers and owner of some 16million square feet of property, not to mention his company’s stellar and consistent ranking in the Forbes Top 400 privately held companies, said to-day on CNBC with some conviction: “As of to-day the… [Read More]
LIFE HAS BECOME ONE BIG REALITY TV SHOW – OCCUPY REALITY TV?
Posted by Leonard Steinberg on December 4th, 2011 Did MTV start the reality TV craze with MTV CRIBS? Maybe C-span started it? Maybe it was HGTV? Actually it was PBS with a show called AMERICAN FAMILY….and it aired in 1973. Remember PBS creates content on a tight budget. The snowball seemed to escalate with SURVIVOR,… [Read More]
THE LANDLORDS ARE WINNING.
Posted by Leonard Steinberg on December 4th, 2011 We have read the headlines about how rents keep rising, in some areas rather dramatically, and now word that Sam Zell’s Equity is about to buy a 26,5% stake in Archstone, both two of the US’s largest owners of some 200,000 rental apartments. So why would Equity… [Read More]
DOES THE CONNECTICUT POWERBALL LOTTERY WIN DEFINE CAPITALISM?
Posted by Leonard Steinberg on November 29th, 2011 The winners of the $ 254 million record-breaking POWERBALL lottery identified themselves in Connecticut: the three money managers won a combined $ 108 million after taxes (that’s a lot of taxes!). They bought just one ticket, with numbers selected by the computer. Well, not exactly….it appears these… [Read More]
BLACK FRIDAY SHOPPING MAYHEM: A GOOD THING?……OR IS IT A SIGN OF INFLATION?
Posted by Leonard Steinberg on November 28th, 2011 Retail insanity was the order of the day starting mere seconds after the turkey and stuffing had been digested. Reports of fist fights, pepper spraying, gun-shots, etc highlighted American’s intense desire for a bargain. Retail sales were up over 8% over last year, setting new records. These are my… [Read More]
NBA LOCKOUT ENDS: WHY DOES NO-ONE MENTION THE NBA WHEN TALKING ABOUT ‘THE 1%’?
Posted by Leonard Steinberg on November 26th, 2011 So the NBA lockout seems to be coming to an end as a tentative deal was struck…..does it not amaze you that no-one finds any offence in basketball players earning MILLIONS of dollars each year for playing with a ball, when it appears OK to trash everyone in… [Read More]
WOMEN’S WEALTH TO GROW SIGNIFICANTLY OVER THE NEXT 20 YEARS
Posted on November 23rd, 2011 by Leonard Steinberg. In to-day’s Wall Street Journal it is reported that over the next 20 years, some $25 trillion will be passed to women through divorce, death of spouse or inheritance. Women already make up just under half of the nation’s millionaires. Combined with their growing earning and wealth-creation power,… [Read More]