The Financial Times reports that weekenders are becoming more adventurous in their quest for a second home. Where once a cottage in the countryside was de rigueur, today’s budget airlines mean that a new breed of buyer can get to the house of their dreams quickly and cheaply. “In the UK,” says Georgina Richards of… [Read More]
BANK OF AMERICA EXITS RESIDENTIAL MORTGAGE MARKET
As first reported on LUXURYBLURB a few days ago, Bank of America has exited the wholesale residential lending market, cutting off its business with mortgage brokers, the bank announced yesterday. “After receiving $ 45 BILLION in TARP funding from the US Governemnt/taxpayers, BOFA was one of the first banks to re-pay this debt,” says Leonard… [Read More]
"WE ARE CHIMPANZEES WITH NO MEMORY"- QUOTE OF THE DAY
Ken Fisher, head of Fisher investments, made what we think to be the most defining comment of our time to-day: “WE ARE CHIMPANZEE’S WITH NO MEMORY” How apt. While power-hungry, self-serving politicians, panicked individuals, self-serving commentators, ratings starved media, and generally paranoid humans exploit this moment in the current cycle, constantly over-analyzing the current conditions,… [Read More]
NEW YORK: BEST CITY IN USA FOR HIRING
In CRAINS, a report on the strength of the New York for hiring…..certainly a good thing for real estate when the strength of the employee pool is best in the country…. Whats good for business, is good for real estate values. SEEN IN CRAINS: Here’s a bit of good news for New York businesses: The… [Read More]
REAL ESTATE RUSH
Real estate sales in Manhattan generally pick up after Labor day, although in the past 3 years, the pick up was rather tepid. This year however, the pick up is certain, and aggressive. “We are seeing a level of activity and bidding that we have not seen in many, many months,” says Leonard Steinberg, managing… [Read More]
IS BANK OF AMERICA ABANDONING RESIDENTIAL MORTGAGES?
Just to-day, Bank of America withdrew a loan that had been completely signed off on and referred it to another lending institution…..word on the street is Bank of America may be exiting the residential mortgage market….. “Its amazing how many smaller banks and untraditional lenders are eating away at the market share of the more… [Read More]
NEW YORK ADDS MORE JOBS IN AUGUST.
The city’s faster-than-expected recovery continued in August: the local economy added 6,500 private sector jobs, continuing to surpass the nation’s growth rate. Jobs were added mostly in the real estate and banking arenas. New York’s August unemployment rate held steady at 9.4%, according to a report released Thursday by the state Department of Labor. The… [Read More]
ZOMBIE BUILDINGS…..DOES NEW YORK HAVE ANY?
In this morning’s Wall Street Journal the subject of Spain’s 1,5million vacant apartments in ZOMBIE BUILDINGS is addressed: do we have ZOMBIE BUILDINGS in Manhattan? Two that come to mind are 1 Madison Park and 245 Tenth Avenue, both really wonderful buildings caught in the financial storm of 2008/2009. “The difference between these two buildings… [Read More]
IRAN + VENEZUELA’S WORST NIGHTMARE?
When is this clever idea coming to the USA with its MILLIONS of square feet of parking spaces in sunbelt areas? Imagine every Wallmart and Home Depot, not only providing shade to all its parked cars to reduce their need for that initial AC blast, but also producing enough power from the overhead SOLAR PANELS… [Read More]
MONACO SAFRA PENTHOUSE SELLS FOR $ 17,600/sf: A NEW RECORD
The chatter on the French Riviera is all about the recent sale of a Monaco penthouse, once the home to Edmund Safra and featured recently in Architectural Digest….recently we reported the London penthouse that had sold for around $ 220 million making it then the world’s most expensive private residence: Now the record has been shattered with the… [Read More]