First it was granite counters, then stainless professional appliances, ESPECIALLY a Sub Zero fridge, then Crestron sound system, and so on and so on….: Could the latest-greatest amenity for you home be the car charger? What about this ultra-sleek-apple-chic charger from GE? Designed by Yves Behar, we think it looks great. With Tesla a publicly… [Read More]
200 ELEVENTH AVENUE EXPOSED
The scaffolding and netting are finally coming down on West Chelsea’s most eagerly anticipated building, the Annabelle Selldorf designed 200 Eleventh Avenue. Developed by Urban Muse and Young Woo & Associates, this is the first residential building to be completed facing Chelsea Cove, the new 9 acre park just north of Chelsea Piers. The building… [Read More]
BLACKPAD AND I-PAD: HOME AUTOMATION AND BROKERAGE CHANGE FOREVER:
With Research in Motion’s announcement today that they are developing a similar device to Apple’s I-Pad, we should feel certain that home automation and real estate brokerage will more than likely be entirely controlled by these devices going forward. And why not? Unlike cell phones, the larger screen is much easier to read, and much… [Read More]
CLINTON WEDDING vs. BUSH WEDDING (and the real estate)
In this morning’s Wall Street Journal, it was reported that Jenna Bush’s wedding cost a mere $ 100,000.00 compared to the stratospheric $ 3 million estimate for Chelsea Clinton’s wedding: “Bottom line? Think more like Jenna Bush, and less like Chelsea Clinton” A good point, yet one major defining issue was over-looked: the real estate…. [Read More]
CHARLIE RANGEL AND RENT CONTROL
While aggressive evictions are reducing the number of rent-stabilized apartments in New York, Representative Charles B. Rangel enjoys 4 of them, including 3 adjacent units on the 16th floor overlooking Upper Manhattan in a building owned by one of New York’s premier real estate developers. The Harlem building where Representative Charles B. Rangel has four rent-stabilized units…. [Read More]
BIGGEST NEW YORK BIDDING WAR OF 2010
The MANHATTAN BIDDING WAR has returned: Carlos Slim, reportedly the wealthiest man in the world, just won a bidding war on the Duke Semans Mansion at 1009 Fifth Avenue in New York City. His winning bid of $44 million outbid a Russian bidder whose bid was around $37 million. This is the largest multiple bid sale of 2010, and an… [Read More]
THE JUMBO IS BA-ACK!
In this morning’s Wall Street Journal, it is reported that New York and the rest of the country, is experiencing the return of the JUMBO MORTGAGE…..Not long ago, many big banks were turning away New Yorkers seeking jumbo mortgages. This summer, however, banks are competing for the business, creating a wealth of new products and… [Read More]
THE ROLLER COASTER DECADE – LUXURLETTER EDITORIAL
THE ROLLER COASTER DECADE It is becoming increasingly apparent that we live in turbulent times: the see-sawing we are experiencing in markets (and life in general) appear more acute and exaggerated these days, and I fear we have entered a decade of constant ups and downs. With every bit of good news that emerges, so… [Read More]
HOUSING INVENTORIES WILL RISE THROUGH 2011
In the WALL STREET JOURNAL: Sales of new homes are near 47-year lows, yet the supply of new and existing homes is expected to grow in the months ahead as construction ramps up and a wave of foreclosed homes hits the market. LUXURYlesson: “While the USA in general will experience increases in inventories, the luxury… [Read More]
NEW YORK BUILDING SALES RISE
Robert Knakal of Massey Knakal reports In Gobestreet that in all of 2009, 1436 properties were sold in the Big Apple and, in the first half of 2010 (1H10), there were 818 buildings sold. The dollar volume of sales also increased significantly, going from $6.26 billion in all of 2009 to $6.49 billion in 1H10. The… [Read More]