NEW YORK—A New York State Appellate Court has overturned an earlier lower court ruling and has upheld controversial state regulations that restrict what state regulators have termed excessive marketing costs and other unscrupulous activity in the title industry. The Appellate Division, First Department, on Jan. 15 reversed a ruling last July by New York Supreme…
Read MoreYONKERS—The Yonkers Industrial Development Agency reports it has approved more than $13.6 million in incentives for three major development projects in the city. The IDA’s Board of Directors approved at its meeting last Friday resolutions of intent to provide financial incentives for two mixed-use developments and one strictly residential project totaling more than $391 million…
Read MoreRYE BROOK—For the fourth consecutive year, real estate brokerage Houlihan Lawrence held a holiday book drive for local children in need, gathering more than 1,000 titles for preschool to middle school-aged readers. Collection bins were placed across the firm’s network of 30 field offices in New York and Connecticut, where they were quickly filled by…
Read MoreWHITE PLAINS—While remaining robust, residential sales in some areas of the lower Hudson Valley were slightly lower in 2018 than the historic highs of the past two years. In 2018, Westchester, Rockland and Orange counties all experienced declines in the number of residential sales as compared to 2017, according to the “2018 Annual and Fourth…
Read MoreWHITE PLAINS—While I do not profess to possess the prognostication skills of the “Amazing Kreskin” or “Carnac the Magnificent,” I thought I would share my thoughts with the Real Estate In-Depth readership on the top stories/issues I believe could have an impact on the commercial, residential real estate and capital finance markets in the Hudson…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—In what the National Association of Realtors described as a “critical win for home sales,” the Federal Emergency Management Agency reported on Dec. 28 that it will issue and renew flood insurance policies during the partial shutdown of the federal government, reversing an unexpected and controversial ruling the agency released several days earlier. "FEMA and…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—On Dec. 21, National Association of Realtors President-Elect Vince Malta testified before the House Financial Services Committee. During the hearing, “A Legislative Proposal to Provide for a Sustainable Housing Finance System: The Bipartisan Financing Reform Act of 2018,” Malta, a third-generation Realtor and the CEO and broker of Malta & Co., Inc. in San Francisco,…
Read MorePOUGHKEEPSIE—The Hudson Valley saw an overall loss of more than 28,000 households during the period 2011-2016, according to a report released by the Marist Bureau of Economic Research on Dec. 12. The study, “Migration Report of the Hudson Valley 2011-2016,” utilized IRS county-to-county migration data. The loss of households is a serious issue, the bureau…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—The National Association of Realtors unveiled a Blockchain Guidance Paper earlier this month during a webinar designed to keep real estate at the forefront of conversations surrounding the emerging technology. NAR also authored a paper that found buyers continue to overwhelmingly utilize both the Internet and real estate agents in the home-buying process. Although blockchain…
Read MoreCHAPPAQUA—Grand Lux Realty announced on Dec. 4th the opening of its Chappaqua office at 211 King St. The new location will be Grand Lux Realty’s fourth office. The residential brokerage firm also operates offices in Armonk, Ardsley and Mamaroneck. The firm now has more than 225 agents and is looking for additional licensed agents, the…
Read MoreWHITE PLAINS— In one of the biggest legislative victories in the history of the Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors and its predecessor organizations, Westchester County Executive George Latimer signed into law today a bill aimed at reforming the cooperative purchase process. At a press conference on Dec. 14 County Executive Latimer signed the bill, sponsored…
Read MoreYONKERS—The Board of Directors of the Yonkers Industrial Development Agency has approved a resolution of intent earlier this month with the developer of a former loft warehouse in the Carpet Mills Art District. The project by Momentum Realty Associates of Yonkers will convert the light-industrial building at 222 & 252C Lake Street into an office…
Read MoreWHITE PLAINS—The Westchester County Industrial Development Agency has granted preliminary and final approvals for more than $531 million in new development projects in White Plains, Harrison and Pelham. On Nov. 29, the Westchester County IDA granted a resolution of intent to provide financial incentives for AvalonBay Communities’ $76.8-million transit-oriented, mixed-use residential project to be built…
Read MoreNEW ROCHELLE—A partnership of Azure Partners and Harbor Group International, LLC has acquired the 40-story Halstead New Rochelle Metro North apartment tower here for $259.4 million. The tallest residential building in Westchester County was sold by the DSF Group, which acquired the 588-unit apartment building in 2013 for more than $210 million. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler,…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—On Nov. 27, the Federal Housing Finance Agency announced it will raise the national conforming loan limit for 2019 by 6.9% from $453,100 to $484,350. In addition, the high-cost limit will rise from $679,650 to $726,525. As a result, loan limits will be higher in all but 47 counties or county equivalents across the country…
Read MoreOn Nov. 20, 2018, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (collectively "the agencies") released a proposed rule that would increase the current threshold for residential real estate transactions requiring an appraisal to $400,000. The current threshold is $250,000.…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—Sales of newly built, single-family homes fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 544,000 units in October after an upwardly revised September report, according to newly released data by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. This is the lowest sales pace since December 2016. However, on a…
Read MoreWHITE PLAINS—Ginsburg Development Companies LLC recently unveiled its transformative plan for the Westchester Financial Center in Downtown White Plains to the White Plains City Council. The City Square project calls for the renovation of the existing office complex and the conversion of a portion of the office space into multifamily housing and retail and community…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—Existing-home sales increased in October after six straight months of decreases, according to the National Association of Realtors. Three of four major U.S. regions saw gains in sales activity last month. Total existing-home sales, https://www.nar.realtor/existing-home-sales, which are completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, increased 1.4% from September to a seasonally adjusted…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—An Ernst & Young LLP survey of Millennials across the country clearly shows the weight of the Great Recession and student loan debt have on their views of the economy and on their plans to purchase a home. Ernst & Young LLP released the results of its survey of Millennials across the country on Nov.…
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