NEW YORK—U.S. Senator Charles Schumer announced on March 7 at a briefing at his New York City offices, that the “American Rescue Plan that passed the U.S. Senate would have an impact on New York State that approaches $100 billion. As part of the deal, more than $23.8 billion flows directly to New York State…
Read MoreWHITE PLAINS—The New York State Association of Realtors has issued a “Call to Action” to Realtors to send a message to Westchester County legislators and Westchester County Executive George Latimer urging their support for the Westchester County Legislature to pass a new law requiring co-op boards to provide a reason in writing for application denials.…
Read MoreFamed American Bandstand host Dick Clark once clarified his multi-decade influence over the music industry. “I don’t set trends,” he offered, “I just find out what they are and exploit them.” Much the same can be said of Westchester County, where the area’s changing real estate landscape is more a reflection of emerging national and…
Read MoreWHITE PLAINS—A mixed-use project that has been on the drawing boards for more than five years, secured a key approval yesterday from the White Plains Common Council that could put final approvals finally within reach for the property owner. The White Plains Common Council unanimously voted on Monday evening to accept the environmental findings, zoning…
Read MoreALBANY—New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on Feb. 25 that the state will launch a program to deploy undercover fair housing testers in New York City, Long Island, Westchester County and the Central New York and Western New York regions to possibly uncover housing discrimination practices by sellers, brokers and landlords. The state is currently…
Read MoreYONKERS—Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano and other city officials joined with executives of Regency Apartment Ventures LLC on Feb. 25 to celebrate the groundbreaking of Regency on the Hudson, a seven-story 126-unit residential building at 56 Prospect St. here. The development will feature 13 units that will be designated as affordable under the city’s Affordable Housing…
Read MoreWHITE PLAINS—The Westchester County Industrial Development Agency’s Board of Directors earlier today (Feb. 25) unanimously approved a new local hire labor policy that will require incentivized project developers hire 85% of its construction workers from the local area; require its workers complete OSHA safety training; subcontractors be enrolled in a pre-apprenticeship program and that all…
Read MorePatricia Dantzic admits she was a bit apprehensive about re-entering the workforce with a new career in real estate. After enjoying a successful profession in corporate communications in the music industry, she switched gears, earned her license and began working at a local agency. Soon afterward, she was approached by a team member from Berkshire…
Read MoreWASHINGTON —Existing-home sales rose in January, marking two consecutive months of growth, according to the National Association of Realtors. From a month-over-month perspective, buying activity varied in the major regions. Year-over-year, all four areas recorded double-digit gains in January. Existing-home sales in the Northeast in January declined 2.2%, recording an annual rate of 870,000, a…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—Minority homeownership continues to stubbornly lag behind the national rate, with Black Americans facing some of the toughest hurdles to achieving this essential part of the American Dream, according to a report released recently by the National Association of Realtors. The homeownership rate for Black Americans—42%—is nearly 30% less than the rate for white Americans…
Read MoreYONKERS—The Yonkers Industrial Development Agency Board reports it recently granted final approval of financial incentives for 56 Prospect St., a $32.6 million, 126-unit apartment building. The project, which received final approval at the IDA’s Feb. 5 meeting, will be comprised of 90 studios, 18 one-bedroom units and 18 two-bedroom units with a rooftop terrace overlooking…
Read MoreNEW ROCHELLE— RXR Realty, master developer of Downtown New Rochelle, announced on Feb. 10 the topping out of One Clinton Park, a 28-story mixed-use tower under construction here. The project created 250 on-site construction jobs, employing a diversity of contractors, including MWBE firms and local New Rochelle companies. One Clinton Park features 352 state-of-the-art, highly…
Read MoreYONKERS—Human services organization Rising Ground announced plans today to offer for sale its Leake & Watts campus in Yonkers, a property the organization has owned for more than 130 years. Matt Del Percio, president of the Rising Ground Board of Directors, said the 32-acre property at 463 Hawthorne Ave., overlooking the Hudson River, was recently…
Read MoreALBANY—The leadership of the State Senate Democratic Majority announced on Feb. 8 it will advance major legislation to continue addressing housing discrimination across New York State. The legislative package was created following two public hearings on housing discrimination that included 25 subpoenas. The package of bills is also in response to legislative suggestions outlined in…
Read MoreNEW YORK—New York City-based residential brokerage firm Triplemint reported on Feb. 3 it had expanded its operations to Westchester County with the defection of a number of Douglas Elliman agents. Triplemint reported that the Berkowitz Marrone Team led by Owen Berkowitz and Carol Marrone, who were the founding members of Douglas Elliman Westchester, have joined…
Read MoreWHITE PLAINS—The Westchester County Industrial Development Agency has proposed a set of new local hire labor policy directives for certain development projects securing incentives from the agency. The policy is geared to ensuring projects that are approved for bond financing or other incentives from the IDA hire 85% of its construction workers from the local…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—U.S. Reps. Mondaire Jones (D-NY), Tom Suozzi (D-NY) and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer on Thursday introduced the SALT Deductibility Act that would remove the $10,000 cap on state and local tax deductions imposed in 2017 under the federal tax reform law. The SALT Cap was highly criticized by New York politicians, as well…
Read MorePELHAM—Compass, the real estate technology company, announced recently a new partnership with C.S. McClellan Real Estate, led by Sona Davidian, who maintains the boutique firm's total ownership. Founded in 1878 by the McClellan family, Davidian has owned C.S. McClellan since 1989, when she purchased it directly from the McClellan family. The company has a rich…
Read MoreYORKTOWN—A New Jersey-based real estate development firm has unveiled plans to reposition a mostly vacant shopping center that was anchored by Kmart and Food Emporium here into a new mixed-use development that will feature 150 rental housing units and ground-floor retail. The plan by Oster Properties of Englewood Cliffs, NJ was presented for the first…
Read MoreARMONK—One year after joining the Building and Realty Institute as its executive director, Timothy Foley of Scarsdale has been promoted to chief executive officer of the locally-based organization. “BRI has grown as an organization while staying true to our mission to advocate for the best interests of the realty industry to government and the community,…
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