ALBANY—In another sign of some light at the end of the tunnel on the COVID crisis, at a press conference on Wednesday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that New York State will soon receive an initial delivery of enough COVID-19 vaccine doses for 170,000 New Yorkers. If all safety and efficacy approvals are granted by the…
Read MoreNEW CITY—Rockland County legislators voted unanimously (16-0) on Dec. 1 to adopt an amended 2021 County Budget that lowers property taxes to less than 1% next year, and has no sales tax rate increases, layoffs or program cuts. “This budget recognizes and implements the recommendations made by our independent fiscal auditor, and by extension, provides…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—Pending home sales fell slightly in October, according to the National Association of Realtors. Contract activity was mixed among the four major U.S. regions, with the only positive month-over-month growth happening in the South, although each region achieved year-over-year gains in pending home sales transactions. The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator of home…
Read MoreALBANY—In response to rising COVID hospitalizations throughout the state, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said today that the state is entering a new phase in its “war against COVID.” The governor and the New York State Department of Health are issuing directives that focus on a new strategy geared to ensuring sufficient hospital capacity throughout…
Read MoreGOSHEN—Officials with Boston-based development firm GFI Partners and commercial brokerage firm Resource Realty of Parsippany, NJ were joined by county and local dignitaries on Nov. 24 to turn the first dirt on the largest speculative industrial project in memory in Orange County. The local officials that attended the event celebrating the launch of the 500,000-square-foot…
Read MoreWHITE PLAINS—The Westchester County Industrial Development Agency announced on Nov. 25 it recently granted final approval for incentives ranging from $6.5 million to $13 million to Morgan Stanley for the financial services firm’s planned more than $200-million renovation of its corporate office complex at 2000 Westchester Ave. in Harrison. The Industrial Development Agency stated that…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—The Federal Housing Finance Agency announced on Nov. 24 the maximum conforming loan limits for mortgages to be acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in 2021. For high-cost areas in which 115% of the local median home value exceeds the baseline CLL, the maximum loan limit will be higher than the baseline loan limit.…
Read MoreSTAMFORD, CT—Monday Properties, a national real estate firm based in New York City, has acquired a two-building office complex totaling 224,000 square feet at 900 Long Ridge Road in Stamford, CT for $27.25 million. The deal marks Monday Properties’ second acquisition in less than two months and the first this year in the New York…
Read MoreYONKERS—The Yonkers Industrial Development Agency (YIDA) Board voted on Nov. 23 to grant preliminary approval of financial incentives for the $37.6-million acquisition and rehabilitation of the Jackson Terrace Apartments, a complex featuring 181 affordable low-income housing units. Located at 100 Herriot St., the 12-story building is being acquired by the New York City-based Hudson Valley…
Read MorePARSIPPANY, NJ—The Birch Group of Nanuet has acquired from Mack-Cali Realty Corp., a 154,820-square-foot office building at 7 Campus Drive here for $12.75 million. The sale by Jersey-based Mack-Cali is part of an ongoing disposition of its office assets. The firm reported that the sale brings its year-to-date suburban office dispositions to $270.35 million. “We…
Read MoreWHITE PLAINS—Despite COVID restrictions that were put into place last spring, volunteers for the Hudson Gateway Realtor Foundation still managed to lend a hand to seven charities throughout the Hudson Valley during 2020. HG Realtor Foundation Program Committee Chair Gail Fattizzi, who also serves as the 2020 HGAR President, is hopeful that 2021 will see…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—The Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced on Monday (Nov. 23) it had approved the transfer of the Indian Point nuclear power plant licenses from Entergy Nuclear Operations to Holtec International, as owner, and Holtec Decommissioning International as decommissioning operator. Holtec and HDI have announced that they intend to expedite the decommissioning and dismantling of the power…
Read MoreWhile the economic impact of the coronavirus this year has been dramatic, two recently released reports indicate that the real estate industry and the U.S. economy are expected to fare better in 2021. The Urban Land Institute’s latest Real Estate Economic Forecast predicts less of a slump for the rest of this year than was…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—CoStar Group Inc. reported on Sunday that it had reached an agreement to acquire Homesnap, Inc. for $250 million in cash. Homesnap is an industry-leading online and mobile software platform that provides user-friendly applications to optimize residential real estate agent workflow and reinforce the agent-client relationship. More than 300,000 agents nationwide use the application an…
Read MoreNEW YORK—Jeffrey E. Levine, the founder and chairman of New York City-based The Douglaston Companies, announced on Nov. 23 the launch of DD Nationwide, which will be under The Douglaston Companies umbrella. DD Nationwide was established to pursue real estate development opportunities outside of the New York metropolitan area to further broaden Douglaston’s robust scope…
Read MoreCHICAGO—Chief officials with the Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors and the New York State Association of Realtors hailed the recent vote by the Board of Directors of the National Association of Realtors to strengthen the Code of Ethics and ban harassing or hate speech by its members. On Nov. 13, the Board of Directors of…
Read MoreAnyone who knows John Jordan also knows that he is the consummate news professional who has served as Editor of Real Estate In-Depth for 25 years. Throughout his career he has written for numerous publications including the New York Times, Gannett Suburban Newspapers, Westchester County Business Journal, Westchester Magazine, Construction News, Westchester Commerce Magazine, Real…
Read MoreCHICAGO—Newly-installed National Association of Realtors President Charlie Oppler issued a formal apology on Nov. 19 for the association's past policies that contributed to segregation and racial inequality in America. During a virtual fair housing summit hosted by The Hill and co-sponsored by NAR, Oppler offered an emotional apology on behalf of the industry for NAR's…
Read MoreWHITE PLAINS—Focused on supporting local businesses struggling during the pandemic, Westchester County Executive George Latimer and the Westchester County Office of Economic Development unveiled on Nov. 19, Westchester RISES, a free program designed to support existing businesses that are looking to pivot or rebuild in response to the pandemic, or build resilience to prepare for…
Read MoreNEW YORK—MTA Chairman and CEO Patrick J. Foye presented on Wednesday what he described as the most difficult and devastating budget in the agency’s history and warned that without $12 billion in federal aid, the MTA would be forced to impose draconian service cuts, lay off nearly 9,400 workers and continue to pause its $51.5-bilion…
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