WASHINGTON—Existing-home sales dipped in February, continuing a seesawing pattern of gains and declines over the last few months, according to the National Association of Realtors. Each of the four major U.S. regions saw sales fall on a month-over-month basis in February. Sales activity year-over-year was also down overall, though the South experienced an increase while…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—The National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals released the 12th publication of its annual State of Hispanic Homeownership Report on March 16 on the final day of NAHREP’s National Convention & Housing Policy Summit in Washington D.C. The report found that in 2021, the Hispanic homeownership rate increased to 48.4%, consistent with the trendline…
Read MoreNEW ROCHELLE—A longtime city official, Charles B. Strome III, who has served as New Rochelle City Manager for the past two decades, will retire at the end of this year, the city announced on March 9. Strome announced his retirement to the City Council at its March 8 meeting and will remain with the city…
Read MoreNEW YORK—Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices New England/Westchester/New York/Hudson Valley Properties announced on March 9 that the company will begin operating as Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices (BHHS) New England/New York/Hudson Valley Properties, effective immediately. The firm's Westchester offices servicing Eastchester, Larchmont, Rye, Scarsdale and surrounding towns, will now be known as Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices New York Properties in…
Read More"A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives." Jackie Robinson I recently returned from the 2022 National Association of Realtors RPAC President’s Circle Conference, and I must say I was once again blown away by the advocacy efforts at every level of our association. Words cannot express my gratitude…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—Homeownership is widely recognized as the leading source of net worth among families. Housing wealth itself is primarily achieved by price appreciation gains, and the nation has seen home prices accelerate at a record pace during the course of the last decade, according to a National Association of Realtors study released on March 9. The…
Read MoreNANUET—Rockland County Executive Ed Day signed on March 3 a bill amending the county’s existing cooperative application decision law to require co-op boards to disclose the reason or reasons for a denial of a prospective buyer’s application. After a public hearing, the Rockland County Legislature passed the amendment to the “Timely Co-Op Application Decision Law”…
Read MoreRIDGEFIELD, CT—Houlihan Lawrence reports it has continued its expansion in Connecticut with the acquisition of Neumann Real Estate, a brokerage firm with operations in Ridgefield and New Fairfield in Fairfield County, CT. The deal marks the second transaction by Rye Brook-based Houlihan Lawrence in 2022 to expand its presence in Connecticut. In January, the company…
Read MoreNEW YORK—The Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors inaugurated Anthony Domathoti, Broker/Owner of EXIT Realty Premium in the Bronx, as its 2022 President at its Installation Gala on March 1. HGAR also installed its 2022 executive officers and directors at the gala held at the historic 583 Park Ave. landmark building at 63rd Street in Manhattan.…
Read MoreNEW ROCHELLE—BRP Companies, the Urban Investment Group within Goldman Sachs Asset Management (Goldman Sachs), New York State Homes and Community Renewal, Westchester County, Interfaith Dwellings Corporation, Merchants Bank of Indiana, Wells Fargo, and Fannie Mae announced on Feb. 28 the closing of $294 million in construction financing for the 477-unit, mixed-use development located at 500…
Read MoreMOUNT KISCO—Veteran real estate broker and former Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors President Dorothy Botsoe will be opening the Hudson Valley’s first Weichert Realtors Signature Properties agency at 275 East Main St. in Mount Kisco this month. The new location will service home buyers and sellers in Westchester and Putnam counties, as well as the…
Read MoreA tireless civil rights and housing rights activist, Nick Beilenson passed away on Feb. 22 at the age of 85 due to complications from COVID-19. The White Plains resident founded Westchester Residential Opportunities in 1968 at the height of the civil rights movement. He served as WRO’s first executive director and served on the board…
Read MoreWASHINGTON—The U.S. homeownership rate climbed to 65.5% in 2020, up 1.3% from 2019 and the largest annual increase on record. More Americans are likely to own a home now than during any year following the Great Recession (65.4% homeownership rate in 2010); however, Black Americans continue to face significant obstacles along the path to homeownership,…
Read MoreMy administration and Rockland County government achieved the impossible; in only three months, Rockland launched a brand-new County Office of Buildings and Codes. I want everyone to know that this has been an incredibly difficult, detailed, and time-consuming process to create an entirely new office within county government. It was only 90 days ago that…
Read MoreWHITE PLAINS—A panel of real estate executives agreed that the exodus from Manhattan due to COVID-19 is over and that the recovery in the Manhattan luxury housing market has gained momentum that will continue this year. In addition, the recovery, fueled by a roaring stock market, low interest rates and rapidly declining COVID infection rates,…
Read MoreInventory at All-Time Low WASHINGTON—Existing-home sales rose in January, making a notable move upward following a previous month where sales declined, according to the National Association of Realtors. On a month-over-month basis, each of the four major U.S. regions experienced an increase in sales in January. However, year-over-year, activity was mixed as two regions reported…
Read MoreWHITE PLAINS—The Hudson Gateway Realtor Foundation started off 2022 with two February events—a volunteer opportunity with the Community Center of Northern Westchester in Katonah, and a Pub Night at Tapped Craft Beer & Restaurant in Middletown. A group of 10 Realtor volunteers recently spent their morning stocking shelves at the Community Center’s Food Pantry and…
Read MoreNANUET—Howard Hanna | Rand Realty announced on Feb. 16 the firm had expanded its presence in the State of New Jersey with the purchase of Striker Realty, which operates out of offices in Linden, Livingston, and Rahway, NJ. Striker Realty was founded 20 years ago by Thomas J. Borowski, a renowned real estate broker entrepreneur…
Read MoreNEW YORK—Corcoran Group, LLC announced on Feb. 15 its entrance into the State of Connecticut with the launch of Corcoran Centric Realty, owned and led by Jeffrey Jackson, based in Greenwich, CT. “Greenwich is an amazing area that we’ve had our eye on for quite some time now, so to have strong agents joining us…
Read MoreWHITE PLAINS—Talk to any Realtor anywhere in the country, and they’ll tell you that even after more than a year, it’s still a seller’s market out there. Layla Boyles, broker/owner at CENTURY 21 Realty Center in Monroe, said she continues to see multiple offers and bidding wars for many Orange County properties, with the average…
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