Residential

HGAR Launches ‘Fair Housing Challenge’ Initiative In Observance of National Fair Housing Month

March 31, 2021

WHITE PLAINS—The Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors has announced it is launching its “Fair Housing Challenge” initiative in observance of the U.S. Housing and Urban Development’s “National Fair Housing Month” for April. HGAR’s “Fair Housing Challenge” has been distributed to its 13,000 Realtor members stretching from Manhattan to Orange County, and consists of three segments—a…

City of Newburgh Issues RFPs on Three East End Development Sites

March 30, 2021

NEWBURGH—The City of Newburgh is seeking development proposals for three city-owned properties located in the heart of the Newburgh’s East End Historic District. The city announced on March 17 that the first proposal calls for the rehabilitation of 120 Grand St., formerly known as the “City Club” building. A second proposal seeks the restoration of…

Construction Begins on $36M Affordable Seniors Housing Project in White Plains

March 30, 2021

WHITE PLAINS—The New York State Homes and Community Renewal, MDG Design + Construction LLC, Smith & Henzy Advisory Group, Inc., and partners announced on March 29 the start of a $35.8-million rehabilitation of Kingsley House, a 164-unit affordable, Mitchell-Lama housing development for seniors in White Plains. The project will preserve affordability for residents while modernizing…

New York Lawmakers Push for SALT Cap Repeal

March 26, 2021

WHITE PLAINS—New York federal representatives and Westchester County Executive George Latimer staged a press conference on March 25th at the home of a White Plains resident to push for the repeal of the controversial SALT (State and Local Tax) deduction cap. U.S. Rep. Mondaire Jones (NY-17), U.S. Rep. Tom Suozzi (NY-03), U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman…

Co-Op Reform Bill Requiring Reason for Rejection Introduced in the Westchester County Legislature

March 24, 2021

WHITE PLAINS—A bill that would amend existing county law relating to the sale of cooperative housing to now require cooperative boards of directors to disclose the reason for denial of a prospective purchaser was officially introduced for consideration by the Westchester County Board of Legislators on Monday, March 22. The pending bill, which now goes…

Regional NY-NJ Brokerage Firm Baer & McIntosh Now Affiliated with The Corcoran Group, LLC

March 24, 2021

NYACK—Corcoran Group, LLC announced on March 23 the launch of its newest affiliate, Corcoran Baer & McIntosh, based in Nyack. The announcement was made via virtual appearance by Pamela Liebman, president and CEO of The Corcoran Group. This is the second Corcoran affiliate to launch since the start of the year—just weeks after the one-year…

NAR Warns of Possible Slowdown Due To Low Inventory, Rising Interest Rates

March 23, 2021

WASHINGTON—Existing-home sales declined in February, following two prior months of gains, reported the National Association of Realtors on March 22. Month-over-month, only one major region saw an increase in February, but all four U.S. regions recorded year-over-year gains. Total existing-home sales, completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, decreased 6.6% from January…

Edge-on-Hudson Earns National NAHB Awards

March 19, 2021

SLEEPY HOLLOW—The Edge-on-Hudson, a mixed-use, transit-oriented community under development in Sleepy Hollow was honored in March with the Gold Award for 2021 MultiFamily Community of the Year at the National Association of Home Builder’s The Nationals awards program. Additionally, Edge-on-Hudson earned Gold Awards for Best Video and Best MultiFamily Model Home for The Carroll by…

NAR: Millennials Dominate Home Buying Market, Generation Z Now Active Buyers as Well

March 17, 2021

WASHINGTON—The popularity of multigenerational homes increased over the last year, as a rising number of homebuyers purchased larger residences compared to prior years, including millennials who continue to make up the largest share of homebuyers at 37%, the National Association of Realtors reported on March 16. The finding is one of a number of trends…

Five Questions With NAR President Charlie Oppler

March 17, 2021

Charlie Oppler took over as president of the National Association of Realtors at a pivotal time for the national organization and for the nation’s real estate industry as well. With the advent of COVID vaccines and mass distribution now underway, the 1.4 million NAR members and the nation are beginning to adjust to what will…

Housing Rights Groups File Suit Against RE Firms for Discrimination Against Section 8 Tenants

March 15, 2021

NEW YORK—As a result of a year-long probe, the Housing Rights Initiative, The Legal Aid Society and the Washington, D.C.-based law firm Handley Farah & Anderson filed a federal lawsuit today against a total of 88 landlords, real estate managers and brokers for illegally discriminating against low-income tenants with Housing Choice vouchers in New York…

Grand Lux Realty Relocates Headquarters to Chappaqua

March 15, 2021

CHAPPAQUA—Grand Lux Realty announced on March 12 that it had opened its new office in Chappaqua at 101 King St. “We established our Armonk office back in 2006,” said Michael Levy, founder and principal broker, Grand Lux Realty. “This move is bittersweet, but we are not saying goodbye to Armonk or our long-time clients. While…

Hudson Valley Lost More Than 76,000 Jobs in 2020

March 12, 2021

ALBANY—The employment numbers for 2020 released by the New York State Department of Labor for the Hudson Valley region on March 11 were not surprising in the least, with leisure and hospitality leading the way with job losses during the 12-month period, exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic, that exceeded 22,000 jobs. However, job numbers released…

Storied Anthony’s Pier 9 to be Sold; To Be Converted into Movie Studio

March 10, 2021

NEW WINDSOR—Orange County’s premier wedding, catering and event venue Anthony’s Pier 9 in New Windsor is in contract to be sold to an entity that plans to convert the 70,000-square-foot facility into a motion picture production studio. The pending sale with the unidentified buyer was announced by The Bonura Hospitality Group, which stated it expects…

Consumer Sentiment on Housing Dips Slightly Despite Growing Labor Market Optimism

March 9, 2021

WASHINGTON—The Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index decreased in February by 1.2 points to 76.5. Four of the HPSI’s six components fell month over month, including most notably homebuying conditions and household income components. Offsetting much of that decline, however, was increased optimism regarding job security, with consumers reporting a significantly more positive view of…

SPOTLIGHT ON: Jeanne Shields

March 8, 2021

A Give-Back Journey At this point in her life, Jeanne Shields is taking a little breather from her many, many philanthropic activities, including serving as a Trustee and fundraising volunteer for the Hudson Gateway Realtor Foundation. The Associate Broker with Howard Hanna | Rand Realty’s Nyack office has a very good reason for her much-needed…

Sen. Schumer Expects New York Will Reap $100 Billion From Biden COVID Relief Plan

March 8, 2021

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…

NYSAR Issues Call to Action for Westchester Board Of Legislators to Pass Co-Op Disclosure Reform

March 3, 2021

WHITE 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.…

GUEST VIEWPOINT: What We Can Learn from Westchester’s Evolving Office Market

March 3, 2021

Famed 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…

Plan to Redevelop Former Good Counsel Property Secures Key Approval from White Plains Council

March 2, 2021

WHITE 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…