New launch condo in Manhattan – being the earlybird

Being the earlybird at a Manhattan new launch condo project usually means getting the condo at the initial pricing, known as Schedule A pricing. As a new launch condo development sells over time, the developer usually increases price, known as Pricing Amendments. A price amendment reflects increases in price for condo lines that are selling well.

Read full article here: New launch condo in Manhattan – being the earlybird

Manhattan property buying opportunity amid COVID 19

 

Q3 Manhattan sales market slumped 43%. Rental vacancy rate now 5% (vs historical 1%). Meanwhile, rest of the U.S. is experiencing a real estate boom with the biggest gains since 2006. When do we expect things to get back to normal in Manhattan? Here is my analysis.

https://www.castle-avenue.com/manhattan-property-covid-19-buying-opportunity.html

Is now a good time to invest in Manhattan real estate?

 

Is now a good time to invest in Manhattan real estate? Article is about the downcycle from 2017 to 2019, which extended through now due to COVID 19. Many moved out of Manhattan to avoid density and given work from home policies. There is a lot of rental inventory and owners are cutting rental prices. Sale data from Q3 is not out yet. but we are seeing prices come down about 10 percent from pre-COVID. One thing's for sure - it's not a good time to sell, although sellers are still not adjusting to market realities.

Client Demmi Choo on living in West Village

 

Interviewed client Demmi Choo on what makes West Village so attractive.  In the article, Demmi talks about her favorite hangouts, West Village feeling like a suburb during the day, biggest perks and a "downside" to West Village.  

Manhattan's first week of Reopening

The Manhattan property market was on PAUSE for 15 weeks.  This week, as part of Phase 2, we reopened.  Property agents are showing again, with masks, hand sanitizers, a lot more disclosures.  

My article, Manhattan's first week of Reopening, shares the key observations from the 15 week lock down until today.

Risks and downsides of buying Manhattan new launch condo projects

In this article, Risks and Downsides of Buying Manhattan's New Launch Condo Projects, I describe the top 3 risks that nobody talks about.  This article is all about downsides, risks that buyers need to know about before a purchase.

How recessions impact Manhattan real estate

Just wrote, How Recessions Impact Manhattan Property.  Analysis looks at how prior 9/11 and Lehman recessions impacted Manhattan and U.S. real estate prices.  

In the past 5 recessions before the current Great Lockdown Recession, only 2 events saw property price declines.  This shows that as long as real estate is supported by demand and supply fundamentals, they usually weather the recession and experience natural price increase. 

New York luxury property buying opportunity amid COVID-19 pandemic

Read my article about New York property buying opportunity amid COVID 9 pandemic.  We know the Q2 market will be terrible due to a frozen market, spike in unemployment and GDP shrinkage.  Buying opportunity will be in Q2 – Q4 because the pickup will take time.  As post 911 and Lehman show, people forget.  After those events, newcomers kept coming to Manhattan and prices continued to set records.

Coronavirus impact to Manhattan real estate activity

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) has impacted the Manhattan property market, although at a negligible level when compared to how it impacted the stock market.  

For buyers, mortgage rates are at 50-year lows.  Sellers are holding off on listing their property amid concerns about dampened prices and exposure to large groups coming to their apartment for open houses.

Read more at:  Coronavirus impact to Manhattan real estate activity

Investing in Brooklyn property talks about several Brooklyn neighbrohoods - Brooklyn Heights, Downtown Brooklyn, DUMBO, as an investment alternative to Manhattan. 

Rules for foreigners buying New York property

Rules for foreigners investing in New York property summarizes the key points for potential foreign investors.  

Points covered include FIRPTA withholding tax, whether there is extra stamp duty and estate tax.  A great overview before doing the deep dive.
  

How to Invest in Manhattan Property

How to invest in Manhattan property for foreign buyers.  

Article covers whether foreigners can buy Manhattan property, transparency of property inventory, prices and a brief comparison of new development vs resale.  

Manhattan luxury freehold condo close to MRT, $1.83 million

Manhattan freehold condo with high rental return and close to MRT, United Nations, Citigroup Center, Blackstone, Blackrock headquarters.

Property:  959 First Avenue, Apt 23E, New York, NY 10022 (Condominium)

Price:  $1,830,000

Common charges:  $1,400

Property taxes:  $160

Rental return:  At rent of $6,000 per month, rental return of 2.9 percent based on asking price.  This is very high by Manhattan standards.

Size:  907 square feet

Learn more:  Manhattan freehold condo close to MRT, $1.83 million

Foreigners buying Manhattan property, the questions that matter

Here are the top 8 questions foreign clients ask when thinking about buying property in Manhattan.

#1:  Can a foreigner buy property in New York?

#2:  What type of property can a foreigner buy in New York?

Read the full article:  

Foreigner Buying Property in New York, 8 Questions That Matter

Best Condos in Manhattan, New York

Which is the best condo building in Manhattan?  The answer depends on the purpose of the client.  For example, buying to rent out has different criteria vs buying as vacation home or buying merely to park money.  

This article talks about several condos and why they are "the best" in their respective categories.

Read article:  Best Condos in Manhattan

Best areas to invest in Manhattan

Article I wrote about one of the most popular questions clients ask, "Whats the best area to invest in Manhattan?"  

There is no one best area, it's all about evaluating the upsides and downsides relative to your objectives.

This article gives examples of some of the most popular neighborhoods and their respective upsides/downsides.

Read article:  Best areas to invest in Manhattan

Advice on buying New York property to benefit from the Trump wave

By Wei Min Tan

March 15, 2017

While the last 2 quarters of 2016 saw buyers sitting on the fence and sales volume down, since Trump’s historic win, there has been an increase in sales with Manhattan condos. We focus on buyers of residential condominiums for investment. In Q3 and Q4, there was plenty of time for our clients. Apartments were sitting on the market. But in January alone, we started seeing clients lose deals because of not acting fast enough.

Top 5 mistakes when investing in New York property

Whenever I meet a new buyer client, especially a foreigner wanting to buy an apartment in Manhattan for rental income, the client often has certain pre-conceived ideas.  This is understandable because it is impossible to understand a market from researching on Google from a few thousand miles away.  The pre-conceived ideas are as follows.  Not necessarily good or bad, but without proper advise, they could be costly mistakes.

Assuming popular tourist areas are best for investment

Foreign buyers usually assume Fifth Avenue, Central Park, Times Square, Wall Street are the “good” areas for investment.  This because these are tourist destinations the media associates with New York.  I totally understand and if I were planning on investing in a different city, say London, the only areas I would know are the tourist destinations.  Naturally, I would also associate investment stability with these locations.

Buying opportunities as sales drop 20 percent

 By Wei Min Tan

It’s now official. Consistent with my previous updates about now Manhattan being a buyer’s market, recently published reports show Q3 2016 sales volume down 20 percent.  

The market is especially favorable to cash buyers and this is evidenced by the numerous deals, whether pricing or concessions, we managed to negotiate for buyer clients recently.

Role of a Buyer's Broker

A buyer's broker identifies good deals and advises on the Upsides and Downsides of each property. Then, negotiates price and brings in the team to close the deal. Glad to contribute to this NY1 segment.