November Multifamily Sales Significantly Down As Brooklyn Shows Only Positive Signs Per PropertyShark

PropertyShark is continuing to analyze the multifamily sector in New York City and what they have seen is that multifamily sales volume is significantly down in what they deem an ongoing slowdown. The report analyzed sales in Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx and Queens in order to prepare their report with only the borough of Brooklyn showing sales volume activity up during November. Sales volume for the year is down significantly as well. Most believe that the downturn in sales being attributed to the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019.

The overall volume of sales in New York City was down 60% from same time period of a year ago to $412 million. Sales activity only saw 71 transactions close during the month. Transaction were down 35% from a year ago with the amount of units being transferred down 65%. For the year, the city so far has recorded a sales volume of $7.34 billion. This is down $3.83 billion from the period of January 1, 2018-November 30, 2018. Transaction activity in multifamily is down by 316 properties during the same period as only 893 sales have been recorded in the first 11 months of 2019. 2018 saw 1,209 deals close from January to the end of November. Units being transferred via the 893 sales was 20,124 between January 1 and November 30, 2019. This is significantly down from the units transferred in 2018 where 44,308 units were moved.

Here is a breakdown per borough of multifamily sales for November 2019:

Brooklyn: Brooklyn was the only borough that saw positive sign with respect to sales volume. Sales volume was up 26% totaling $146 million for the period and bolstered significantly by the sale of 39 Waverly Place at $67,250,000. Transactions were down in the borough with only 28 recorded which was 20% lower than the same period in 2018. Units transferred was down 29% from 2018 with only 264 units moved. For the overall year 5,617 units have been moved for the year. This is a tremendous 63% drop year over year. Volume has also been down 41% compared to 2018.

Manhattan: Sales volume was down 55% to $156 million for November. Sales transactions were also down 35% with only 22 closings recording during the period. Only 335 units were transferred during the period which is down 64% year over year. With respect to the year of 2019 there were 6,589 units sold during January and November. This was a 54% drop from the same period last year. Sales volume recorded at $3.73 billion, which is $1.64 billion less from the same period last year.

Queens: Queens saw their sales volume drop 83% year over year. The volume totaled $83,862,500 for the month. It should be noted that November of 2018 saw unusual high sales activity with over $500 million. Transactions were only down 7% from a year ago as 14 transactions were recorded for the month. The amount of units transferred equaled 2,797 which is a decreased of 65% from 2018 for the January 2018 through November 2018 period. That number of units transferred for November 2019 was 306 which is a 79% year-over-year drop.

Bronx: Sales volume was down 61% from November 2018 coming in at a little over $23 million. Only 7 multifamily dears were closed in November. Between January 1 and November 30 in 2019 the Bronx saw volume down 21% totaling $867 million. Unit volume transferred during the period was also down 28%.

BJD Property Management is a full service NYC property management company servicing the boroughs of Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan and the Bronx.  Whether it be a 1 bedroom condo or multi-family building we are able to assist our clients maximize their investments.

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Rents Reach All-Time Highs In Manhattan, Brooklyn And Queens In New StreetEasy Report

StreetEasy has published their October 2019 Market Reports recently. It shows that Rents have hit an all-time highs in Manhattan and Queens and Queens. Brooklyn has seen rents rise in its fastest pace since 2015. Furthermore the report indicates that renters are in a very competitive market with landlords giving less concessions as years past. The StreetEasy Market reports are a monthly overview of the Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens sales and rental markets.  The report data is aggregated from public recorded sales and listings data from real estate brokerages in New York City.

October had the highest amount of discounts for the year however the percentage of discounts was the lowest since 2015. StreetEasy reports “Brooklyn offered the fewest discounts, with only 17% of rentals getting a cut, a decrease of 3.1 percentage points from last October. In Queens, this figure fell to 18.1%, down 1.9 percentage points from a year prior. In Manhattan, 23.4% of rentals were discounted, down just slightly from last year (less than a percentage point). ” It should be noted that the lack of discounts affected rental prices. Brooklyn’s rents rose 4.3% to $2,720, Queens rents went up 3.4% to $2,202 and Manhattan increases of 3.1% to $3,315. All are record high rents.

StreetEasy economist Nancy Wu believes that the high demand for signing new leases is affecting landlord’s decisions in not giving out concessions. “The spike in demand for rentals we’re seeing this year means that landlords don’t have to work as hard to attract a tenant this winter season. New Yorkers looking to sign a new lease this winter should expect tougher negotiations and fewer concessions, and should be prepared to move when they find the right apartment.”

Below are some other key findings from the report per borough:

Manhattan: Median asking rents for 1-bedroom units increased significantly as it rose 9.1% to $3,438. Home prices in Manhattan dropped 4.0% to $1,095,039. The share of homes for sale with a price cut was 16.5%. This was the most significant drop in 5 years.

Brooklyn: The median asking rent for a 1-bedroom apartment in North Brooklyn jumped 19.1% to $3,200. Brooklyn home prices remained unchanged at $702,517.

Queens: Asking prices for 1-bedroom apartments increased 3.9% in Queens. The median asking rent jumped to $1,975. The borough had the fewest price cuts at 12.4% which was the lowest of all boroughs.

BJD Property Management is a full service NYC property management company servicing the boroughs of Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan and the Bronx.  Whether it be a 1 bedroom condo or multi-family building we are able to assist our clients maximize their investments.

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Northeast Shows An Increase In Pending Home Sales While The Rest Of The Nation Declines

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) released their report on pending home sales for October 2019. What is shows is that pending home sales nationwide is down 1.7% with only the Northeast region showing an increase in sales. A sale is listed as pending when the contract has been signed however the transaction has not closed. The expectation is that the sale would be finalized within 2 months.

NAR uses their Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) which they state is an indicator based on contract signings. A index number of 100 on the PHSI is equivalent to the activity in 2001. Their indicator dropped 1.7% to 106.7 in October of 2019. The positive result of the index is that the PHSI is up 4.4% from the same time in 2018.

Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the NAR believes that an uptick in mortgage rates and decrease inventory has affected pending home sales nationwide. Overall he remains positive on the market. He states  “While contract signings have decreased, the overall economic landscape remains favorable. Mortgage rates continue to be low at below 4% – which will attract buyers – employment levels are strong and many recession claims have dissipated.” A continuing call for more available inventory in housing is needed according to Mr. Yun stating “We still need to address and, more importantly, correct inadequate levels of inventory across the country. There is no shortage of buyers seeking homes, but a lack of available units continues to drag down the nation’s housing market and overall economy. We risk a lingering shortage of sufficient inventory if homebuilding only continues at its current pace over the next 20 years, when the U.S. population is projected to increase by more than 40 million over this period. Clearly, home builders must step in and construct more housing.”

Here is a breakdown per region of pending home sales:

Northeast: Northeast saw an increase in the PHSI of1.9% to 95.7 in October. This is 3.0% higher for the same time a year ago.

West: The West saw a decrease of 3.4% for October 2019 to 91.9. The positive is that the PHSI is up 7.5% from October 2018.

South: The South is down 1.7% to an index of 125.3 in October. The PHSI is up 5.1% year over year.

Midwest: The Midwest’s PHSI is down 2.7% to 101.4 last month. Overall it is up 1.8% from the same time last year.

BJD Property Management is a full service NYC property management company servicing the boroughs of Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan and the Bronx.  Whether it be a 1 bedroom condo or multi-family building we are able to assist our clients maximize their investments.

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Evictions Are Down In NYC Due To New Rent Law

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that evictions are down significantly since the state enacted the new rent laws. The Housing Stability and Tenant Protection act of 2019 was enacted in June of 2019 and has already seen a tremendous effect in filings.

The Wall Street Journal analyzed data from the period after June 14, 2019 which is the date that the law was enacted. What it found was that in non-payment proceedings filings were down forty six percent (46%) from the same period in 2018. Evictions in non-payments were down sixty one percent (61%) in July and sixty eight percent (68%) in August. The analysis also showed that filings in proceedings other than non-payment filings were down twelve percent (12%). The majority of these filings are considered “holdover” proceedings or when the tenant does not have an existing lease but remains at the premises as month to month tenants.

Judge Jean T. Schneider who is New York City’s supervising judge for housing courts believes that the decline in nonpayment cases to new rules that give tenants more time to respond to notices of lateness before a lawsuit is filed. The period for non-payment proceedings to be initiated in Court has now been extended to 14 days from either normal 3 or 5 days as was prescribed in leases. The ability of tenants to now obtain counsel and being able to look back six years on rent disputes are now deterrents as well. Prior to the enactment of the law tenant eviction were also going down. Evictions overall fell thirty seven percent (37%) since 2013.

Many landlords are considering it to much of a hassle to begin legal action unless there is an urgent need to do so. Landlords and developers criticized the new rent laws stating that it would discourage capital investment and cause the city’s housing stock to crumble. Appeals of the laws have been filed as we have previously reported.

BJD Property Management is a full service NYC property management company servicing the boroughs of Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan and the Bronx.  Whether it be a 1 bedroom condo or multi-family building we are able to assist our clients maximize their investments.

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Northeast Sees Existing-Home Sales Decline Amid A Nationwide Increase

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) is reporting that existing-home sales increased in October 1.9% however there was a split in results in regions with the Northeast and West reporting drops in sales. Existing-home sales are based on transaction closings involving single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops.

The NAR is reporting that existing-home sales increased 1.9% from September 2019 to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 5.46 million in October. They indicated that overall sales are up 4.6% from 2018. (5.22 million in October 2018). Median existing-home prices were up 6.2% to $270,900. A year ago existing home prices were at $255,100. All regions saw increases in home prices. The total amount of housing inventory at the end of October was calculated at 1.77 million units which is down approximately 2.7% from September and 4.3% from one year ago. Inventory sat at 1.85 million in October 2018.

Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the NAR believes that the results are positive and sees a positive future. He states  “Historically-low interest rates, continuing job expansion, higher weekly earnings and low mortgage rates are undoubtedly contributing to these higher numbers. We will likely continue to see sales climb as long as potential buyers are presented with an adequate supply of inventory.” He also believes there will be more inventory coming along the way. “The issuance of more housing permits is a very positive sign and a good step toward more inventory,” said Yun, citing the latest data for housing starts. “In order to better counter and even slow the increase in housing prices, home builders will have to bring additional homes on the market” say Yun.

The regional breakdown is as follows:

Northeast: Existing-home sales in the Northeast region fell 1.4% to an annual rate of 690,000. There was no change from 2018 at the same time. The median price in the Northeast was $296,700, up 5.7% from October 2018

West: The West saw a decrease in existing-home sales of 0.9% to an annual rate of 1.13 million in October. The positive is that it is 3.7% above a year ago. The median price in the West was $410,700 which is up 7.8% from October 2018.

South: The South saw an increase of 4.4% to an annual rate of 2.35 million in October. This is up 7.8% from 2018. The median price in the South was $234,900. That is a 6.0% increase from a year ago.

Midwest: Existing-home sales in the Midwest increased 1.6% to an annual rate of 1.29 million. This is a jump of 2.4% from October 2018. The median price in the Midwest was $209,900, an increase of 6.7% increase from the same time last year.

BJD Property Management is a full service NYC property management company servicing the boroughs of Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan and the Bronx.  Whether it be a 1 bedroom condo or multi-family building we are able to assist our clients maximize their investments.

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Second Lawsuit Filed Contesting The Constitutionality Of The Rent Reform Law

A second lawsuit has been filed by a small group of landlords contesting the Constitutionality of the rent reform laws called the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019. The Real Deal is reporting that the landlords filed a complaint led by a group of landlords including Dino, Dimos and Vasiliki Panagoulias who own a building at 38-06 29th Street in Manhattan. The named Defendants are the state of New York, the New York Division of Homes and Community Renewal, HCR’s Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas, the city, the city’s Rent Guidelines Board and their board members. The Complaint unlike the first one filed seeks monetary damage for individual landlords.

The Complaint alleges that the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019 is a “regulatory scheme” and a “regime in which tenants, not property owners, control who occupies the property, how it is used, and who may be excluded from it.” The Complaint further alleges that the law is in contrast to the Constitution’s “Contracts Clause,”. The clause bars governments from passing legislation in order to interfere with private contracts. The basis for this is because landlords are required to continue to charge preferential rent which would be lower than the legal rent until the apartment is vacated.

The first lawsuit was filed by the Rent Stabilization Association, the Community Housing Improvement Program as well as individual property owners. The Complaints legal theory for the stripping of the law was that rent law violates the Fifth Amendment’s “Takings Clause” and the Fourteenth Amendment’s “Due Process Clause.” The allegations is that the law amounts to an unjust taking because it severely limits when and how a landlord can increase rents on stabilized apartments. It would eliminate the ability of landlords to use the property and than for stabilized housing. Michael Vinocor, who is one of the named plaintiffs, states that the complaint will lead to a deterioration of the city’s housing inventory. Vincor states “My feeling is if they needed to make reforms, they could’ve done some rational reform.

HCR’s Brian Butry who is a spokesperson for the agency said in a statement “HCR has and will continue to both enforce the rent laws and investigate those who violate the law to protect tenants and the housing stock. The agency does not comment on pending litigation.”

BJD Property Management is a full service NYC property management company servicing the boroughs of Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan and the Bronx.  Whether it be a 1 bedroom condo or multi-family building we are able to assist our clients maximize their investments.

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Gowanus Buildings Designated As Individual Landmarks Preserving Their Industrial Significance

The City's Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) has designated 5 Gowanus buildings to be considered as individual landmarks. This designation would pave the way in preserving the past industrial history of the area which has seen a significant change in the neighborhood due to proposed rezoning and new developments.

The Landmarks Preservation Commission voted unanimously on Tuesday to put the five Gowanus buildings on its calendar: the Batcave, the Old American Can Factory, the Gowanus Canal Flushing Tunnel Pumping Station and Gate House, the Montauk Paint Manufacturing Company Building and the ASPCA Rogers Memorial Building.

The Brooklyn Daily Eagle was able to interview some major figures that assisted in the furtherance of getting the buildings designated. Simeon Bankoff, the Historic Districts Council’s Executive Director told the Daily Eagle “Today’s designation vote is a crucial step in the process of preserving Gowanus’s important history and we are thankful to the Landmarks Commission for taking this action. There is still much more to be done.” He also believes that the designation was crucial as change in the neighborhood and there is a need to preserve the industrial past of the neighborhood. “We’ve seen the neighborhood change immensely over the past eight years and with the proposed rezoning, that change is only going to accelerate." Mr. Bankoff states. Linda Mariano of the Friends and Residents of Greater Gowanus stated that the 5 Gowanus buildings “represent and illustrate the Gowanus corridor’s authentic industrial past.” She further says “Some of us have advocated for landmarking for more than a decade, and our coalition has worked together for several years now in response to the city’s proposed rezoning. It is our hope that many more historic buildings in Gowanus will be landmarked, as they are certainly worthy.” Prior to the designation of the 5 buildings there were only 2 other designations in the Gowanus region. The Coignet building and the Caroll Street Bridge.

BJD Property Management is a full service NYC property management company servicing the boroughs of Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan and the Bronx.  Whether it be a 1 bedroom condo or multi-family building we are able to assist our clients maximize their investments.

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