Real Estate Trends

Coney Island’s ‘Miami-inspired’ Ocean Dreams rental project tops out

Developer John Catsimatidis hopes the Ocean Dreams project will eventually include three more towers, which require city approval. Rendering by Pace/Hill West Architects

October 15, 2018

Coney Island’s ‘Miami-inspired’ Ocean Dreams rental project tops out

By Michelle Cohen

Last spring, 6sqft revealed new renderings of grocery store king (Red Apple, Gristede's) John Catsimatidis' 425-unit Coney Island rental project at 3514 Surf Avenue known as Ocean Dreams. According to The Real Deal, Catsimatidis’ Red Apple Group secured a construction loan for $130 million from Bank of America for the project back in June. Now, the New York Times has reported that the pair of 21-story luxury apartment towers overlooking the Atlantic on the island's western end has topped out and is scheduled to open next summer.
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Sales launch at Extell’s Central Park Tower, the world’s tallest residential building

Via Extell

October 15, 2018

Sales launch at Extell’s Central Park Tower, the world’s tallest residential building

By Devin Gannon

Sales have launched for Central Park Tower, the tallest residential tower in the world, Extell Development announced Monday. Located at 225 West 57th Street, the 1,550-foot tower is rising on Billionaires' Row, a strip of ultra-luxury residences at the southern end of Central Park in Midtown. While Extell hasn't officially released pricing for its 179 condos, the Real Deal reported last year that 20 of the units have a price tag of $60 million and higher, with a $95 million penthouse being the most expensive. If the building achieves its projected $4 billion sellout, the tower would become the most expensive condo project in New York City.
More here

Real Estate Trends

October 12, 2018

Marvel Architects reveal condo conversion of 200-year-old Nolita school

By Devin Gannon

Marvel Architects has completed its school-to-condo conversion in Nolita, bringing seven condos and one private townhouse to the former site of the Old St. Patrick's School on Prince Street. The project restored the facade of the four-story building, which was built in 1826, as well as its dormer windows and arched doorways. Because the interiors of the building, dubbed the Residences at Prince, were not landmarked, the architects were able to add new modern elements like steel columns and white oak floors while retaining original brick walls and roof timbers.
See it here

October 12, 2018

For the first time, average Brooklyn home prices break the $1M threshold

By Emily Nonko

According to Douglas Elliman's latest market report, home prices in Brooklyn are higher than ever. The median and average sales prices for the borough both broke records, crossing the $800,000 and $1 million thresholds for the first time in the third quarter of this year. "As the Brooklyn market continues to reinvent itself over the past five years," says the report, "There is no standard of comparison with historical trends." It means Brooklyn, and also Queens, boast some of the fastest residential price growth in the country, with new developments cropping up and demand skyrocketing as buyers stream into outer boroughs.
Keep reading for stats

Real Estate Trends

Scarlett Johansson scoops up $4M ivy-clad house in secluded Snedens Landing

Photo of Scarlett Johansson via Wikimedia

October 11, 2018

Scarlett Johansson scoops up $4M ivy-clad house in secluded Snedens Landing

By Annie Doge

Actress Scarlett Johansson has closed on a property in Snedens Landing, a haven near the Palisades known for attracting celebrities. Dubbed the "Ivy House," the Rockland County home at 40 Washington Spring Road sold for $4 million (h/t New York Post). The ivy-clad four-bedroom home was designed by Eric Gugler, an architect tapped in 1933 by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt to design the Oval Office in the White House. Boasting water views from every room, the stunning home overlooks the Hudson River and has a pool and adjacent cabana house.
See the starlet's home

$20M Brooklyn Heights penthouse could be the borough’s priciest sale ever

Via Moso Studio

October 10, 2018

$20M Brooklyn Heights penthouse could be the borough’s priciest sale ever

By Devin Gannon

A combination penthouse at Quay Tower, a brand new luxury condo building on the Brooklyn Heights waterfront, went into contract this week for over $20 million. If closed, the deal would become the most expensive residential sale in Brooklyn history, breaking the previous record of $16.645 million for a penthouse picked up by actor Matt Damon last year. And before that, a $15.5 million brick carriage house in Cobble Hill held the record for most expensive single residence sale in Brooklyn, which was purchased by photographer Jay Maisel in 2015.
More on the deal this way

Real Estate Trends

October 8, 2018

Asbury Ocean Club wants to bring Manhattan luxury to the Jersey Shore

By Dana Schulz

In just 70 minutes, you can drive from Manhattan to Asbury Park, New Jersey, and escape to one of the state's most up-and-coming areas (think Williamsburg meets Bruce Springsteen-land meets Venice Beach). And if you want to do this pretty regularly, the town's mega-developer, iStar, thinks it has found the perfect balance of urban luxury and beachfront living at their new condo/hotel the Asbury Ocean Club. Ranging from $900,000 one-bedrooms to two $6 million penthouses, the pricing is certainly more NYC, but on a recent visit, it was clear that the artsy vibe, live music scene, and booming foodie culture is uniquely Jersey Shore.
Learn all about this new development

FREE RENT: This week’s roundup of NYC rental news

Images (L to R): 525W52, Forty Gold, Riverbank and 505W37

October 6, 2018

FREE RENT: This week’s roundup of NYC rental news

By Ondel Hylton

Images (L to R): 525W52, Forty Gold, Riverbank and 505W37 525 West 52nd Street Offers Leases with 3 Months Free; New Affordable Housing Lotto Launches [READ MORE] Downtown Two-Bedroom Rentals at Forty Gold Listed with 2 Months Free on 20-Month Lease [READ MORE] Special Offers at Midtown West’s Riverbank: Rentals from $3,860/Month + New Amenities […]

Real Estate Trends

Bradley Cooper drops $13.5M on a Greenwich Village townhouse with a garden oasis

Photo of Bradley Cooper via Wikimedia

October 5, 2018

Bradley Cooper drops $13.5M on a Greenwich Village townhouse with a garden oasis

By Annie Doge

Bradley Cooper purchased a $13.5 million Greenwich Village townhouse in May, the Wall Street Journal just reported. The actor, who currently stars in the new movie "A Star is Born," registered the property under the "Cool Trust" to keep the sale hush-hush, city documents reveal. The home at 224 West 10th Street contains six bedrooms, a 1,100-square-foot garden oasis, and plenty of romantic, rustic details. And Bradley seems to be enjoying all the Village has to offer; a source tells us he dined last Friday at Fifty, a new American-South American restaurant on Commerce Street.
See Cooper's coop

New renderings show Vornado’s Pompidou Center-like office plans for Chelsea

260 Eleventh Avenue expansion (Vornado Realty Trust)

October 5, 2018

New renderings show Vornado’s Pompidou Center-like office plans for Chelsea

By Michelle Cohen

A high-tech future awaits the 235,000-square-foot building at 260 Eleventh Avenue that served as headquarters for the iconic Otis Elevator company from its construction in 1911 until the company's move to midtown 1974. For the site's next life, REIT Vornado Realty Trust plans to renovate and expand the property, which they purchased in 2015, for commercial tenants. Now, CityRealty reports, a trio of renderings from Vornado's latest investor report provide a peek at the planned design overhaul by British architect Richard Rogers. Evoking the "inside-out" structure of the Pompidou Center in Paris and the high-tech Lloyd's of London building, the new addition displays exposed structural and circulation systems and a multi-story atrium beneath glass-enclosed floors.
More Renderings this way

REVEALED: Cuomo’s $13B JFK Airport overhaul to feature an indoor ‘park’ and food hall

By Devin Gannon

Gov. Andrew Cuomo revealed new details Thursday of his $13 billion plan to overhaul John F. Kennedy Airport and transform it into a 21st-century transit hub. In addition to two much-needed new international terminals, the overhaul will bring NYC's biggest tourist attractions into its passenger waiting areas and a central hub. There will be interior green space called "Central Park at JFK," a food hall modeled after Chelsea Market, an elevated walkway called "The High Line," and artwork and exhibits honoring iconic landmarks, including the Statue of Liberty's torch.
See the new renderings

October 4, 2018

Victoria’s Secret model Lindsay Ellingson struts into a $1.4M Williamsburg pad

By Annie Doge

Victoria’s Secret Angel Lindsay Ellingson hasn't had your average runway trajectory, starting out as a biology major before being discovered on the street and then taken under the wing of John Galliano in Paris. And instead of settling in a swanky new Manhattan building, the 33-year-old and her husband, medical equipment salesman Sean Clayton, have long called Williamsburg home. They've now landed a new pad in the Austin Nichols House, a former bourbon distillery on the waterfront converted to condos by architect Morris Adjmi. According to the Post, the couple paid $1.4 million for the two-bedroom unit, down from its $1,575,000 asking price.
Have a look

October 3, 2018

Upper West Side school-to-condo conversion reveals $18M solarium penthouse in former gymnasium

By Dana Schulz

As of today, listings are live for developer/architect Cary Tamarkin's 555 West End Avenue. The project converted the former Catholic St. Agnes Boys High School into a 13-unit luxury condo. Not only does it retain the facade's original 1908 English collegiate- and Gothic-style elements, but the interiors benefit from the historic structure's 12-foot ceilings and oversized windows. The most impressive of these residences is undoubtedly the solarium penthouse, carved out of the school's one-time gymnasium. Listed for $18 million, the incredible space has a soaring 20-foot-high vaulted glass ceiling and an enormous, floor-to-ceiling arched window wall.
Lots more to see

No subway, no worries: Developers offer incentives to lure tenants off train lines

Williamsburg, where the L train shutdown will soon take effect, via Wiki Commons

October 3, 2018

No subway, no worries: Developers offer incentives to lure tenants off train lines

By Cait Etherington

Williamsburg, where the L train shutdown will soon take effect, via Wiki Commons In a city with fewer car owners than nearly any other location in North America, it should come as no surprise that subway access is a key factor for most New Yorkers when they go on the housing market. In fact, many New Yorkers won’t even consider renting or buying if the address is more than a 10-minute walk from the nearest subway. This explains why some neighborhoods, including Greenpoint, which has a subway but not one that leads to Manhattan, and Alphabet City, which doesn’t have a subway at all, have long reported lower real estate values and rental prices that their nearest neighbors. However, there are growing signs that subway access may no longer matter as much as it once did. While subway access remains important, it is increasingly no longer a deal breaker for developers or prospective tenants. In today’s real estate market, a growing number of developers are pouring money into developments located off the subway line, and many tenants don’t seem to mind. This may also explain why not all developers with projects located along the L line are worried about the pending shutdown, which is now slated to begin in April 2019.
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To lure Google workers, investors drop $83M on a block of Chelsea apartments

102-116 Eighth Avenue; via Brodsky Organization

October 2, 2018

To lure Google workers, investors drop $83M on a block of Chelsea apartments

By Devin Gannon

Real estate investors Dalan Management Associates and Elion Partners announced a joint venture on Tuesday to acquire eight adjacent buildings in Chelsea for $83 million. The buildings, which run along Eighth Avenue from West 15th to West 16th Streets, contain 102 multi-family units and 10 ground-floor retail spaces known as the Chelsea Collection. Because the property sits directly across from Google headquarters, developers hope to attract workers from the tech giant, Crain's reported.
Find out more

Real Estate Trends

October 2, 2018

Listings go live at the world’s skinniest skyscraper, 111 West 57th Street

By Dana Schulz

The race to build the tallest residential building in the world has long been underway along Billionaires' Row, but 111 West 57th Street not only boasts height (at 1,428 feet it'll surpass the current record holder, 1,396-foot 432 Park Avenue until the 1,500-foot Central Park Tower tops out) but a frame that is so slender (a ratio of 1:24) it garners it the title of skinniest skyscraper in the world. And after six years watching the development unfold, listings have finally gone live for the 46-unit condo, first spotted by Curbed. The first batch includes seven units, six of which are three-bedrooms ranging from $18 to $30 million, along with a $56 million penthouse.
Ogle the floorplan porn

Images (L to R): Hunters Landing, 33 Bond Street, One Sixty Madison and RiverHouse11

September 29, 2018

FREE RENT: This week’s roundup of NYC rental news

By Ondel Hylton

Images (L to R): Hunters Landing, 33 Bond Street, One Sixty Madison and RiverHouse11 Long Island City’s Hunters Landing Launches Leasing: No Fee Rentals from $2,211/Month [READ MORE] Newly Launched 33 Bond Street in Downtown Brooklyn Offers Rentals with Up to 2 Months Free [READ MORE] NoMad’s One Sixty Madison Offering One Month Free on […]

Real Estate Trends

Battery Park City and Upper West Side communities transition from middle-aged to millennial

Via Wikimedia

September 28, 2018

Battery Park City and Upper West Side communities transition from middle-aged to millennial

By Devin Gannon

Despite recently ranking as the most expensive zip code for renters in the United States, Battery Park City experienced the greatest influx of millennial residents in New York City over a period of five years. The Lower Manhattan neighborhood, with the zip code 10282, saw a population increase of over 54 percent, according to report released this month by RentCafe. Out of the top 20 zip codes with the highest increase in millennials, Battery Park City, with 2,300 Generation Y residents, ranks third in the country, falling slightly behind two downtown Los Angeles neighborhoods (h/t amNY).
Where are millennials moving?

Real Estate Trends

Watch a time-lapse video of Waterline Square reaching the finish line

Via Field Condition

September 28, 2018

Watch a time-lapse video of Waterline Square reaching the finish line

By Emily Nonko

Construction is wrapping up on a trio of glassy residential towers known as Waterline Square, located on the five-acre waterfront site between West 59th and 61st Streets. Three Waterline Square, designed by Rafael Viñoly, got its multi-faceted crystal-planed exterior earlier this month. Richard Meier, on a leave of absence from his firm after accusations of sexual harassment, designed One Waterline Square, the 37-story building that also recently reached its pinnacle. Finally Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates' Two Waterline Square culminates at 38 stories. After the jump, check out a video showing the entire project rise in under 90 seconds.
Check it out

City Council approves 80 Flatbush development in Downtown Brooklyn

Rendering of the 986-foot tower (left) and revised 840-foot tower (right) via Alloy Development and Luxigon

September 27, 2018

City Council approves 80 Flatbush development in Downtown Brooklyn

By Devin Gannon

The New York City Council voted on Wednesday to approve 80 Flatbush, a five-building mixed-use development planned for Downtown Brooklyn, Curbed NY reported. The approval comes after negotiations last week between Alloy Development and Council Member Stephen Levin, who represents the area, which led to a shorter, less-dense complex. After the developers agreed to cut the height of two buildings, one from 986 feet to 840 feet and another from 560 to 510 feet, the Council's subcommittee on zoning voted in favor of the project.
More on the project

Real Estate Trends

New details for Brooklyn’s Pacific Park and a first look at its tallest tower

A new rendering of B4, the development’s tallest tower planned

September 26, 2018

New details for Brooklyn’s Pacific Park and a first look at its tallest tower

By Devin Gannon

The development of Pacific Park, a 22-acre mixed-use complex near the Barclays Center, has entered its next phase Greenland Forest City Partners announced Wednesday. The developer is bringing on TF Cornerstone and the Brodsky Organization as development partners for the project. The duo will develop three parcels at the site, which include three rental buildings, a new public school, and new open space. Greenland also announced construction is set to begin in the spring for the park's tallest tower, a more than 500-foot tall tower designed by Perkins Eastman.
More details here

September 26, 2018

First look at interiors and private park at Jeanne Gang’s Downtown Brooklyn condo

By Dana Schulz

To coincide with the sales launch at Downtown Brooklyn's 57-story tower at 11 Hoyt Street, Tishman Speyer has released a slew of new renderings of the Jeanne Gang-designed condo. Previous views have shown how Gang's signature metallic rippling effect will be applied to the facade, but the new batch gives us a better look at the nearly 27,000-square-foot private park and the first glimpse of the interiors and amenity spaces.
All the renderings and details this way

To live across from Central Park, you’ll pay 25% more than every bordering neighborhood

Via Wikimedia

September 25, 2018

To live across from Central Park, you’ll pay 25% more than every bordering neighborhood

By Devin Gannon

To make Central Park your front yard, you'll have to fork over $277,000 more than the median sale price of every bordering neighborhood. A new report by Property Shark looks at just how much more New Yorkers are willing to spend to be near the 843-acre oasis, a real estate trend which the group calls the "Central Park effect." According to the analysis, the median sale price of units along the first row of blocks across the park was 25 percent more expensive than that of every nearby area. And in the priciest section, the Upper East Side's Lenox Hill, that rose to a 93 percent difference.
More on the Central Park effect

Real Estate Trends

New report shows NYC landlords falsified 10,000+ work permits in 2.5 years

Image by Jorbasa Fotografie / Flickr

September 24, 2018

New report shows NYC landlords falsified 10,000+ work permits in 2.5 years

By Michelle Cohen

Recent news of Kushner Companies' filing of false documents outlining the residential makeup of their buildings in order to get construction permits has prompted a closer look at the practice, which, according to Politico, has been rampant among New York City property owners for years with few consequences. Last month the Department of Buildings fined Kushner Companies $210,000 for repeatedly submitting inaccurate paperwork. Tenant advocacy group Housing Rights Initiative (HRI) will release a report Monday outlining how landlords filed more than 10,000 deceptive PW1s (Plan/Work Applications) in the span of two and a half years.
What's going on here?

Where old meets new: Welcoming a new era of developments in Murray Hill

Via Jeffrey Zeldman on Flickr

September 24, 2018

Where old meets new: Welcoming a new era of developments in Murray Hill

By Cait Etherington

Unlike many New York City neighborhoods that have reputations that travel far beyond their borders, for many years, Murray Hill has remained low key. If Murray Hill hasn’t always been quick to flaunt its assets, it may have something to do with its Quaker origins. After all, the "Murray" in Murray Hill points back to the Murray family—the clan of Quaker merchants who first settled the area in the mid-18th century. Since the days of the Murray family, much has changed in the neighborhood. The "hill" has been leveled, the neighborhood is no longer considered uptown, and since the early 2000s, the neighborhood’s reputation as a quiet and staid residential enclave has also been shattered as a younger crowd has moved in. In fact, for much of the past two decades, at least some parts of Murray Hill have become synonymous with the bar scene along Third Avenue, which is primarily known as a playground for young professionals. More recently, the neighborhood is undergoing another shift as a new era of higher-end rentals and condo developments attract a somewhat more mature demographic.
More on Murray Hill

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