By Dana Schulz, Thu, May 21, 2020 Photo by Hiroshige Fukuhara on Unsplash
When the coronavirus first came barreling down on New York City in March, we asked some of the city’s top brokers and agents how they thought the crisis would affect the real estate market. At that time, the big factor was uncertainty, but we now know more about the virus and the trajectory that New York’s reopening is on. So what will the summer, typically the height of the market, look like this year? 6sqft spoke to real estate experts across the board to get their predictions on what’s ahead, from which price points will be most affected to what amenities buyers are looking for to trends in the surrounding suburbs.
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By Devin Gannon, Thu, May 7, 2020 Photo by Anthony Fomin on Unsplash
The moratorium on residential and commercial evictions will be extended statewide by 60 days until August 20, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on Thursday. Additional rent relief measures include a ban on fees for late-payments and allowing renters to use security deposits as payment. “I don’t want to see people and their children being evicted at this time, through no fault of their own,” the governor said during a press briefing.
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By Devin Gannon, Mon, May 4, 2020 Photo by Daniel Lee on Unsplash
An online petition launched last week that calls on New York City landlords to withhold property tax payment, in response to a statewide rent strike organized this month. As the Real Deal first reported, the Change.org appeal, “Property Tax relief or Tax strike,” has collected nearly 1,500 signatures as of Monday.
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By Devin Gannon, Thu, April 30, 2020 Photo by Avi Werde on Unsplash
With more than a million New Yorkers out of work as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, many tenants will struggle to pay rent on Friday. Hoping to pressure Gov. Andrew Cuomo to cancel rent for the duration of the health crisis, a coalition of housing advocates is leading a statewide rent strike on May 1, with thousands of renters already pledging to skip payments. But landlords, who argue rental income pays for the growing costs of building maintenance, are fighting for relief themselves.
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By Devin Gannon, Fri, April 17, 2020 Photo by Emiliano Bar on Unsplash
A coalition of housing and tenant advocacy groups is calling for a statewide rent strike on May 1 with the goal of pressuring Gov. Andrew Cuomo to cancel rent for the duration of the coronavirus pandemic. Led by the Upstate Downstate Housing Alliance, the coordinated protest is seeking cancellation of rents for at least four months, a freeze on rent for every tenant, and a plan to house homeless New Yorkers.
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By Devin Gannon, Mon, April 13, 2020 Photo by Filip Mishevski on Flickr
Starting this week, about 2,500 individuals experiencing homelessness in New York City will be transferred from shelters to hotels, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Saturday. The single adults who will be prioritized for the hotel rooms will include seniors and those who tested positive for the coronavirus or have symptoms of the disease. The move comes as 340 homeless New Yorkers have tested positive for COVID-19 and 20 have died, according to the city’s Department of Social Services.
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By Devin Gannon, Thu, April 9, 2020 Photo by Anthony Formin on Unsplash
Just 69 percent of apartment renters in the United States paid rent during the first week of April, according to a new report released this week by the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC). This a decrease of 12 percentage points compared to the percentage of households that paid rent last month. The data is one of the first looks at the impact of the coronavirus pandemic–which has put millions of Americans out of work– on the housing market.
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By Devin Gannon, Mon, April 6, 2020 Photo by Josh Wilburne on Unsplash
Some New York City landlords are providing their tenants financial respite during the coronavirus pandemic by waiving or discounting rent. The sudden closure of much of the economy has resulted in the loss of income for millions of New Yorkers, a burden felt especially by the city’s five million renters. One landlord who owns 18 buildings in Brooklyn suspended rent for the month of April for all of his tenants. Another is giving a Manhattan pizzeria owner three months of free rent as he continues to feed hospital workers at no charge.
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By Devin Gannon, Fri, April 3, 2020 Photo by Jonathan Riley on Unsplash
Certain real estate work is still considered essential by New York, but showings cannot take place in-person, the state clarified on Thursday. In a notice to the New York State Association of Realtors, the Empire State Development earlier this week said home inspections, residential appraisals, back-office real estate work, and residential and commercial showings can continue during the coronavirus outbreak. But despite being newly categorized as essential, agents still cannot host traditional showings, as was previously reported.
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By Devin Gannon, Thu, April 2, 2020 Photo © 6sqft
Some real estate industry work is considered essential and can continue during the coronavirus outbreak, New York State announced on Wednesday. The reversal in policy, first spotted by the Real Deal, means real estate agents can now host in-person residential and commercial showings, as long as social distancing measures are taken (open houses are still prohibited). However, the Real Estate Board of New York quickly reached out to brokers and advised them against in-person showings.
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