Real Estate Trends

Fresh off the release of their third album, and in the midst of a national tour, Mumford & Sons has laid down some roots in NYC. Banjoist for the band Winston A. Marshall has picked up an impressive Nolita apartment at 237 Lafayette Street for $3.2 million, according to city records released today. The sprawling, 2,000-square-foot, three-bedroom co-op definitely has room for the entire band to crash, and its charming downtown loft vibe will certainly impress any love interests (ahem, Katy Perry).
Take a look around the musician's new digs

June 9, 2015

Ranking the Cities That Waste the Most Energy; Another Foreign Billionaire Buys into One57

Brazilian billionaire Edson Bueno is the mystery buyer of a $53M condo at One57. [NYDN] Here are the U.S. cities that waste the most and the least amounts of energy. [Fast Co.] The 10 biggest real estate projects coming to Manhattan. [TRD] 16 affordable apartment units are available in a LES development at 331 East Houston Street. [Lo-Down] A Mott […]

Real Estate Trends

June 8, 2015

Harlem Rents Jump 90 Percent over the Past 12 Years, Bed-Stuy Not Much Better at 63 Percent

Take everything you think you know about "affordable" alternatives to pricey neighborhoods and throw it out the window. This map from the Community Service Society (first shared by the Daily News) analyzes newly released census data that compares median rents between 2002 and 2014. The data is drawn from a New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Urban Development survey of 18,000 New Yorkers every three years who had recently moved, which "eliminates the tendency of lower rents paid by long-time tenants to smooth out market changes and mask the changes that affect tenants who are looking for a place to live," according to CSS. The report shows that rents citywide have increased 32 percent over the past 12 years, not a new or surprising figure. But it also shows drastic increases in neighborhoods that have been traditionally thought of as more affordable. Central Harlem saw the biggest jump at 90 percent; the average rent in 2002 for new residents was $821 and now it's skyrocketed to $1,560. Other no-longer-affordable neighborhoods are Bed-Stuy at a 63 percent increase and Washington Heights/Inwood at 55 percent. The other 'hoods topping the list include less surprising areas like Brooklyn Heights/DUMBO/Fort Greene at 59 percent and Williamsburg/Greenpoint at 53 percent.
More findings from the report

June 8, 2015

Skyscrapers Signal Economic Doom; South Street Seaport Tower Design to Be Revised

The extinction of a quintessential NYC architectural facet has commenced: An architect pushing to remove fire escapes from two Soho buildings has received permission from the city to move forward. [DNA Info] Blue Bottle is expanding operations into NYC. The California-based brewer is opening up a roasting plant in Bushwick. [CO] A 392-rental project backed by Japanese […]

Real Estate Trends

June 5, 2015

QUIZ: Play 6sqft Trivia to Test Your Knowledge of NYC History, Architecture, and Real Estate

On Tuesday, 6sqft celebrated its first birthday with a party attended by some of our biggest supporters and readers. The evening included an intense three-round game of trivia, where our guests tested their knowledge of New York City history, architecture and real estate. Some of the questions stumped all ten teams, while others turned out to be well-known factoids. Didn't make it to the party? We've created an online version of our trivia game just for you. No Googling allowed!
TAKE THE QUIZ

June 5, 2015

Jon Bon Jovi Unloads His Mercer Street Penthouse for $34M

It's official, rocker Jon Bon Jovi is now free of the 158 Mercer Street digs he's been trying to unload for the past for two years. First reported by The Real Deal, city records filed this afternoon show that the home traded hands for a whopping $34 million; although at first this seems like a pretty penny, it's actually way down from its original ask of $42 million. The buyer is Austrian-American businessman and investor Gerhard Andlinger, who previously called a sprawling 8,300-square-footer at the Time Warner Center his home.
Have a look inside the penthouse

June 4, 2015

According to Real Estate Brokers, All of Brooklyn Is an Extension of Williamsburg

A hilarious new map on Reddit pokes fun at real estate brokers’ tendency to stretch the truth to when it comes to an apartment’s proximity to desirable Williamsburg. Here, Coney Island is South-SouthSouth Williamsburg, East New York is South EastWilliamsburg, but only a tiny little triangle in Brownsville gets a reprieve from the hipster treatment […]

Real Estate Trends

June 4, 2015

A $500M Mansion Will Be the Country’s Most Expensive; The Naked Cowboy Rents in Queens

A CUNY professor is looking for plot to park his tiny, eco-friendly prefab home. [BU] A French financier is the buyer of 737 Park‘s $32M penthouse. [TRD] Who knew? Times Square’s Naked Cowboy rents in Queens. [BU] Think NYC’s penthouses are pricey? Apparently there’s a $500M mansion coming to Los Angeles. [Bloomberg] The $500M mansion […]

Real Estate Trends

June 4, 2015

Cobble Hill Townhouse Sets Record for Most Expensive Home Sale in Brooklyn at $15.5M

You know the real estate market is getting shaken up when Brooklynites are abandoning their beloved borough for the cheaper island of Manhattan. And today's record breaker just goes to show how hot Brooklyn is right now. The Daily News reports that the super-modernized Cobble Hill carriage house at 177 Pacific Street sold for $15.5 million, setting the record for most expensive home sale ever in the borough. The four-story, six-bedroom house takes the top spot from Truman Capote's former home at 70 Willow Street in Brooklyn Heights, which sold in 2012 for $12.5 million.
More details about this Brooklyn record breaker

Real Estate Trends

Starchitecture Firm Snøhetta Will Design Vornado’s Penn Station Area Overhaul

Back in April, we learned that Vornado Realty Trust was hoping to pour hundreds of millions of dollars into revitalizing the Penn Station area with new retail space, public plazas, and other infrastructure. Now, Crain's reports that the developer has tapped Oslo-based starchitecture firm Snøhetta to handle the overhaul's master plan, the same architects responsible for the 9/11 Memorial Museum Pavilion and the public plaza in Times Square. Snøhetta will be responsible for creating a "framework" for both Vornado's Penn Plaza buildings and the surrounding street-level spaces. And in a similar vein to the recently approved One Vanderbilt scheme at Grand Central, the master plan will include closing off part of West 33rd to vehicular traffic in the hopes of creating a permanent pedestrian plaza near Madison Square Garden.
More details and specifics on the street closures ahead

June 3, 2015

Artist David Salle Lists Home for $13M; What the World’s Richest One Percent Earn

Plans have been filed for Renzo Piano’s new residential project rising in Soho. [TRD] Here’s how much money the richest one percent make in 20 countries around the world. [Washington Post] Artist David Salle’s massive Fort Greene home has hit the market for $13M. [Curbed] How to give a crappy roommate the boot. [BrickUnderground] Images: The top floor […]

Real Estate Trends

June 3, 2015

POLL: Can Snøhetta Transform Manhattan’s Most-Hated Area?

Earlier today, we learned that Vornado Realty Trust tapped Oslo-based starchitecture firm Snøhetta to create a master plan for the redesign of the Penn Station area. Even the developer referred to Manhattan’s most-hated and most-congested location as “the collision of humanity.” But Snøhetta worked their magic creating the Times Square pedestrian plaza, so we want to know if […]

Real Estate Trends

June 3, 2015

Isabella Rossellini Buys a Lincoln Square One-Bedroom for $1.3M

While the Lincoln Square location of Isabella Rossellini's new condo matches up with her larger-than-life theatrical personality, we're hard pressed to see what exactly about this simple one-bedroom at the Element drew her in. According to city records filed yesterday afternoon, the famed actress has scooped up the apartment with private terrace for $1.275 million, which, based on our best guess, will serve as a pied-a-terre of sorts for Rossellini, who spends most of her days on her farm in Bellport, Long Island.
inside isabella's new condo here

Extell May Build Brooklyn’s Tallest Tower at City Point

Rendering of City Point with a previously envisioned 65-story tower

June 3, 2015

Extell May Build Brooklyn’s Tallest Tower at City Point

Extell, the development company best known for gobbling up billionaires' row sites and building supertall towers like One57, is venturing into Brooklyn, a place they've long avoided. The New York Times reports that Extell has bought the last development site at City Point, a huge, mixed-use complex in Downtown Brooklyn that will include residential and retail space, and, of course, a massive food hall. Extell will pay $120 million for the city-owned property, on which they will likely build a 500-unit rental building. What's more noteworthy than Extell's move into the borough, though, is the fact that the tower could reach 60 stories, according to Extell president Gary Barnett, which would make it the tallest building in Brooklyn.
READ MORE

June 2, 2015

Construction Accidents Are Up in NYC; How an Apple Store’s Design Gets You to Spend Money

101 Murray Street will be shorter than previously reported. [Curbed] How to invest in real estate without actually buying up property. [AOL] Every square foot of an Apple Store is designed to make you spend more money. [TRD] Fatal construction accidents are on the rise. [NYT] Rupert Murdoch almost lost out on his recent $25M […]

Real Estate Trends

REVEALED: Rafael Viñoly’s Slender 52-Story Condo Tower Design for Nomad

Image via New York YIMBY

June 1, 2015

REVEALED: Rafael Viñoly’s Slender 52-Story Condo Tower Design for Nomad

Is there any architect more in demand than Rafael Viñoly these days? NY YIMBY has uncovered the first renderings of the starchitect's latest residential project, a tower slated to pierce the sky from a Nomad site at 281 Fifth Avenue. Though notably smaller than 432 Park Avenue at just 705 feet, the skyscraper does share the 432's stark and very geometrical shape. It will also be one of the tallest in the neighborhood once constructed.
Find out more here

June 1, 2015

Meet the Current Owner of the Spinning Upstate Dome Home; 10 Most Expensive NYC Apartments for Rent

Meet the woman who currently owns this amazing revolving dome home on the market for under $1M. [NYT] Here are the ten priciest apartments up for rent in NYC right now. [Curbed] De Blasio will crack down on unregulated “three-quarter houses” that are cramming addicts, recently released prisoners, and the mentally ill into apartments collecting state money. […]

Real Estate Trends

May 29, 2015

Sources Say Saudi Billionaire Is Buyer of $95M Penthouse at 432 Park

The Real Deal reports that Saudi billionaire and retail magnate Fawaz Al Hokair is the buyer of the $95 million penthouse at 432 Park, the city's current tallest residential building. The unit went into contract in 2013 for roughly $11,500 per square foot, but sources are just now coming out with his identity. Al Hokair is the founder and chairman of Fawaz Alhokair Group, the most valuable retail and real estate company in Saudi Arabia. Forbes estimates the company is worth $22 billion, and that Al Hokair's net worth is $1.37 billion. When the deal closes it will be the second most expensive condo sale ever in the city, stealing the title from Bill Ackman's $91.5 million buy at One57 and following only behind the $100 million penthouse sale, also at One57.
More details, interior renderings, and a floorplan ahead

Real Estate Trends

May 28, 2015

Commissioner of Baseball Robert Manfred Buys $5.6M UES Penthouse

Just in time for the height of MLB season, Robert Manfred, the freshly appointed Commissioner of Baseball who is a known Yankees fan, has scooped up an Upper East Side penthouse condo. He and his wife Colleen paid $5,575,000 for the full-floor, three-bedroom pad, according to city records released today. Located at 303 East 77th Street, the home also boasts 2,559 square feet of interior space and with 809 square feet of outdoor space comprised of three terraces and a balcony.
See the rest of Manfred's new digs here

May 28, 2015

Learn What Makes Inwood So Special; How Many Apartments Are Paid for with Cash?

Three units in the Walker Tower list as a combo for $60M. [WSJ] Explore all that is Inwood. [NYT] New Yorkers lament over the closing of FAO Schwartz. [NYT] How many NYC apartments are bought with cash? [Curbed] Here’s what you have to be earning to qualify for affordable housing in Essex Crossing. [The Lo […]

Real Estate Trends

REVEALED: 1 Park Lane Will Be the Next Supertall Central Park South Tower

Rendering via Witkoff

May 27, 2015

REVEALED: 1 Park Lane Will Be the Next Supertall Central Park South Tower

Just a week after Manhattan's Community Board 5 called for a moratorium on shadow-casting Central Park skyscrapers taller than 600 feet, renderings have been revealed for the next supertall tower coming to the periphery of the park. New York Yimby first spotted the images for 1 Park Lane, the 1,210-foot-tall glassy condo that will replace the Helmsley Park Lane Hotel at 36 Central Park South and become the fourth-tallest residential building in the city.
More details ahead

May 27, 2015

One Vanderbilt Tower Receives Unanimous Approval from City Council

This afternoon, SL Green's One Vanderbilt tower received the ultimate green light from the New York City Council, as members voted unanimously in favor of both the construction of the new 1,501-foot tall office building and the rezoning of a five-block stretch of Vanderbilt Avenue (the Vanderbilt Corridor) that would bring with it significant infrastructural upgrades to the area's public transportation. The vote was the last hurdle for the development and is a critical step in the rezoning of a greater area of Midtown East.
Find out more here

May 27, 2015

What Skyline Is This? Why Investing in Trailer Parks Is a Good Bet

Can you identify all the world’s skylines? Take this quiz. [Washington Post] A handful of city council members are in favor of the Central Park supertall moratorium. [Crain’s] Parents living in cramped quarters are asking friends to forgo giving their kids unnecessary gifts at birthday parties. [NYDN] General Assembly co-founder and entrepreneur Adam Pritzker (whose […]

Real Estate Trends

May 27, 2015

POLL: Is Buying a Private Island a Better Investment Than a NYC Condo?