187-Year-Old West Village Carriage House Receives $4M Price Chop

187-Year-Old West Village Carriage House Receives $4M Price Chop

Two years and two price adjustments later, the 19th-century home will try again with a lower ask

BY AMEENA WALKER JUN 7, 2016, 4:00P

A few months back, it was agreed that despite its magnificent charm, the 19th-century carriage house at 29 Downing Street would need a good price-chopper before a buyer would snatch it up. The owners must have come to this same realization—the home is now asking $8.995 million—a $4.005 million price cut from its most recent ask of $13 million.

Back in June 2014, the 3,480-square-foot home, built in 1829 on land once owned by Aaron Burr, was listed for $12 million. No one bit at that price so the sellers, artist John Bennett and photographer Karen Lee Grant, re-listed the following year for $13 million (yes, we scratched our heads at that too). But it looks like reality has set in, and with that came the new lowered price.

Hopefully the charming home, which has been featured in photo shoots for magazines and fashion brands alike, will have better luck finding a new owner on this go-round. (Or maybe the Hamiltoncraze will make people more interested? It's big enough to get mentioned in the brokerbabble, anyway.)

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Down to One Resident in 15,600 Square Feet, a Missionary Sisterhood’s Home Is for Sale

Down to One Resident in 15,600 Square Feet, a Missionary Sisterhood’s Home Is for Sale

JUNE 6, 2016

The Appraisal

By MATT A.V. CHABAN

The Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary have served others across the world for more than a century. They have salved wounds in the slums of India, prayed with prisoners in Brazil, built schools in Cameroon and provided aid to a shaken Haiti.

Hundreds of the sisters of the Immaculati Cordis Mariae have also passed through the brownstone-framed doors of 236 and 238 East 15th Street. Since 1948, the sisterhood, begun in Belgium, has resided here on Stuyvesant Square.

For all their globe-trotting, many of the sisters still consider Manhattan their spiritual home.

“I remember seeing the park, and being so excited to have some greenery,” Sister Rosemary Cicchitti said last week during a tour of the house. She arrived in the summer 1953, before departing for Antigua. “When I was away, I would think of the park. And when I moved back, it was so nice to have it outside my window again.”

Sister Rita Cavaretta, who came to the house the same year, said: “It was so beautiful. The only problem was there was no air-conditioning then, and the drunkards would gather in the park and keep us up at night, so we had to yell at them to be quiet.”

And though she arrived here permanently only nine years ago, to serve as something of a caretaker, Sister Kathryn Vercelline always felt a connection when she passed through between one mission and the next.

“Seeing all the sisters, and seeing all the souvenirs from their travels, it was a reminder of the work we do,” said Sister Vercelline, who has served in Brazil and Rome.

Those memories are fading too, along with the sisterhood. By the 1960s, its ranks had dwindled to such an extent that the order began to rent some of its 25 bedrooms to other congregations and even to other young women. But even the boarders, and a top-to-bottom renovation in the last decade, were not enough to keep the Missionary Sisters at the site. Last spring, eight of those remaining relocated to the Bronx, to a Jewish nursing home, of all places, which has become something of a sanctuary for retired nuns. Three different orders call it home, and they quite enjoy the kosher meals, too.

By the 1980s, the sisterhood’s ranks had dwindled to such an extent that the order began to rent some of its 25 rooms to young women. KARSTEN MORAN FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Sister Vercelline was the only one to remain on East 15th Street, amid the African, Indian and Mongolian tapestries; the carved elephants from the Philippines and palm trees from Haiti; the crucifixes and icons from all over; and the occasional prayer group or guest to keep her company in the 15,600-square-foot residence.

That is a lot of space in the middle of Manhattan in 2016. As so many religious groups have done, the sisters are cashing out. The homes are now on the market for a combined $19.75 million.

“I saw the wisdom in it,” said Sister Cavaretta, who returned here in 2000, following a volcanic eruption at her final mission, in Montserrat. “For me, personally, happiness isn’t attached to buildings, it’s attached to people.”

With the sale, the order will have only one home in the United States, just outside Brownsville, Tex. It once occupied properties in Albany; East Los Angeles; Philadelphia; Wilson, N.C.; and Yonkers, among others.

The proceeds will be distributed to missions around the world, after enough is set aside for the sisters to live out their days in the Bronx.

“It can help, especially since in Belgium there are over 300 sisters, but the majority of them are over 80,” Sister Vercelline said. “I think the youngest just turned 50.”

At 64, she is the youngest, and likely last, of the Immaculati in the United States.

After putting up the “For Sale” signs two weeks ago, the brokers, Lisa Kobiolke and Leonard Steinberg of the brokerage Compass, have received more than two dozen inquiries. They have shown the homes three times, including to an art dealer couple who would like to use one building as a gallery.

“I remember seeing the park, and being so excited to have some greenery,” Sister Rosemary Cicchitti said last week. She arrived in 1958, two years after taking her vows. KARSTEN MORAN FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Dylan Hoffman, Lisa Kobiolke & Leonard Steinberg

“We thought we’d have a lot of interest in dividing the homes in two, but so far, most everyone seems to want both,” Ms. Kobiolke said. (Such combos are becoming quite common in Manhattan; Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick recently bought two townhouses on 11th Street for $34 million, while Madonna has a $40 million, triple-wide spread on East 81st Street. And there is former Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s continuing project, an East 78th Street combination).

Such a sale would arguably bring the 1850s Greek Revival-style homes full circle. According to research by the Landmarks Preservation Commission (both properties lie within the Stuyvesant Square Historic District), No. 236 was first occupied by Mahlon Day, an early children’s book publisher, while No. 238 was home to a ship chandler. The neighbors included a lime merchant and a tea dealer.

Before the sisterhood arrived, No. 236 had been home to the St. Elizabeth’s Industrial School for Girls since the 1920s. The family of George Bird Grinnell, the naturalist and founder of the Audubon Society, owned No. 238, followed by a dentist, who sold it to the nuns.

The Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary was established in New York almost by accident. It was founded in 1897 by Mother Marie Louise De Meester, who was visiting during World War I following a missionary trip to St. Croix. During her stay, she realized a residence in the city might not only ease the order’s work in the Western Hemisphere, but also improve recruitment.

A house at 437 West 47th Street became the order’s first outpost in the United States. Faced with condemnation there for an urban renewal project, the sisterhood moved to 236 East 15th Street in 1948, then home to the St. Joseph’s Residence for Working Girls.

“The lights in the girls’ rooms used to be set to a master switch,” Sister Cavaretta recalled, “and we slept with our lights switched on. That way, if the girls tried to turn on the light, it would wake us up, too, and we could get them back to bed.”

In 1952, the order bought No. 238 and combined the two townhouses through a doorway on each floor.

“It’s the perfect story of international ownership in New York — people who live here don’t just live here,” Mr. Steinberg, the Compass broker, said. “And think of all the amazing work this real estate facilitated. If you rented, this never would have been possible.”

Nor will it be.

“Ideally it would have gone to one of the congregations, but none of them could afford it,” Sister Vercelline said. “If it’s a family that can find joy here like we did, that’s fine,” she continued. “We have our preferences, and God has his.”

See the article HERE

Hudson Valley Real Estate Boom Puts Squeeze On Apples

Miro Uskokovic, the pastry chef at Gramercy Tavern, buys the apples for his apple and carob cake from Elizabeth Ryan’s orchard in the Hudson Valley. But the demand for local produce like Ryan’s is now colliding with real estate interests that are dividing up farms for vacation homes at an accelerating rate.

The number of farms in New York State has fallen to 35,537 in 2012 from 38,264 in 1997, according to the Department of Agriculture. And since 1982, real estate developments have transformed more than 471,000 acres of New York farmland, according to American Farmland Trust data.

“The risk to farmland is a risk to healthy food for New York City residents,” Councilman Daniel Garodnick, Democrat of Manhattan, told the New York Times. He added that many farmers markets serve neighborhoods that have few stores selling fresh produce.

“If we want all New Yorkers to have access to fresh, local food, then we must save the nearby farms that serve the city’s neediest neighborhoods now, before they are lost to development,” Steve Rosenberg, executive director of the Scenic Hudson Land Trust, told the Times. “This modest, but visionary, strategic investment will make the city a national model of how to create a more equitable and secure regional food system.” [NYT] –Christopher Cameron

NYC Subway Use Nears All-Time Peak As U.S. Public Transport Use Declines

The New York subway is unlike any other transit system in the United States. This system extends for 230 miles (375 kilometers) with approximately 420 stations. It serves the four highly  dense boroughs of the city (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx), each of which is 20 percent or more denser than any municipality large municipality in the United States or Canada. Much of the fifth borough, Staten Island, looks very much like suburban New Jersey and has no subway service, though has a more modest system, the Staten Island Railway.

Overall, the older Metros (Note 1), New York's subway, along with London's Underground and the Paris Metro dominated the world's urban rail systems for decades. Until the recent emergence of Chinese urban areas (Beijing and Shanghai), London had the longest extent of track in the world, followed by New York.

As one of the original Metros in the world, it might be thought that the New York City Subway's best days are over. That would be a mistake. It is true that ridership reached a peak in the late 1940s and dropped by more than half between the late 1970s and the early 1990s. However, since that time ridership has more than doubled, according to American Public Transportation Association data. And it is not inconceivable that new records may be set in the years to come.

Perhaps the most incredible thing about the New York City Subway has been its utter dominance of the well-publicized national transit ridership increases of the last decade. According to annual data published by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), ridership on the New York City Subway accounts for all of the transit increase since 2005. Between 2005 and 2015, ridership on the New York City Subway increased nearly 1 billion trips. By contrast, all of the transit services in the United States, including the New York City Subway, increased only 800 million over the same period. On services outside the New York City subway, three was a loss of nearly 200 million riders between 2005 and 2015 

The New York City subway accounts carries nearly 2.5 times the annual ridership of the other nine largest metro systems in the nation combined (Figure 2). This is 10 times that of Washington’s Metro, which is losing ridership despite strong population growth , probably partly due to safety concerns (see America’s Subway: America’s Embarrassment?). Things have gotten so bad in Washington that the federal government has threatened to close the system (See: Feds Forced to Set Priorities for Washington Subway).

The New York City subway carries more than 11 times the ridership of the Chicago “L”, though like in New York, the ridership trend on the “L” has increased impressively in recent years. The New York City subway carries and more than 50 times the Los Angeles subway ridership, where MTA (and SCRTD) bus and rail ridership has declined over the past 30 years despite an aggressive rail program (See: Just How Much has Los Angeles Transit Ridership Fallen?).

With these gains, the New York City Subway's share of national transit ridership has risen from less than one of each five riders (18 percent) in 2005 to more than one in four (26 percent) in 2015. This drove the New York City metropolitan areas share of all national transit ridership from 30 percent in 2005 to over 37 percent in 2015.

Subway ridership dominates transit in the New York City metropolitan area as well, at 67 percent. Other New York City oriented transit services, including services that operate within the city exclusively and those that principally carry commuters in and out of the city account for 28 percent of the ridership. This includes the commuter rail systems (Long Island Railroad, Metro-North Railroad and New Jersey Transit) and the Metro from New Jersey (PATH) have experienced ridership increases of approximately 15 percent over last decade (Note 2).

Other transit services, those not oriented to New York City, account for five percent of the metropolitan area's transit ridership (Figure 3). By comparison, approximately 58 percent of the population lives outside the city of New York. The small transit ridership share not oriented to New York City illustrates a very strong automobile component in suburban mobility even in the most well-served transit market in the country.

Last year (2014), APTA announced that the nation's transit ridership had reached the highest in modern history, having not been higher since 1957. In fact, the ridership boom that produced the record can be attributed wholly to the New York City Subway. If New York City Subway ridership had remained at its 2005 level, overall transit ridership would have decreased from 9.8 billion in 2005 to 9.6 billion in 2015. The modern record of 10.7 billion rides would never have been approached.

Thus, transit in the United States is not only a "New York Story," but it has also been strongly dependent on the New York Subway in recent years. After decades of decline, the revival of the New York subway is a welcome development.

Life After The White House...

Back in March, the Obamas announced that they would remain in D.C. until their youngest daughter, Sasha, graduates high school. Apparently, this home at 2446 Belmont Road NW is good enough for the First Family. And it really does seem to be *almost* as nice as the White House.

According to the Independent Journal, the Obamas have chosen the beautiful, 1920s home as their next residence. It is currently owned by Bill Clinton’s former press secretary, Joe Lockhart, who left DC for New York, where he works as the executive vice president of communications for the NFL. He purchased the home in 2014 for $5.295 million. The home is unlisted (photos are from its previous listing), and the Obamas are said to have negotiated privately with Lockhart.

The 8,200-square-foot home has nine bedrooms, eight and a half bathrooms, gardens, and room for 8-10 cars to park — necessary for Obama’s security detail. Also good for security is the home’s proximity to embassies and the Vice President’s home at the Naval Observatory.

Obama will be the first president since Woodrow Wilson to remain in DC after his term is over.

Pileup of $100 Million Homes

From the “Le Palais Bulles” in the South of France, to a $350 million penthouse in Monaco, to a $250 million spread at 220 Central Park South, the are more properties listed above the $100 million mark than ever before. And that poses a problem.

A record 27 properties with nine-figure prices are officially for sale, according to Christie’s International Real Estate. Last year, there were 19 homes with similar asking prices and about a dozen in 2014. And according to the New York Times, if you added “whisper listings,” the actual number of nine-figure listings worldwide could top 50.

“When you have a record number of homes for sale at a price point of $100 million or more, that tells you these homes aren’t selling,” Jonathan Miller, president of Miller Samuel Inc., told the Times. “It’s not as deep a market as some might hope.”

According to Christie’s, only two homes sold for over $100 million last year: a 9,455-square-foot house in Hong Kong purchased for $193 million by Jack Ma, the chief of Alibaba, and a $132 million townhouse in London. Two other nine-figure listings sold last year (a $700 million Texas ranch and a $100 million home in Dallas), but the actual sale prices were not disclosed.

To many, this looks like a bubble that could soon burst. But many in the industry remain hopeful.

“I don’t think it’s a sign of a bubble,” Dan Conn, chief executive of Christie’s International Real Estate, told the Times. “It’s a sign of growing wealth in the world and the quality of some of the new construction.”

Still, even below the $100 million price mark, the market for luxury homes is on the decline, according to a Real Deal analysis. Luxury sales volume is down a stomach-churning 25 percent in the first 20 weeks of 2016 compared to the same period last year. Just 449 contracts at or above $4 million were signed so far this year, compared to 597 in the first 20 weeks of 2015, and 552 in 2014. [NYT] –Christopher Cameron

It's Ridiculously Expensive to Fly Air Force One

Taxpayers fork over $206,337 every hour the world's most famous plane is in flight, according to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) documents obtained by the nonprofit Judicial Watch.

The FY15 cost per flying hour for Air Force One (VC-25A) includes "fuel, flight consumables, depot level repairables, aircraft overhaul, and engine overhaul," according to the letter from the Department of the Air Force Headquarters Air Mobility Command to Judicial Watch.

According to the National Taxpayer Union Foundation, President Barack Obama has traveled internationally more than any other president, and he has done it on the "most expensive-to-operate Air Force One to date." 

The aging Air Force One and it's twin decoy will be replaced with two Boeing's 747-8 and are expected to be operational in 2020.

New Sales Listing - 322 West 22nd Street, Unit 4

322 West 22nd Street, Unit 4

Co-op in Chelsea, Manhattan, NY, 10011

1 BED

1 BATH

$1,150,000

Second floor, back facing private oasis with southern garden views.

Enjoy leafy, treetop views from your private terrace situated on one of the prettiest blocks in West Chelsea. 

Set on West 22nd Street, between 8th and 9th avenues, this nicely arranged one-bedroom, one-bath home includes a generously sized sleeping/storage loft, sky-high 11-foot tall ceilings and walnut-stained hardwood floors. Through the gracious entry, outfitted with a roomy closet, you'll find a large great room with plenty of space for living and dining areas, anchored on one end by the modern, open kitchen and by the 5-foot by 11-foot south-facing terrace on the other. With a wood-burning fireplace providing a warm focal point, and the chef's kitchen outfitted with full-sized stainless steel appliances, including a Viking stove, you'll jump at the chance to entertain in this bright, airy space. The bedroom features a large walk-in closet and another sunny southern window, the nearby bathroom includes a full-sized bathtub, and the in-unit washer-dryer provides welcome convenience.

Located in vibrant, central Chelsea, there's no shortage of stores, restaurants, open space and entertainment nearby. Head two blocks west and stroll the iconic High Line, or venture to Madison Square Park to the east. Indulge every culinary whim with Whole Foods, Trader Joe's and Eataly all nearby. Pottery Barn, West Elm, Bed Bath & Beyond and more will provide retail therapy, while numerous gyms, spin clubs and yoga studios will attend to your fitness needs. Transportation couldn't be easier with C/E trains one block away and 1 trains just a block further.

New Sales Listing - 240 East 35th Street, Unit 4A

240 East 35th Street, Unit 4A

Murray Hill, Manhattan, NY, 10016

2 BED

1 BATH

$795,000

Large and well-proportioned corner one-bedroom unit with a wall up for a second sleeping area. Renovated windowed kitchen with granite countertops, new appliances and extra cabinetry. The apartment has ample closet space throughout. This building is a 120-unit cooperative located in the thriving and historic Murray Hill neighborhood.

240 East 35th Street is a pet-friendly cooperative with a full-time doorman, live-in superintendent, and gorgeous roof deck with Empire State Building and Chrysler Building views. There is also a garage, bike room and laundry facility. This location is convenient to all transportation, including Penn Station, Grand Central Station, the Long Island Expressway and the FDR Drive, as well as numerous restaurants and shopping.

New Sales Listing - 201 East 21st Street, Unit 6A

201 East 21st Street, Unit 6A

Co-op in Gramercy, Manhattan, NY, 10010

1 BED

1 BATH

$869,000

Don't miss this oversized one-bedroom apartment offering beautiful renovations, a great layout and ample storage space, all located in one of Gramercy's most sought-after buildings.

This home's open layout, lit by large west- and north-facing windows in every room, lends a sense of airy spaciousness throughout. The great room stretches nearly 30 feet from the entry to the sunny windows, providing ample room for living and dining areas, and lending great access to the nearby open kitchen. In this renovated chef's dream, you'll find a Fisher Paykel refrigerator, GE stainless steel appliances and granite countertops with a breakfast bar offering plenty of cooking and entertaining space.

The renovated bathroom features glass shower doors and glossy subway tile, while the 11-foot by 17-foot master bedroom provides plenty of space for a king bed and additional furniture. The abundant closet space is not to be missed with five large closets throughout, all customized with built-ins to maximize storage.

The Quaker Ridge is known for its stellar financials and low maintenance, not to mentions its prime location just steps from Gramercy Park. The co-op includes a full-time doorman, live-in superintendent, new laundry facilities, bike storage and a residents-only parking garage with direct access to the building. The building allows co-purchasing and pets, but does not permit guarantors or pied-a-terres.

This Week’s 5 Most Expensive Listings

In the past seven days, 13 new listings priced at $10 million and above hit the market, according to StreetEasy. From that list, these are the crème de la crème, otherwise known as the five most expensive residential listings to hit the Manhattan market.

625 Park Avenue #4FL

Address 625 Park Avenue #4FL
Price $39,500,000
Type/Size Co-op: six bedrooms and seven bathrooms
This week’s most expensive listing is this Tony Ingrao-designed, 7,300-square-foot, six bedroom apartment. It has multiple fireplaces, a library, a full gym and a billiard room. The home’s staff quarters, along with the laundry room, share a separate wing. Naturally.

80 Columbus Circle #72C

Address 80 Columbus Circle #72C
Price $24,500,000
Type/Size Condo: four bedrooms and four-and-a-half bathrooms
Situated within the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, this 3,170-square-foot pad has some impressive views through its floor-to-ceiling windows. Plus, thanks to its swanky hotel location, it comes with access to a 24-hour concierge, a 40,000 square-foot fitness facility, a 75-foot swimming pool and The Mandarin Spa.

427 East 85th Street

Address 427 East 85th Street
Price $21,000,000
Type/Size Townhouse: six bedrooms and eight bathrooms
Built in 1925, this 25-foot-wide townhouse has a garden, a theatre room, a half basketball court and game room and some pretty interesting wall coverings.

161 Maiden Lane #PH1

Address 161 Maiden Lane #PH1
Price $18,000,000
Type/Size Condo: four bedrooms and four-and-a-half bathrooms
This duplex penthouse is at the top of 161 Maiden Lane, aka 1 Seaport – set to be Seaport’s first all-glass residential tower. Spread across 4,489 square feet, this pad has three private terraces, a double height living room and floor to ceiling windows.

15 West 63rd Street #34A

Address 15 West 63rd Street #34A
Price $16,900,000
Type/Size Condo: four bedrooms and four-and-a-half bathrooms
This full floor condo is located at the Park Laurel. Its private elevator landing, corner living room and eat-in kitchen are all secondary to its impressive private terrace which overlooks Central Park.

“Full House” House Hits the Market For $4.1M

Now, all your family-friendly ’90s dreams can come true – if you’ve got a spare $4.1 million.

The 1883 Charles Lewis Hinkel-designed home in San Francisco that was featured in the long-running sitcom, “Full House,” has officially hit the market.

But even if you are not a fan of Uncle Joey’s antics, this Victorian has a lot to offer. The three-story townhouse, located at 1709 Broderick, includes three bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths and 3,125 square feet of living space. It’s also perfect for book lovers with built-in shelving galore, according to Curbed.

The house also comes with all those wonderful 19th-centruy details, like high ceilings, crown molding, an eat-in island kitchen and three marble-faced fireplaces. It was decorated by Courtnay Haden Daniels.

By the way, if you want to see what Netflix’s “Fuller House” would look like in real life San Francisco (instead of the TV version of the city), check this out. check this out. [Curbed] –Christopher Cameron

How NYC’s Supertalls Compare in Height and Girth to Global Towers

As the Skyscraper Museum so aptly writes, “Tall and BIG are not the same thing.”

Echoing 6sqft’s recent post on global supertalls, the infographic above illustrates how when the height of New York’s tallest towers are stacked up against the sky-high constructions abroad (and 1 WTC), our city’s skyscrapers truly are “runts on the world’s stage.” The image also reveals that not only do these towers lack significantly in height, but also in girth. This means what really makes the design of all of New York’s new skyscrapers so unique is not how tall they are, but rather, how slender they are.

“The pencil-thin periscopes — all 50 to 90+ stories — use a development and design strategy of slenderness to pile their city-regulated maximum square feet of floor area (FAR) as high in the sky to as possible to create luxury apartments defined by spectacular views,” says the Skyscraper Museum of this new typology.

“‘Slenderness’” is an engineering definition,” they add. “Structural engineers generally consider skyscrapers with a minimum 1:10 or 1:12 ratio (of the width of the building’s base to its height) to be ‘slender.’ Slenderness is a proportion based on the width of the base to the height of the building.”

In this slender lot, they point out 18 towers in specific that redefine the width versus height ratio, emphasizing again that extreme verticality is not at all representative of total gross floor area: One57, 111 West 57th Street, 432 Park Avenue, 520 Park Avenue, Central Park Tower, 220 Central Park South, 53W53, 100 East 53rd Street, Sky House, 45 East 22nd Street, One Madison, 35 Hudson Yards, 56 Leonard, 30 Park Place,111 Murray Street, 125 Greenwich Street, 50 West Street and 9 DeKalb Avenue.

This Weekend's Open Houses

This Weekend's Open Houses

Open House - Sunday 12pm to 1:30pm

18 East 18th St. #4W

Large Flatiron loft filled with sunlight and pre-war charm. 

2 BED

2.5 BATH

$3,495,000

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Open House - Sunday 1pm to 3pm

1485 Fifth Ave. #14H

Corner unit with private terrace and endless views.

3 BED

2 BATH

$2,400,000

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Open House - Sunday 1:30pm to 3pm

41-26 27th Street #PHA

Long Island City penthouse with tons of outdoor space, and roof top deck. 

2.5 BED

2 BATH

$1,395,000

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Open House - Sunday BY APPOINTMENT ONLY

100 Bennett Ave. #3D4CD

Large 2,800 square foot duplex in Washington Heights. 

3 BED

3 BATH

$1,350,000

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Open House - Sunday 2:30pm to 4pm

211 East 3rd Street, #1B

Condo one-bedroom in the heart of the East Village.

1 BED

1 BATH

$850,000

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Open House - Sunday 12pm to 1:30pm

100 Jay Street, #4J

Condo alcove studio with massive private terrace.

.5 BED

1 BATH

$679,000

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Open House - Sunday 11:30am to 12:30pm

450 West 17th Street, #2603

West Chelsea south facing two-bed rental on a high floor.  

2 BED

2 BATH

$9,900/mo.

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Request More Information 

The Hoffman Team On Facebook!

The Hoffman Team Is Now On Facebook. Check it out!

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www.facebook.com/hoffmanteam.nyc

Putting The Goats To Work.

This summer Prospect Park has a retro way to remove unwanted weeds: goats. Eight of them, from Rhinebeck.

The goats will graze on 1.5 acres in the northeast corner of park. They're fenced in on a hilly section of the Vale of Cashmere, next to the Donald and Barbara Zucker Natural Exploration Area, eating the invasive species that encroached after 50 trees were damaged by Sandy.

The goats, with their four stomachs each, will devour the poison ivy, English Ivy, and goutweed that have proliferated now that sunshine pierces the tree canopy. "The goats will eat anything and everything and that's the beauty of having them here," said Sue Donoghue, the president of the Prospect Park Alliance. "They'll actual help us with the removal of invasive species."

Eleanor Forster was on a morning stroll with her 3-year-old daughter and stumbled on the goats. "Having the animals here in a kind of natural environment without being in the zoo, it's lovely," she said.

But no petting these goats. In addition to the fact that they're behind an 8-foot-high fence, they're also covered in poison ivy (which doesn't affect them).

The goats have grazed around the region in other parks, including Fort Wadsworth on Staten Island and the Gateway National Recreation Area.

After the goats are gone, the park will plant native trees and shrubs in that area.

How Much Do You Need to Make to Live Comfortably in NYC?

Residents in this country's top 15 metro areas spend a large chunk of their income (unsurprisingly) on rent, and in New York City, a family would have to make over $158,000 a year to live comfortably in a two-bedroom apartment, a new study by SmartAsset, the financial data analysis service, has revealed.

The company based its study off of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)'s 30 percent threshold — where a household that spends more than 30 percent of its annual income on rent is considered cost-burdened.

By that logic, about 46 percent of renters across the country pay more than 30 percent of their income towards rent, according Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies, leaving less money towards other household expenses and savings.

SmartAsset calculated its annual income threshold for each city based on a 28 percent rent-to-income ratio. By that measure, New York City ranks second (once again) to San Francisco in terms of the income required to comfortably rent a two-bedroom. In NYC, SmartAsset calculated the average cost of a two-bedroom apartment at $3,692 per month — that's actually a 0.1 percent drop from the previous year, though that's not really much of a consolation. On average, the cost of living in New York City is 70 percent higher than the rest of the country.

450 West 17th Street, Unit 2306

Available Immediately

The Caledonia • Condo in Chelsea, Manhattan, NY, 10011

450 West 17th Street, Unit 2306

2 BED

2 BATH

$9,900 / MONTH

Welcome home to this high floor, split two bedroom with stunning views of all of downtown Manhattan and the Hudson River! The spacious, open layout has plenty of living and dining space plus two large bedrooms all with oversized south facing windows flooding every room with amazing light. The open kitchen is equipped with top of the line appliances and finished with bamboo cabinetry making the design and functionality perfect for endless cooking and entertaining. The master suite includes a five-fixture bathroom along with a large walk-in closet while the second bathroom, in-unit washer dryer and ample storage by California Closets complete the space. 

The Caledonia is one of West Chelsea’s premier full service buildings offering wonderful amenities include multiple indoor/outdoor entertaining spaces, direct access to Equinox Gym with preferred rates, storage and on-site parking.

Chinese Investment In US Real Estate Expected to Slide

With China’s domestic economy faltering, investment in U.S. and New York real estate is expected to slow over the next two years, according to a new report from the Asia Society.

The spigot won’t be shut off altogether: Some $58 billion is still expected to be deployed into commercial real estate in the U.S. between 2016 and 2020, according to the report’s authors. But they spoke of an 18- to 24-month “hiatus” that’s already underway as the Chinese government tries to right its economy.

The Chinese government has been taking longer to approve investments abroad in recent months, signaling an effort to staunch the flow of funds overseas, the authors wrote.

“We don’t see that as stopping investment abroad, and in fact, it hasn’t,” said Arthur Margon, a partner at Rosen Consulting Group, which was commissioned by the Asia Society to produce the report. “They’re trying to get righted while they defend their currency and fight inflation, so they’re changing the short-term strategy.”

Overall, Chinese investment in U.S. commercial real estate reached $8.5 billion in 2015, a record high and a 70 percent jump from 2010, according to the 111-page report, released on Monday. Compared to other countries, China ranked No. 3 among foreign investors in commercial real estate around the U.S. in 2015, behind Canada ($24.6 billion worth of investment) and Singapore ($14.6 billion).

Chinese firms set the table in New York, representing 56 percent of transaction volume between 2010 and 2015, including $9.56 billion in commercial real estate during the five-year period. High-profile plays include Anbang Insurance’s $1.95 billion acquisition of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, as well as Greenland’s 70 percent ownership stake in Pacific Park in Brooklyn.

“New York has been a major focus and it’s the largest recipient of Chinese investment in commercial real estate,” said Margon, citing the stability of real estate here. “They’ve been very active in just amassing properties across the spectrum.”

Prominent New York real estate players have been divided on the fate of Chinese investment in recent months. Earlier this year, Related Companies CEO Jeff Blau said developers “should be looking for other sources of capital over the next few years.”

Last week, panelists at The Real Deal’s New York Real Estate Showcase and Forum said they believe Chinese buyers are more eager than ever to park their money in a safe haven. “You may see a different economy in China, but the Chinese are still buying here,” said Elizabeth Ann Stribling-Kivlan, president of residential brokerage Stribling & Associates.

On the residential side, Chinese buyers outpaced investors from all other countries, purchasing $28.6 billion worth of property in 2015 and besting Canada’s $11.2 billion and India’s $7.9 billion.

Despite the buzz surrounding Chinese buyers of New York City condos, the vast majority of residential investors have scooped up property in California, which accounts for one-third of such investment in the U.S., compared to New York’s 7 percent. Deep-pocketed investors still flock to New York, where they can buy and sell condos with relative ease, Margon said.

Other findings by the Asia Society include:

• $93 billion in residential investment between 2010 and 2015;
• $17.1 billion in commercial real estate investment between 2010 and 2015;
• $9.5 billion investment via the EB-5 visa program;
• a $207.9 billion position in U.S. government-backed mortgage bonds; and
• $8 billion in loans made by Chinese banks for commercial real estate projects in the U.S.

Correction: The subhead misstated the total investment in U.S. real estate; it’s believed to be $110 billion, not $100 million as initially reported.