The Monthly Insider | December 2015
The Hustis/Jovanovic Team
Our Industry: What’s the latest?
We are back to a new, but “normal” residential real estate market.
Explain…
With instability in the rest of world’s financial markets, interest rates still at record lows, and so much capital (both financial and intellectual) flowing into New York, this year’s residential real estate market continued its meteoric rise that started its upward slope in Q4 of 2011. It showed no signs of slowing with exception of that lingering thought in everyone’s minds, “How much further can it go up before the correction?”. As we approach the end of the year and look back on the last four months, what we can say is that the market has slowed down and shifted back to what some remember as a “normal” and balanced market.
What does this mean?
With the stabilizing of the market this Fall, it has shifted to more of a buyer’s market, providing buyers time to analyze and review properties thoroughly before making a decision. This has also led to sellers becoming more rational and realistic about the challenges of their properties and their corresponding value (i.e. properties will not necessarily sell in a week, command a bidding war, or go for 10% above the asking price). What a concept right? And that, very succinctly, is where the market finds itself: balanced and seasonal with properties trading at all price points, with more days on market, and with some negotiability in price.
Our Industry: Hard to Believe…
New York State imposes a 1% Mansion Tax to all properties that are purchased above $1 Million. A one-bedroom condo is hardly considered a mansion but in Manhattan they are more often than not. For instance, currently in Manhattan there are roughly 173 one-bedroom condos on the market south of $1 Million and 447 one-bedroom condos listed north of $1 Million. The interesting thing is that the price point south of $1 Million has an average $/sqft of $1,325, while the listings north of $1 Million have a $/sqft average of $1,997. That is a 49% spread, and points to the difference between the value and luxury segments of the market. The bottom line is that both segments are active and this diversity helps make a healthy market of not just mansions! It is because of the robust systems at Compass that we are able to compile and analyze this data and information more easily and accurately than ever before.
Our Industry: The Scoop.
Two weeks ago Compass unveiled a quarterly CEO Spotlight Series. As a part of this series, Scott and Mark will take turns moderating and interviewing a distinguished CEO. In the first installment Mark had the pleasure of interviewing Jared Kushner, the CEO of Kushner Companies; a national real estate developer, owner & operator of residential and commercial real estate valued at over $8 Billion. Jared is also the publisher and owner of the New York Observer and married to Ivanka Trump.
Fill me in…
In Mark and Jared’s hour-long conversation they touched on topics like emerging neighborhoods, public and private partnerships in developing neighborhoods, underwriting deals, and his long-term strategy of adding value to his holdings.
What do I need to know?
What became apparent throughout their dialog is that Jared, who is 34 years old and was raised in a real estate family, is beyond well poised and versed in all aspects of the deal and more importantly what New Yorkers are looking for in terms of housing and office space. Not only does he personally look at the statistics and data when analyzing a deal but he also, somewhat surprisingly, doesn’t mind paying high prices for trophy assets. He feels that as long as he holds, prime locations will always be prime locations and that in the long term he and his team will improve the property and add value. He also spends the time, before he purchases a property, to walk the neighborhood it is located in and speaks to it’s residents to get additional color and to know their needs and concerns. Mark and Scott have done this first hand for over 12 years so the team truly knows the power of this type of information. To wrap up the interview they touched on family and making time in this over scheduled world. Overall it was a fun and insightful way to spend an hour and having these opportunities is one of the ways Compass is empowering its’ brokers.
Our News: Here is what we have been working on…
Monthly Insider
It’s been awhile since we’ve been in touch with everyone in this format… so this is the inaugural installment of our team’s monthly newsletter. Frankly, there is so much going on in the residential real estate market along with so many misconceptions. As a result, we really want to sift through the noise and give you our honest take, like we always have.
Compass Quarterly
Q4 2015 marks the first installment of the Compass Quarterly. With design in mind, the issue displays a very forward-thinking layout showcasing various compass properties where design is a focal point. Our stunning prewar listing at 136 Waverly Place was featured on Page 27.
Before Compass, real estate marketing was all about generic placement of property ads in major publications without thinking about analytics, readership, or a highly specific target audience. 40,000 copies were inserted in the New York Times Sunday Edition, and sent to specifically targeted households in the New York City Metro area that have been identified as those who appreciate design but also have certain income levels.
It is refreshing to see that Compass is focused on hiring the best intellectual talent across the board, including the marketing, design, copywriting, product, and engineering teams. This allows us to make intelligent, optimized decisions on the allocation of resources. Every month we plan to bring you at least one “fun” tidbit about what we are creating and how it helps you, our clients!
Our News: Learn More About the Compass Team
Matt joined Compass after three years of building the creative group at Tribeca Enterprises. He oversaw the creation of all kinds of cool stuff like responsive sites, new ticketing platforms, documentary films and TV series fully funded by brands, YouTube channels, Film Festival campaigns and digital product development for the soon to launch Tribeca Shortlist SVOD platform.
Our News: Most Memorable Photo From 2015
Who could forget this closet? With this sale we set a record high $/sqft for a 22 foot wide townhouse in Boerum Hill!
Lifestyle: On the Mark…
Did you know?
There are currently 58,000 tech jobs associated with tech companies that are located here, in New York City, along with almost 83,000 non-tech (sales, marketing, product, etc) jobs at the same companies.
Why is this important?
New York City has a highly skilled and diversified workforce that attracts some of the most intelligent and driven people from around the world. This creates a culture that is constantly pushing to the limits to create value and improve life and our society.
Lifestyle: 5 Spots that are great to cozy up in this winter.
Downtown Manhattan
- Dear Irving | Gramercy Park (55 Irving Pl)
- Rolf’s | Gramercy Park (281 3rd Ave)
Uptown Manhattan
- Parkview Lounge | Columbus Circle (10 Columbus Cir)
Brooklyn
- Manhattan Inn | Greenpoint (632 Manhattan Ave)
- Pete’s Candy Store | Williamsburg (709 Lorimer St)
