A Busy August
Manhattan real estate is typically quiet in August. Not this year - for us.
1. We finalized a partnership with The Karp Group in Boca Raton.
Stay tuned for a formal announcement, but you're reading about it here first.
I'm thrilled to share that we can now help with all your real estate needs in South Florida. We offer expanded support, broader reach and the same highly personal service to FL buyers and sellers navigating important transitions. If you, your loved ones or your clients are thinking about a move, or need experienced local guidance and market information, we'd be honored to take excellent care of them. And fear not -- our Team's Manhattan business will remain the same.
2. Our Team has been surprisingly busy with both buyers and sellers.
Serious buyers are kicking tires at open houses and pulling the trigger when they recognize value; we're currently in the middle of some fierce negotiations. We're also helping buyers obtain their pre-approval letters and organize their financial paperwork. We're working with a few sellers to prepare and stage their properties for the market, and we're strategizing about marketing and pricing.
So, while Labor Day may mark the traditional beginning of the busy autumn market (some say it begins after the Jewish holidays), the market's foundation has already been set for a robust fall season.
3. We've been learning, fielding questions and strategizing about WHAT'S NEW in the industry:
A. POLD
Not all listing inventory is visible to the public. Some NYC sellers and their agents are taking advantage of REBNY’s Participant Only Listing Designation, or POLD. This allows a property to be marketed within the brokerage community before it is distributed publicly to consumer-facing websites.
For sellers, POLD provides an opportunity to test positioning and generate interest without immediately accumulating days on market, something that can become increasingly important if a property sits unsold and buyers begin to wonder why. Currently, one of our sellers is utilizing this strategy.
For buyers, the inventory visible online represents an incomplete picture of the entire market. Some listings are available only to real estate agents; therefore, buyers relying solely on public websites may miss out. Buyers who want access to the entire market need to be working with brokers.
B. Pied-a-Terre Tax
NYC extended the pied-a-terre tax filing deadline to Oct 6.
I don't believe the tax will cause the uber-wealthy to sell their second homes despite some towns (Greenwich, CT, for example) pitching themselves as pied-a-terre sanctuaries. There has not been a mass exodus, or even a modest exodus, and inventory levels of available homes, at all price points, are at record or near record lows.
Nor has the pied-a-terre tax discouraged buyers. The number of signed luxury contracts over the summer has been high.
There's only one NYC. For a class of people interested in status and appearances, settling for less than the real thing is unacceptable.
C. Deadlines on purchase applications
Effective July 28, co-op boards must follow strict timelines when considering purchase applications. Boards retain the right to reject applications for any reason or no reason—provided they act in accordance with anti-discrimination laws. But for the first time, the clock is ticking on their deliberations. This new law represents a significant step toward coop board accountability, but we have more to go.
The fall selling season is right around the corner, arriving with energy and momentum. No matter how we measure its beginning, we're ready. BRING IT ON!
