4/12/12:  Audits Find Flaws in City’s Property Assessments:  The audits note that for many years the city used one methodology, called net income capitalization, to determine property valuations. For the 2008-9 fiscal year, the city switched to another method, called gross income multiplier. Then, without advance notice to homeowners, it reverted to the original methodology for the 2011-12 fiscal year. Read the full article in the New York Times

4/13/12  Exclusive 1st Quarter 2012 Elliman Report for the Miami, Florida Market:  The Miami housing market experienced the highest market share of non-distressed sales in several years, with a surge in both condo and single-family sales activity. The luxury and the non-distressed markets both continued to see upward pressure on prices. Distressed sales activity is expected to pick back up over the next year, which will help the market gain better footing for the long term. Foreign buyers continue to play a key role in driving sales demand, incentivized by the weak US Dollar. We anticipate an active Miami housing market over the next several quarters.  Read the report from Prudential Douglas Elliman 

Michael Lomonaco shares some of his Upper East Side Favorites

Pizza by the Slice:  Italian Village 

Pizza by the Pie:  John’s Pizzeria

Cheap Burger:    J.G. Melon 

Fancy Burger:  Jones Wood Foundry  

Sandwich:  2^nd Ave Deli

Coffee:  Oren’s Daily Roast

Bagels:  Tal Bagels 

Chinese:  Pig Heaven 

Breakfast:  E.A.T 

Bar:  Bemelmans Bar at the Carlyle

Ice Cream/Gelato:  Sant Ambroeus

Falafel:  Melange Food Fair

Late Night Eats:  Cascabel Taqueria 

Date night:  Crown 

Can’t-miss Neighborhood Spot:  Sandoro’s   

From Serious Eats NY

“Employment conditions have continued to slowly improve, inventory levels have remained modest, and new development stabilized, but tight mortgage underwriting conditions remain a challenge to the market.”

• Median sales price was $775,000, 0.9% below $782,071 in the prior year quarter. Price per square foot increased 6%, and average sales price increased 0.8% over the same period.
• The S&P’s downgrade of US debt, paired with the European debt crisis, Wall Street bonus concerns, and large swings in the stock market indices all contributed to the market’s slowed pace leading into the first quarter. As a result, the number of sales slipped 3.5% to 2,311 from 2,394 in the prior year quarter.
• Active listing inventory slipped 0.6% to 7,560 in the first quarter from 7,605 in the prior year quarter, but remained consistent with the 7,478 quarterly average over the past ten years.
• Days on market—the number of days between the last price change, if any, and the contract date—saw a 25-day increase to 152 days from 127 days as older inventory was sold off.
• Listing discount—the percent difference between the list price at time of sale to the sales price—increased to 6.3% from 4.5% in the same period last year.

3/6/12 NYC sees biggest building permit rise since crash:   Number of permits for demolition work soars nearly 37% in the first two months of year, while the number of permits to put up new buildings jumps almost 43%. Levels are still well below pre-2008 peaks.  Read more about it at Crain’s New York.

3//8/12  Apartment bargains melted away in warm Feb.:  Unseasonable temperatures bring out more customers and landlords respond by cutting concessions and even hiking some rents. A “disappointi9ng season” for tenants seen.  Read the full article at Crain’s New York

3/8/12  Stunning gains for city economy:  The city economy grew nearly twice as fast in 2011 as initially thought, according to data released Thursday, and jobs boomed in January.  Read the article at Crain’s New York.

3/9/12  Crumbling East 81st Street Pedestrian Bridge Set for Makeover:  Months after cutting the ribbon on a stainless steel pedestrian bridge at East 78th Street, the city is moving forward with tackling the next decaying walkway connecting the neighborhood to the East River waterfront.  Read the article at DNAinfo.com 

2/27/12  Buy this Queens site, get free East Side apartments:  “The odd bonus that comes with purchase of a Flushing, Queens site is not in infomercial-style marketing ploy.  It’s the collateral on a bad loan.”  Read about it at Crain’s NY.

3/1/12 NYC stuck on slow boat:  “The economic news just gets better and better.  In the final quarter of 2011, total output of goods and services expanded at an annual clip of 3%, according to Commerce Department data out Wednesday.  In New York, however, the news is not nearly so rosy, and the reason why can be summed up in two words:  ‘Wall Street’.”   Read the full article at Crain’s NY The RED Wrap.

3/1/12 Celeb chef Emeril slashes price on Townhouse:  “One celebrity chef is betting the onset of the spring season will have prospective luxury property buyers on the hunt for a sizzling-hot bargain. Star chef and television personality Emeril Lagasse is planning to reduce the asking price of his Lenox Hill townhouse by a cool $1.5 million, or 10 percent, to ‘take advantage of the spring market’. ” Read all about it at TheRealDeal.com.

3/2/12  Manhattan population to jump by 2030, putting strain on housing:  “While the demand for New York real estate remains somewhat unquenchable for the meantime, it’s possible the city could grow so crowded in the future that it may beocme a turn-off for prospective city dwellers”.  Read the full article at TheRealDeal.com.

 The end of a quarter brings a blizzard of Residential Sales and Rental Market Reports; followed by a spurt of press coverage spinning and analyzing the reports. But here’s a report that’s different

The Faith Report reads like a who’s who of luxury retailers.

From Madison Avenue to 5th Avenue and the Upper East Side,  across Central Park on the Upper West Side down to Union Square, the West Village, Soho, Nolita, Tribeca and to the Lower East Side, the Faith Report alerts you to the newest digs for your favorite designers and other trend-setting retailers.

 New York Retail Leasing Activity Report created by Faith Consolo Chairman of  Prudential Douglas Elliman’s Leasing and Sales Division.

The change will affect incoming kindergarten students and students new to public schools who live within the zones.  All currently enrolled students may remain at their current school.  Kindergarten students with siblings who are in an existing zone will be grandfathered as an in-zone sibling.

Further information can be found at the NYC Department of Education website

Starting on September 12, 2011 and continuing throughout a 4 week period, the firm collected minute-by-minute data for various pollutants at 10 locations between E 69^th and 87^th Streets.  The final report, revealed that most measured pollutants were below national air quality and industry standards. 

• High concentrations of one type of particulate matter were “attributed to local traffic emissions, other local sources such as commercial and residential boilers . . . with no significant contribution from blasting activities”, according to the report.
• Another spike during the 3 to 7 pm blasting period showed concentrations below acceptable levels to indicate no adverse health effects.

According to a statement released Thursday, MTA Capital Construction President Michael Horodniceanu  “Based on the results of the study, there are no concerns that Second Avenue Subway construction si causing any danger to the public’s health. We will continue to do everything we can to be a good neighbor as we complete this critically important project as quickly as possible.”

Several measures were implemented to mitigate the odors and dust :

• “Dust Bosses” that spray water mist to force the dust particles to settle within the “muck house” structure were installed in two of the structures.
• Wet burlap curtains were installed in the shafts to act as screening for dust.
• Permanently sealing some overhangs
• Installed additional vents
• Increased time between blasts to allow for dust and smoke to dissipate.

Residents agree these measures have improved the conditions, but lament the delay in implementation.

The study findings will be presented by the MTA to the Community Board 8’ Second Avenue Task Force at Hunter College, 695 Park Ave, West Building Lecture Hall Room, 714W on January 26, at 6:30 which we will be attending.

Excerpted from DNAInfo.com article by Amy Zimmer.

1/18/12:  ‘Medical Arms Race’ Spurs Massive Health Development on East Side:   “At a time when the city’s public hospitals are struggling and Brooklyn hospitals are facing possible closures, top-tier East Side institutions — including the Hospital for Special Surgery, NYU Langone Medical Center, Lenox Hill Hospital, Weill Cornell Medical College and Mount Sinai Medical Center — could dramatically reshape the city’s landscape over the next five years as they expand their footprints, modernize and adapt to upcoming health care reforms.”  Read about it at DNAinfo.com

 1/21/12:  Chefs, Butlers, Marble Baths:  Hospitals Vie for the Affluent:  “Pampering and décor to rival a grand hotel, if not a Downton Abbey, have long been the hallmark of such “amenities units,” often hidden behind closed doors at New York’s premier hospitals.”  Read about it in the New York Times

1/22/12:  Massive, Exclusive Full Floor UES Co-op Wants $30M:  “It’s not every day when a unit at the fabled 2 East 67th Street comes onto the market, and this massive full floor unit is certainly impressive.”  See the floor plan and read about it at Curbed

1/24/12:  East River Underwater Turbines Give Jolt to City Power Grid:  Using underwater turbines in the East River off the coast of Roosevelt Island, Verdant Power will be electrifying New York with roughly 1 megawatt captured from the strait’s natural tidal currents — enough for an estimated 1,000 city homes.  Read about it at DNAinfo.com

1/25/12:  A-Rod sells his NYC condo for a considerable profit:  “According to the Wall Street Journal the New York Yankees third baseman has already received a contract for his 3,500-square-foot condo on the 35th floor of the Rushmore building on Manhattan’s Upper West Side.”  Read about it at YAHOO! Sports