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The number of vacant apartment buildings in Manhattan continues to grow as the effects of a recent construction boom and the COVID-19 crisis converge within the city's real estate market. CNBC reports that the number of apartments for rent, or listing inventory "more than doubled... View full entry
Miami's new 62-story luxury residential tower One Thousand Museum is now officially completed with the issuance of its certificate of occupancy from the local building department this week. The property opened for sale of its 84 units last year July when it received a temporary CofO. Vertical... View full entry
The Houston Association of Realtors (HAR) will no longer use the term "master" to describe the primary bedroom of a home on their housing listings. The term "master" has roots in slavery, and HAR says the topic of removing it from realty terminology has been debated for years.
Now, the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) platform that HAR uses for listings, will use "primary bedroom" and "primary bath," HAR said in a statement to CBS News.
— CBS News
"The origin of the terms is debated, and we are not saying they are rooted in slavery. Others didn't personally view them as sexist or racist but believed we should change the terms for anyone else who might find them objectionable. The consensus was that Primary describes the rooms equally as... View full entry
The Charles and Dorothy Manson house is an early example of Frank Lloyd Wright's Usonian houses. Designed in 1938 and completed in 1941, the distinctive horizontal roof line descends four levels down the cascading wooded lot on Wausau's prestigious and historic East Hill neighborhood. — David Wood, Realtor
Looking to pick up a Frank Lloyd Wright Usonian house in central Wisconsin? The early 1940s 4-bedroom, 3-bath Charles L. and Dorothy Manson House in Wausau just entered the market. "Departing from his early Usonian houses with right-angle corners," explains the listing, "Frank Lloyd Wright... View full entry
One Los Angeles city councilman, now out of office, admitted last week that he accepted envelopes of cash from a businessman in casino bathrooms. [...]
Yet another council member allegedly sought a $500,000 cash bribe from a real estate developer, according to a plea deal struck between federal investigators and a political fundraiser who admitted collecting much of the money in a paper bag.
— Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times reporters David Zahniser and Emily Alpert Reyes shed light on the growing number of municipal corruption scandals in Los Angeles. A probe by the Federal Bureau of Investigations has revealed the degree to which real estate development plays a role in feeding “pay-to-play”... View full entry
Amazon Chief Executive Jeff Bezos, the world’s wealthiest person, has purchased a Beverly Hills mansion known as the Warner Estate from media mogul David Geffen for $165 million, a source familiar with the deal said on Wednesday. — Reuters
The hefty price tag of the new abode for Bezos and his girlfriend Lauren Sánchez is believed to be the highest amount ever paid for a home in the Los Angeles area — even beating the recent record-setting transaction of Bel Air's Chartwell mansion which sold for a meager $150 million. The... View full entry
Chinese investors sold off billions more in U.S. commercial property last year than they bought, as other foreigners start to sour on the U.S. market as well.
Foreign investors were net sellers of U.S. commercial real estate last year for the first time since 2012, posing a fresh setback for a market that is already showing signs of strain.
— The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal reports that foreign investors sold $20 billion more in real estate than they bought last year as a number of international economic trends, including Brexit and an ongoing effort by the Chinese government to bring investment back home, converge to make the American real... View full entry
Over the years, the Miami has become synonymous with its collection of ultra-luxe residential towers and its constantly evolving skyline. In fact, with over 300 skyscrapers situated across its various business, residential, and commercial districts, the city offers the "third-largest skyline" in... View full entry
Even though homes aren’t tradable, like soybeans or car parts, home prices across the world have become increasingly synchronized. This reflects a variety of factors, according to the [International Monetary Fund], including the increasing tendency for economic growth and interest rates to move in parallel across nations. — The Wall Street Journal
An interesting report from Sarah Chaney of The Wall Street Journal illuminates some of the ways in which housing markets across the globe—which are currently showing signs of a slowdown—are increasingly falling into line with one another as the power of the global economy... View full entry
Richard Neutra's Lovell Health House in the hills above Los Angeles is reportedly going up for sale. According to a recent report in The Real Deal, the current owner of the 4,807-square-foot cliffside, International Style home is currently working to build buzz around the house in... View full entry
Manhattan is glutted with even more luxury condos than most apartment-shoppers realize. [...]
The secret supply is a heavy weight on a market in which sales, especially of higher-end properties, have slowed to a crawl. It would take take 74 months -- more than 6 years -- to clear all of Manhattan’s unsold units at the pace of contracts in 2019, the report shows.
— Bloomberg
Bloomberg on how a vast "shadow inventory" of nearly 6,000 recently completed units puts added stress on Manhattan's slowing real estate market, especially in the higher-end segment. Related: Condo-boom hangover: More than a quarter of NYC's new units remain unsold View full entry
A dozen guns adorn the dining room wall. Bizarre figurines of bears and rabbits eye you from every living space...The exterior seems normal enough with yellow walls and a clay tile roof, but the 6,170-square-foot interior toes the line between eclectic and downright bizarre. — Los Angeles Times
A Beverly Hills home owned by TV personality and talk show host, Dr. Phil's family trust is up for sale at a price of $5.75 million, reports the Los Angeles Times. "Bizarre" is the word used to describe the sporadically decorated residence, fitted with everything from a grand stair dressed in... View full entry
[...] sobering reality of selling a “starchitect”-designed home: They might have gotten what they paid for in their house’s dramatic lines, luxurious materials, and prestigious pedigree, but when it comes time to sell, the market is often unforgiving. — Bloomberg
Bloomberg on the challenging business of selling luxury homes, custom-designed for their initial owners by famous architects, including a few properties in the U.S. by Rafael Viñoly, Steven Holl, Annabelle Selldorf, and Pritzker Prize laureate Tadao Ando. Related: Does owning a Frank Lloyd Wright... View full entry
There were highs and lows for New York real estate this year. Sales records were broken, but the overall market hit the brakes, even as mortgage rates stayed low. Design took center stage in many new developments, and Hudson Yards opened to great fanfare. — The New York Times
The New York Times takes a look back at the 2019 real estate highlights in the nation's biggest city. The roundup features a number of property stories that were also published (and some hotly debated) on Archinect, including the recently opened, Robert A.M. Stern-designed 220 Central Park... View full entry
Built in 1961, John Lautner's Hollywood Hills Wolff Residence is up for sale, with a $6.5 million asking price. Reminiscent of Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater, Lautner drew inspiration from the work of his mentor. In 2006, the structure was designated a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural... View full entry
