The Ritz-Carlton Residences Palm Beach

From the South Florida website: New York and South Florida’s residential market was buoyed by an influx of foreigners last year. But a new player could be emerging from the Far East: China. Generally, Chinese buyers like to purchase where there is already an entrenched Chinese community, with Chinese people and Chinese restaurants — something which New York has, but South Florida lacks right now, said South Florida-based Coldwell Banker Realtor Jeanne Nicastri. But they’re also influenced by their friends, she said, and the more Chinese buyers that decide to make the move, the more that could join them. “Although [South Florida is] a long way from China, we have become very trendy, and we’re on the trendy map,” Nicastri said. “Since they’re already involved in New York, and Miami is an offshoot of New York, that’s what’s driving them to come here.” [more]

From left: Tishman Speyer CEO Jerry Speyer, Hines Interests Chairman Gerald Hines and Simon Property Group CEO David SimonAs commercial construction remains stagnant in America, several high-profile American developers have turned to China for new projects, including several with notable ties to New York.

But for all the obstacles these developers are accustomed to encountering in the city, according to the New York Times there are even more hurdles to clear in China.

In addition to the obvious language and cultural barriers — for example, the Chinese do not consider a contract a binding agreement, and disputes with tenants are better settled over dinner than in a court room — unpredictable policy, layers of bureaucracy and the necessity of building local relationships make the prospect of development difficult. [more]

Trump’s new book[Updated 11:55 a.m. on Dec. 6, 2011] The Donald has a lot to say in his latest book, out today. In between moderating debates for Fox News, taking gold bars as a deposit at 40 Wall Street, mulling a run for office and meeting with Republican presidential nominee hopefuls (as he did today with Newt Gingrich), Trump penned another political book: “Time to Get Tough: Making America #1 Again.”

In the latest advice volume, the developer of real estate from Israel to Florida, suggests that America’s problems are the result of President Barack Obama not loving America enough, that the only way to fix the deficit is to take Iraqi oil by force, and that Trump himself is worth a total of $7 billion, a disputed figure. [more]

Publishing giant Conde Nast is likely to finalize its 1 million-square-foot lease at One World Trade Center by March, developer Douglas Durst told Crain’s today. The Durst Organization has a deal with the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey to buy a $100 million stake in the tower, and scored a major coup last year when the magazine behemoth agreed to relocate from 4 Times Square, which Durst also owns. The only tenant to actually sign a lease at the 2.6 million-square-foot project thus far is China’s Vantone Industrial, but Durst said two government agencies are also in negotiations to lease a combined 1 million square feet. [more]

Architect Dai Haifei and his egg home

While many 20-somethings return to the nest after college, a 24-year-old Beijing architect went a different route: he moved into the egg — an egg-like studio apartment, that is, according to Housing Watch. Dai Haifei, who bemoaned the high cost of living in the Chinese metropolis, designed his six-foot-high abode himself, complete with a green roof that sprouts grass. The egg home, which cost $969 to build and $538 to transport to the city sidewalk, has no kitchen and no bathroom, but does include a small bed and modest furnishings. [more]

China’s government news agency, Xinhua, is planning a move to the
top floor of 1540 Broadway, between 45th and 46th streets, from its
current office in Woodside, Queens, according to the Wall Street
Journal. The relocation would also be an expansion for the agency,
which often serves as a propaganda outlet for the government and which
has recently been making efforts to step up its global coverage. Xinhua
would have a 20-year lease on the space that would become its North
American headquarters. Although it was unclear what the agency would
pay in rent, rates in Times Square office buildings are around $67 per
square foot, according to Reis. Xinhua wouldn’t be the only major new
tenant for the 44-story tower: a massive Forever 21 store just opened
in the retail space downstairs. The office portion is owned by a
private equity fund run by CBRE Investors, a CB Richard Ellis
affiliate, which purchased it for $355 million from Deutsche Bank AG
last year. [WSJ]

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From the May issue: In a city where cramped studio apartments generate six-figure bidding wars, it’s hard to imagine a place where real estate is even pricier. But there are cities out there that can make Park Avenue look like a bargain. According to data from London-based brokerage Knight Frank, $1 million would buy you only about half a studio in Monaco.

This month, The Real Deal took stock of how New York real estate compares to other major international and U.S. cities, from London to Los Angeles. We chose 25 preeminent cities, in different geographic regions, that compete with New York for real estate buyers and tourist dollars, and pored through real estate data from each one.

Which city is struggling most to weather the worldwide financial meltdown? Which has the glitziest and most expensive stretch of retail stores on the planet? Which is stuck trying to unload the most empty office space? Where are the most expensive hotels in the world? And which urban mecca has the world’s most expensive coffee? The answers will undoubtedly surprise you. [more]

The historic building where J. Pierpont Morgan built his banking empire, 23 Wall Street, once a contender for the new home of the New York Stock Exchange, now sits mostly empty after being acquired by a joint Angolan and Chinese venture, the Wall Street Journal reported. China Sonangol International Holding, which has ties both to Angola’s state oil company and reportedly, the Chinese intelligence community, acquired the property from a subsidiary of Lev Leviev’s Africa Israel Investments in late 2008 for $150 million. Africa Israel still manages the property, but its interior renovation is now considered one of the city’s stalled construction sites. [more]

From the February issue:

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From the February issue:

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