From left: Faith Hope Consolo of Prudential Douglas Elliman, Noah Rosenblatt of UrbanDigs.com, Pamela Liebman of the Corcoran Group

As part of its 2010 “Neighborhoods Issue,” New York Magazine asked 10 real estate experts about their picks for the New York City nabes that will offer buyers the most bang for their buck by 2014. Pam Liebman, president and CEO of the Corcoran Group said West Harlem, while Streeteasy.com’s Sofia Song chose Morningside Heights. Melissa Cohn, president of Manhattan Mortgage, said that while southern Yorkville “hasn’t been popular in years,” it’s likely to appreciate in price over the next five years with the advent of the Second Avenue subway line. Retail veteran Faith Hope Consolo of Prudential Douglas Elliman picked the Garment District, where storefront leases are being snapped up west of Penn Station and there are plenty of new condominiums to house their customers. Noah Rosenblatt of UrbanDigs.com chose the Financial District and Jed Walentas of Two Trees Management chose the Far West Side, in the 50s. Other experts had their eyes on the outer boroughs’ Flushing, Bushwick and Prospect Heights neighborhoods. [NY Mag] [more]

From left: Michael Vargas, a principal with Vanderbilt Appraisal Company, Kathryn Higgins, an associate broker with DJK Residential, and Melissa Cohn, president of Manhattan Mortgage

Late last month, Rep. Gary Miller offered an amendment to the House
Financial Services Committee’s “Consumer Financial Protection Act of
2009.” Miller’s amendment — which passed the committee but has yet to
be voted on by the House — stipulated that the Home Valuation Code of
Conduct would ultimately be sunsetted. According to one of the California congressman’s aides, Miller’s
amendment to the House Financial Services Committee’s act will likely
be bundled into a larger financial regulatory reform bill, and
Democrats hope to bring the bill to a vote in Congress sometime next
month. For many New York City-based appraisers and brokers, the end of HVCC cannot come quickly enough. HVCC, which went into effect May 1, requires that a third party with no
stake in a sale select appraisers. The code was designed to promote
appraiser independence and stop appraisers from inflating the value of
a property when it comes to mortgages backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie
Mac. Loan officers, mortgage brokers and agents are not allowed to
select appraisers under HVCC. “I think there are some good elements in the code,” Michael Vargas, a
principal with Vanderbilt Appraisal Company, said. “What was important
to get out there is that applying undue influence on an appraiser is
inappropriate. Promoting appraiser independence is very important.” [more]

As mortgage rates waver between the all-time low of 4.78 percent in
April and last week’s high of 5.67 percent, mortgage brokers are giving
clients the option to lock in rates. While the rates have been bouncing
up and down recently, they are currently climbing up, making it a good
time to lock in a rate, said Melissa Cohn, president of Manhattan
Mortgage. “Inflation is going to kick in and rates are going to go up,”
she said. “I’ve heard talk of double-digit rates again.” On the other
hand, rates could quickly drop below 5 percent, making it less appealing
to lock in a rate now. [more]