The Real Deal New York

New York condo building still strong, but not for long Is development slowing?” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

The five-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks seems like a good time to take stock of the revival of Lower Manhattan. According to a survey by Jones Lang LaSalle, with additional data gathered by The Real Deal, commercial tenants are increasingly signing big leases. Downtown filling up” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Developers push deeper into Queens enclave, touting short commutes and cheaper prices Beyond Long Island City’s waterfront” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

There’s strength in numbers among city firms, but there’s more strength in notching deals Biggest commercial firms” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

In Northern New Jersey’s slowing market, Passaic County was quick to stall. The state’s northernmost county is experiencing the largest slump in the state’s luxury housing market for the “inner-ring” counties close to Manhattan. [more]

Downtown buildings selling for a fraction of Midtown towers Downtown vs. Midtown building buys: The sales of two cities” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Demand stays high for commercial space in the Manhattan market; asking rents keep rising [more]

Despite ongoing demand for manufacturing space, building owners opting for residential payoff Industrial space suffers conversion crunch” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

West Eighth Street sank gradually into seediness, and revivifying efforts blister its survivors West 8th Street’s retail woes” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Higher-end shopping in new 15 Central Park West aims to surpass Time Warner Center Swankier retail for the lower Upper West Side” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Look beyond obvious bar hotspots like the East Village for new locations, brokers tell clients Brokers grapple with liquor license freeze” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

In the real world, big parcels and premier properties prove tough to value Valuing the big deals: for what it’s worth in New York” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Retailer, founded in Williamsburg, bets on Manhattan with Chelsea, Village stores Brooklyn Industries hopes to spread outer borough chic” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Boulder-based maker of popular shoe style will open first-ever store in Soho next spring Crocs crawl from Colorado to the city” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Corporations are playing musical chairs as they shift properties around Fairfield County. Connecticut Office Market: Stamford finds money in the banks” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

The Northern New Jersey commercial market teeters like a scale, leaving forecasters guessing whether growth or decline will tilt. New Jersey Office Market: Lawmakers’ balancing act with taxes” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

A minor increase in vacancy, a decrease in absorption, and steady rental rates resulted in a middling second-quarter showing for the Westchester office market. Westchester Office Market: IBM: It’s Been Mediocre” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

With healthy absorption, asking rents, vacancy and availability, the commercial market in Long Island remains stable, yet the completion of current construction may shake up the market and disturb this balance. Long Island Office Market: Office development could roil still waters” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Robert Futterman talks New York retail, from the mom- and-pop shops to Wal-Mart in the city to the u The Real Deal Podcast: Robert Futterman” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

What is your name?

David Walentas.

Where did you grow up?

I grew up in Rochester, N.Y.

Which college did you attend?

I went to the University of Virginia on a Navy ROTC scholarship and graduated in 19-something, in mechanical engineering. I also went to Darden business school, also at the University of Virginia, and graduated in 1964.

As a poor kid from Upstate, engineering is what you did in the ’50s. I would have gone to architecture school, but that was a five-year program and I only had a four-year scholarship.

What has been your biggest contribution to society?

My kid, Jed, who is terrific. But, in a larger sense, probably Dumbo. As a large urban development, it is one of the few things that will matter in 100 years.

You make it sound like you are solely responsible for Dumbo.

I am solely responsible. My wife Jane, who has been my partner, certainly she was responsible, but we didn’t get a lot of help from the government and nobody wanted to work with us for a long time. Nobody really got it. The planning people didn’t get it. The community board voted against every rezoning we proposed down there. The banks all quit. My partners all quit, so we ended up with all the marbles.

What is your greatest achievement professionally?

Clearly Dumbo has defined my life for the last 25 years, my whole adult life. And it has been entirely successful on every level. When I first got there, it was vacant industrial buildings. We bought 2 million square feet from Harry Helmsley for $12 million. We are going to sell one apartment in the Clock Tower [Building] probably for twice that.

If you were mayor of New York, what is the first thing you would change about the city, and what would you fight to keep the same?

I would bring Mike Bloomberg as my first deputy mayor. He really is the best. He runs the city like a business.

What is your philosophy on love? Money?

I love them both. Money is interesting. I grew up a very poor boy. I didn’t know anybody who had gone to college. I was happy when I was poor and hitchhiking, drinking beer and chasing girls. And I am happy now. Money loses its value. It’s like eating. Once you are full, food doesn’t seem as appealing. Right now, I am only thinking about giving money away.

Who is your hero?

I don’t have heroes, but Mike Bloomberg is someone I respect.

Who is your mentor?

I never had a mentor. My mother was terrific. My father was paralyzed when I was 5, so my mother would have to work and take care of everything.

What’s your idea of the perfect Sunday afternoon?

Sunday is just another day. But we do like to spend weekends on our farm in Southampton.

How big is your farm?

It’s a 115-acre farm. It’s a nice piece of land.

Do you feel the world needs more people like you? Why?

I am an entrepreneur, and I think entrepreneurs are the people that make this country great.

Give advice to someone 20 years younger and in the same field.

I don’t know. I can only say what I would do if I was young today. I would find an Asian woman, get married, and move to China or India or somewhere like that.

What do you read every day?

I read the New York Times, unfortunately. Other than that, I don’t read the papers every day; maybe the [New York] Post for entertainment.

What’s your biggest pet peeve?

Obnoxious people.

What time do you get in on Mondays and what time do you leave on Fridays?

I live across the street so the commute is short, but I am in the office everyday by 8 a.m. I like to work. I am better when I work.

What do you consider to be the greatest vice?

I don’t have any bad habits.

Do you have a Donald Trump story?

My son, Jed, worked for Donald. When he graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, I told him that he couldn’t work for me. So, Trump gave him an offer and Donald loved him.

After two years with him, we converted the Clock Tower, and I called Donald and told him that I needed Jed and Donald says, “No, you can’t take him. I taught him everything he knows.” I said, “But I am converting the Clock Tower and I need him here.” He didn’t skip a beat; he said, “OK, give me 10 percent of that project and put my name on it.” Of course, we didn’t do that, because it has my son’s name on it.

How much money do you have in your wallet right now?

I don’t have a wallet.

Where did the name of your firm, Two Trees, come from?

I used to have a business partner, but he died 30 years ago. His grandmother had a farm in South Carolina called that, and we were two people; hence, the Two Trees.

How do you deal with antagonists? Confront or ignore them?

I definitely am confrontational, but I’ve mellowed.

What should be the first sentence of your eulogy, and who should give it?

I am not thinking about that. I am not there yet.

Offers due for Stuyvesant Town, Cooper Village
Offers were due on Oct. 5 for Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village, the 11,232-unit package being sold by MetLife. Potential buyers include the Lefrak Organization, the Related Companies, Starwood Capital Group and ING Clarion. Because the deal is likely to require as much $1.5 billion in equity, the buyer will probably be a joint venture, the New York Times reported. Darcy Stacom of CB Richard Ellis is marketing the properties.

5 Times Square back on the market
Five Times Square is back on the market and could sell for more than $1.25 billion, the New York Post reported. Boston Properties, the real estate investment trust led by Mort Zuckerman, tried this past spring to sell the 39-story, 1.1-million-square-foot skyscraper in a package deal with 280 Park Avenue to Dubai-based Istithmar, but that deal fell through. Eastdil Secured is marketing 5 Times Square.

Fashion District buildings could fetch $55M
Two office buildings, located at 252 West 37th Street and 256 West 38th Street, are expected to sell for $55 million, GlobeSt.com reported. The 252 West 37th Street building is 18 stories and has 148,766 square feet; 256 West 38th Street is 14 stories and has 104,350 square feet. The exclusive sales agents are Kenneth Zakin and Randall Liberman of Newmark Knight Frank.

Murray Hill apartment building for sale
The nine-story, 75-unit apartment building at 7-9 East 32nd Street is on the market with an asking price of $30 million. The 34,394-square-foot building has 14,981 square feet of air rights and can be converted into a condominium or operated as a rental. One of the units is rent-stabilized; the other 74 are free-market. John Ciraulo, Craig Waggner and Lawrence Norman of Massey Knakal are marketing the property.

Upper East Side apartment building on the block
The five-story, 16-unit building at 38-40 East 72nd Street is on the market with an asking price of $26 million. The 16,186-square-foot building will be delivered vacant except for four rent-stabilized units. Paul Massey, Guthrie Garvin and Jonathan Hageman of Massey Knakal are the sales agents.

33rd Street housing portfolio asking $17.6M
The 33rd Street Apartment Portfolio, which comprises 66 units in four properties, is on the market with an asking price of $17.6 million, or $266,667 per unit. The properties are located at 243 East 33rd Street, 244 East 33rd Street, 247 East 33rd Street and 333-335 East 33rd Street. Peter Von Der Ahe and Joseph Koicim of Marcus & Millichap are representing the seller, a family based in New York City.

Long Island City conversion option on the block
The four-story industrial building at 35-11 9th Street and the 5,000-square-foot parking lot down the block at 35-31 9th Street are on the market with an asking price of $14.7 million. The building has a 42,000-square-foot footprint and can be converted to residential. The parking lot can support 6,250 square feet of residential development. Alfonso Holloman and Evan Daniel of Massey Knakal are the exclusive sales agents.

Upper West Side co-op asking $13.75M
The 11,275-square-foot commercial co-op that occupies the entire ground floor of 257 Central Park West, also known as 2 West 86th Street, is on the sales market with an asking price of $13.75 million. It is currently configured as medical suites. Meyrick Ferguson and Paul Smadbeck of Massey Knakal are the exclusive sales agents.

Midtown commercial building for sale
The eight-story commercial building at 17 East 47th Street is on the market with an asking price of $13 million. The 19,425-square-foot property currently houses the Mercantile Library on the first five floors and can be delivered vacant. Zoning allows for 37,500 square feet of development. Paul Smadbeck and Mark Spinelli of Massey Knakal are the exclusive sales agents.

Manhattan Valley apartments on the block
The five-story, 18-unit apartment building at 69 West 107th Street is on the sales market with an asking price of $11.25 million. All the units are rent stabilized, and the building also has one store. Meyrick Ferguson, Karen Shulman and Hall Oster of Massey Knakal are the exclusive sales agents.

Market stayed tough for brokers from summer into fall Inventory moderates as prices drop” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Inventory dearth dogs ultra-luxury market; rents up on higher-end spreads [more]

“Phantom” listings irk city brokers, buyers [more]

Brokers say landlords offer incentives in fringe areas, and newer buildings still see plenty [more]

Making a living as a New York rental broker isn’t an easy proposition in any market, as picky tenants angle for discounts and incentives, or refuse to commit to anything but the perfect space in a time of scarce inventory and fierce competition. [more]

In Northern New Jersey’s slowing market, Passaic County was quick to stall. The state’s northernmost county is experiencing the largest slump in the state’s luxury housing market for the “inner-ring” counties close to Manhattan. [more]

Experts say demand’s there for city-specific lending info — but no one sees it coming anytime soon Imagine a Manhattan with its own mortgage data” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Who is looking to buy in two of the city’s most popular neighborhoods — and why [more]

Brian Phillips, associate broker at Sotheby’s International
Realty, was the listing broker for a townhouse at 320 Convent Avenue
that sold for $3.89 million. [The price and address came from city
records because Phillips was barred from discussing specifics due to a
confidentiality agreement.] “It is
difficult to persuade buyers to pay a record price for properties
Uptown because a lot of these listing prices in Harlem are not comp
supported. It’s especially difficult because what do you base that on?”
Sean Futterman
is the senior on-site sales agent for the Griffin Real Estate Group,
the exclusive marketing and sales firm for The Lenox at 380 Lenox
Avenue. “I’m jealous of my buyer. I wish I could buy the apartment myself, of course, and, eventually, I will.”
[more]

Clinton Hill
609 Myrtle Avenue
The six-story, 18-unit condominium is slated to be completed in winter 2006. One- and two-bedrooms will range in size from 738 to 1,084 square feet, with prices starting at $535,000. The project will also have 3,920 square feet of commercial space and nine for-sale parking spaces. NAM Realty Associates is the developer. The Developers Group is the sales and marketing agent. Contact: www.thedevelopersgroup.com.

East Harlem
The Ivy Condominium
249 East 118th Street
Warburg Marketing Group announced early last month the opening of sales for the 10-story, 28-unit condominium. Amenities include balconies and wrapping terraces with city views. Prices for the one- and two-bedrooms start at $350,000. Contact: www.warburgrealty.com.

Greenwich Village
184 Thompson Street
The sales office is open for Broad Street Development’s eight-story, 140-unit condominium, and units are available for immediate occupancy. The 90,000-square-foot project offers studios to two-bedrooms ranging in size from 400 to 1,800 square feet; 20 one-bedroom penthouses are also available. Prices start at $385,000. The Developers Group is the exclusive sales and marketing agent. Contact: www.184thompson.com.

Midtown East
5 East 44th Street
A six-story office building near Grand Central Station will be turned into a 20-unit luxury condominium by its new owner, an entity controlled by developer Sam Suzuki. The 12,778-square-foot building, built in 1940, will be demolished to make room for the new condo, which will be designed by architect Alan Richie of the Philip Johnson firm.

Midtown West
405 West 53rd Street
SDS Procida plans to begin construction on the seven-story, 82-unit condominium in spring 2007. Henry Smith-Miller is the architect. Completion is slated for fall 2008.

Midtown West
785 Eighth Avenue and 306 West 48th Street
A 40-story, 119-unit luxury condominium tower will rise at the site, the New York Sun reported. When completed, the building will have 92,000 square feet of residential and 1,663 square feet of retail space. The building is a development of Ulo Barad, David Scharf’s Esplanade Capital, and Jay Eisenstadt, as well as an entity consisting of partners of Navillus Corporation.

Midtown West
David Walentas’ Two Trees Management went into contract early last month to buy an 11th Avenue site where it hopes to build up to 1,000 apartments, the New York Post reported. Two Trees will buy most of the block on the east side of the avenue between 53rd and 54th streets. Walentas wants the city to rezone the land from its current manufacturing-commercial designation to residential, which would enable him to build apartments as well as new stores, parking and community-use facilities.

Morningside Heights
Cathedral Gardens
West 110th Street and Manhattan Avenue
Barnard College has completed one of the nation’s first multi-use college dormitories. Just south of Morningside Park, the 15-story building includes 25 private condominium units, two ground-floor commercial spaces, a community garden, and dorms for students and faculty. The building has two separate street entrances and lobbies for Barnard and the other residents.

Riverdale
Solaria
640 West 237th Street
Sales are under way at Arc Development’s 20-story, 65-unit condominium. Amenities include a rooftop observatory and telescope, and buyers will receive a one-year membership to the Amateur Astronomer’s Association of New York and to the New York Museum of Natural History. Prices for the one- to five-bedrooms start at $720,000. Occupancy is expected by the end of the year. The Marketing Directors is the marketing and exclusive sales agent. Contact: www.solariariverdale.com.

Rosebank
191 Edgewater Street
The city last month green-lighted developer Raymond Chan’s plan to convert a former chewing gum factory in northern Staten Island into a luxury condominium. The seven-story Wrigley Building on the waterfront of the Rosebank neighborhood will be converted into 92 luxury units, the Staten Island Advance reported. A freestanding parking garage will go up across the street.

St. George
The Pointe
155 Bay Street
Sales were set to begin last month at developer Leib Puretz’s five-story, 58-unit condominium. The 1,100-square-foot two-bedrooms will sell for approximately $500,000, according to the New York Times. Another of Puretz’s projects, a nine-story, 101-unit condominium at 130 Bay Street Landing, will go on sale in early 2007. The penthouses will have two to four bedrooms and start at $1 million. Casandra Properties is the sales agent. Puretz is also building an eight-story, 40-unit building called the View at the corner of Richmond Terrace and Nicholas Street, according to the Staten Island Advance. And he is in preliminary discussions with the city to build two 21-story residential towers with a total of 160 units overlooking the Richmond County Ballpark and New York Harbor.

Construction Update

Brooklyn Heights
Love Lane
Developer Sterling Equities wants to build a 40-unit condominium tower on what is now a 400-car parking garage, the New York Daily News reported. The project was expected to reach the Landmarks Preservation Commission by this fall.

Bryant Park
485 Fifth Avenue
The former Tommy Hilfiger headquarters is no longer being converted into condominiums, the Post reported. Because of slow sales, developers Belfonti Capital Partners and the Carlyle Group are reportedly planning to convert the project into a hotel. Buyers of about half of the 107 condo units planned for the building are getting their deposits back.

Flushing
129-43 Northern Boulevard
The plans for the redevelopment of the RKO Keith’s theatre site may change, the Queens Tribune reported. Boymelgreen Developers wants to change about 25 percent of the planned units to much larger lofts — 2,000 to 2,500 square feet each — for home businesses. Most of the site is supposed to be residential condos.

Greenwood Heights
614 Seventh Avenue
The city Board of Standards and Appeals last month barred developer Chaim Nussencweig from building a seven-story, 30,000-square-foot condominium tower that would have disrupted the wave between the Statue of Liberty and a statue of Minerva in Green-Wood Cemetery, the Daily News reported. Nussencweig can appeal the decision or develop a building limited in height to 50 feet.

Midtown East
330 East 57th Street
The condominium’s 14 full-floor units are slated for occupancy in fall 2006. Prices for the 1,891-square-foot three-bedrooms start at $2.3 million. Prudential Douglas Elliman is the sales agent.

Midtown West
The Mosaic
10th Avenue between 51st and 53rd Streets
The Dermot Company and Bovis Lend Lease held a topping-out ceremony for the 627-unit mixed-use project early last month. The two 24-story towers are scheduled to be completed in 2007.

Prospect Heights
On Prospect Park
1 Grand Army Plaza
SDS Procida and Sheldon Group Holdings held a topping-out ceremony for the 15-story, Richard Meier-designed condominium early last month. The 114-unit building offers one- to four-bedrooms, with occupancy slated for fall 2008. Corcoran is the marketing and sales agent. Contact: www.onprospectpark.com.

Tribeca
Block bounded by West, Washington, Watts and Desbrosses streets
The Jack Parker Corporation has reached an agreement with local residents to build residential towers along the Hudson waterfront. The agreement limits the scope of the buildings, capping those on Washington Street at 110 feet and those on West Street at 140 feet — down from 120 feet and 160 feet, respectively. Individual retail spaces were cut by half, to 10,000 square feet. The City Council passed the proposal in mid-August, the Downtown Express reported.

Financing

Fort Greene
Clermont Condominiums
A developer plans to build a 52-unit condominium near Fort Greene Park. The one- to three-bedroom units will average 937 square feet. Wrightwood Capital provided a $3 million construction loan for the project.

Long Island City
515-525 Borden Avenue
A developer plans to build a 12-story, 81-unit residential condominium on the site, along with 60 parking spaces. Units on the top six floors will have unobstructed views of the East River and Manhattan. Hudson Realty Capital funded a 12-month, $8 million bridge loan for the project. The total purchase price for the property was $12.6 million.

Lower Manhattan
20 Exchange Place
The Singer and Bassuk Organization announced last month that it secured $210 million in residential Liberty Bond financing for Ronny Bruckner and Nathan Berman’s conversion of the top 41 floors of the 57-story office building into 369 luxury rental units. The ground floor and four lower levels will house retail space. Floors two to 15 will remain commercial.

Sales Update

Chelsea
Slate
165 West 18th Street
The 29-unit condominium was 60 percent sold as of late August, according to the Post. Prices range from $975,000 to $1.275 million for the one- and two-bedrooms. The building is expected to open this fall. Contact: www.slatecondos.com.

Long Island City
The Echelon
13-11 Jackson Avenue
Sales have begun at the 13-story, 54-unit condominium, which is scheduled to open in 2007. The project offers units ranging from 503-square-foot studios priced at $345,000 to 1,176-square-foot two-bedroom penthouses priced at more than $1 million, according to the Post. On-site parking spaces sell for $40,000 to $50,000. The Developers Group is the exclusive sales and marketing agent. Contact: www.echelonlic.com.

Lower East Side
Switch Building
109 Norfolk Street
Sales have begun at the six-story, five-unit condominium. The first unit to go on the market is a 1,446-square-foot two-bedroom on the third floor. The asking price is $1.425 million. The second, fourth and fifth floors are now under construction, and a 1,878-square-foot duplex penthouse with a 1,004-square-foot terrace will also be available. Prudential Douglas Elliman is the exclusive sales agent. Contact: www.109norfolk.com.

Midtown
The Sheffield
322 West 57th Street
The sales office was scheduled to open on Sept. 15 at the 50-story mixed-use residential tower, the Sun reported.

Murray Hill
Morgan Lofts
11 East 36th Street
One-third of the condominium’s 57 units went on sale in April, and 90 percent of those had sold by mid-September, according to the Times. Prices for the studios to two-bedrooms start at $496,440 and run to $2.2 million. The Corcoran Group is marketing the project. Contact: www.morgan-lofts.com.

Murray Hill
45 Park Avenue
Between April and mid-September, 30 percent of the condominium’s 105 units had been sold, according to the Times. Its one- to three-bedrooms are on the market, with prices ranging from $900,000 to $2.32 million. Contact: www.45parkave.com.

Murray Hill
The Charleston
225 East 34th Street
The sales office was scheduled to open on Sept. 17 for the 22-story, 191-unit condominium tower. Prices for the studios to three-bedrooms — most of which have outdoor balconies and terraces — run from $595,000 to $2.2 million, according to the Times. Occupancy is slated for summer 2007. Prudential Douglas Elliman is the exclusive marketing and sales agent. Contact: www.thecharlestonnyc.com.

Upper East Side
985 Park Avenue
Approximately 50 percent of the 15-story condominium tower’s seven units had sold by late August, within three months of the start of sales. The duplexes and triplexes, ranging in size from 2,469 to 3,100 square feet, start at $5.3 million. Completion is slated for spring 2007. Fox-Miller Marketing Services is the on-site sales associate. Contact: www.985park.com.

Williamsburg
Roebling Square
80 Roebling Street
By the beginning of last month, 90 percent of the project’s 36 units had been sold. Sales began in the spring. Prices for the penthouses, which start at $755,000, averaged $800 per square foot. Prudential Douglas Elliman is the marketing and sales agent.

Development in Brief

Manhattan (north to south)

20 East 76th Street
The 131-room Surrey Hotel at 76th Street and Madison Avenue is expected to be sold to a developer who will convert the property to a residential cooperative, the New York Sun reported.

259-263 West 45th Street
The Related Companies recently acquired the site, and is expected along with Boston Properties to buy a parking lot adjacent to it. A major residential tower is expected to rise on the site, according to the Sun.

693-699 Eighth Avenue
and 307-321 West 43rd Street
Steve Witkoff and a minority partner, Harwood Properties, plan to construct a 250,000-square-foot residential condominium with approximately 256 units, according to the Sun.

Brooklyn

203 Jay Street
Amtrust Realty Corporation recently purchased the 20,000-square-foot Downtown Brooklyn site, currently used as a parking lot. Zoning allows for the development of a 20-story, 130,000-square-foot residential building.

New Developments from Previous Month

More pricey off-site sales hubs try to lure buyers; Meier’s Brooklyn project to open offices in Trib Sales centers migrate far from fresh condos” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

A dozen rental and condo projects under way downtown; projects increase off the waterfront Jersey City developers defy housing slowdown” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

The conversion’s 600 units will spill a lot of luxury onto a slower sales market — will buyers bite The Sheffield steps onto the condo stage” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Three new developments in Harlem aim to alter perceptions of where to buy higher-end condos Pushing the 110th Street limit for luxury living” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Architects weigh whether developers will shell out for good design as sales slow Architect Q & A: Sketching fresh drafts in a cost-conscious market” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Brooklyn and Queens lead new project filings as city heads for first annual drop in 10 years Boroughs stanch citywide permit decline” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Conversion draws buyers, tourists; 25 percent sold since June Towering expectations for Williamsburgh Bank building” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Clinton library a commercial boon for downtown Little Rock
Little Rock residents once viewed Bill Clinton’s presidential library with the same mixed emotions that have long surrounded its favorite son, but the daring design is now an established tourist attraction that’s led to the commercial revitalization of the area. The $165 million Clinton Presidential Center drew about 500,000 visitors last year. The complex in the state capital includes a park, a replica of the Clinton-era Oval Office and a repository of presidential documents. The library, built on an industrial stretch along the riverfront, now dominates an area that’s become a major draw for visitors, according to a recent report in the Wall Street Journal. The boost to the area goes beyond tourist attractions, with projects such as the $27.5 million headquarters of Heifer International, an organization that addresses world hunger issues, as well as residential development and several renovated hotels as a result of the library.

–
Atlanta

Commercial
Downtown construction has doubled over the last year, and now 3.3 million square feet of office space is in the works in central Atlanta. That will swell the rolls of Class A space in the city, which now has only seven large buildings with premium commercial space. Market observers say it’s the most office construction in the area since 2001, but believe the pace will soon slow due to rising construction costs and questions about long-term demand, the Atlanta Business Chronicle reported.

Commercial
Atlanta is preparing itself for the surge of hotels it will have in the next few years. By 2010, there will be at least 38 new hotels with 3,831 rooms. This surge of hotels is part of the rebounding market since September 11, when the city’s hospitality market went flat, the Atlanta Business Chronicle reported. According to PKF Consulting, Atlanta has about 53 hotels in the planning or development stages that could bring more than 7,100 rooms to the city. Critics say developers are planning new projects based on the high occupancy rates in the current hotel market but not considering long-term factors.

Boston

Residential
Nearly 700 incoming residential units for two projects in South Boston and Allston were recently approved by the Boston Redevelopment Authority. Boston-based Intercontinental Real Estate Corp. will build the larger of the two projects in South Boston. The development will consist of 585 units, 76 of which are affordable housing, on a 243,000-square-foot site. In Allston, another 100 units will take the place of a former garage building. Leggat McCall Properties of Boston is developing the six-story building in the residential neighborhood, reported GlobeSt.com.

Commercial
One of the area’s largest universities plans to expand by at least 1 million square feet. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge plans to add an apartment complex as well as three academic buildings. The $750 million expansion adds technologically advanced facilities for students and faculty and addresses the school’s housing shortage, the Boston Globe reported. MIT spent $175 million last year on a science building and $300 million on its Frank Gehry-designed Stata Center for computer science and artificial intelligence studies in 2004.

Chicago

Commercial
Chicago Mayor Richard Daley killed the city’s big-box ordinance last month. The measure, passed this summer by the City Council, sought to regulate the wages of workers in retail stores over 90,000 square feet. Daley, who vetoed the ordinance, received support the second time around from the City Council, when it struck down the plan to force giant retailers to pay higher wages and benefits. Daley said the ordinance would impede retail growth and retailers would open up outside the city just beyond the reach of urban residents. Retail brokers say that when the measure was initially voted in, retail development in Chicago slowed down, Commercial Property News reported.

Commercial
Chicago’s hotel market is heating up so quickly that investors are able to flip properties in less than a year. Prime properties are being held for less time as investors pay more per room, the Chicago Tribune reported. The city saw $1.45 billion in deals through August, according to research firm Real Capital Analytics.

Las Vegas

Residential
High demand for apartments in Las Vegas is driving rents up. The Las Vegas Review Journal reported that the average rent in residential neighborhoods increased almost 2 percent in the second quarter and more than 5 percent in the past year. In surrounding areas, Henderson had the highest average rent at $945 a month with 96.3 percent occupancy, followed by North Las Vegas at $905 a month with 95.7 percent occupancy. Brokers say the rental market is benefiting from lack of inventory as well as the slow single-family home sales market.

Commercial
The supply of construction labor in Las Vegas is so tight that some developments are being postponed. Construction was responsible for 113,500 jobs this July, reported the Las Vegas Business Press. As a result of the building boom, it has become the second-largest industry in Las Vegas. The Las Vegas Strip has experienced much of the growth spurt. According to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, $14.7 billion in resort expansions are planned for 2009. Some developers say the demand for expansions is there, but labor resources are tied up for the next three to four years.

Los Angeles

Residential
The number of home sales in Los Angeles continues to drop. Although 9,193 homes sold in Los Angeles County in August, it was more than a 20 percent drop from the same time last year. Market observers say it was the ninth consecutive month of decreasing year-over-year sales, but some experts predict the plunge will stop by mid-2007, the San Jose Mercury News reported.

New Orleans

Residential
The biggest multifamily deal in Louisiana history closed in late August when the Esplanade at City Park changed hands. Business partners Kenneth Heller and Howard Stone sold the 550,000-square-foot property for $46 million. The seven-story, 443-unit property, which is around 30 years old, is more than 97 percent occupied, reported Commercial Property News.

Phoenix

Commercial
A number of proposed full-service hotels are being readied for development at the intersection of the Santan Freeway and Price Road in the suburb of Chandler. If they are built, more than 1,000 units will alter the landscape at the busy intersection, reported the Arizona Business Gazette. A Renaissance ClubSport, a Marriott brand hotel, is already under construction. Construction is also nearing for a high-rise Embassy Suites and a Homewood Suites. Investment advisers say the cluster of hotels would boost Chandler’s status in metro Phoenix as well as increase tourism and business activity.

Residential
Phoenix’s once-stellar housing market is still shining — just not as brightly. Homes are spending more time on the market since interest rates began rising. The median home price slipped since the first quarter, and residential building permit numbers fell about 35 percent since the beginning of 2006, the Arizona Republic reported. Brokers say new arrivals to the city are increasingly gravitating toward rentals because of high prices.

San Francisco

Residential
Homeowners in San Francisco will see insurance rates fall this year. One of the largest insurance carriers in the state, State Farm, announced plans to cut home insurance rates by 10 percent for 1.2 million policy holders. According to critics, rising insurance rates in the past year played a role in slowing the San Francisco Bay Area housing market. The Oakland Tribune reported a number of insurance carriers would follow, further lowering homeowner rates.

Washington, D.C.

Residential
Strong job growth should cushion any housing market dip in Northern Virginia, experts say. In the last year alone, 73,400 new jobs were created in the District of Columbia area, which has the lowest unemployment rate in the U.S. at 3.3 percent, the Falls Church News-Press reported. Most of those fresh jobs were created in Northern Virginia, fueling a steady demand for housing.

Condo-hotel overflow in Florida market

South Florida’s condo-hotel market is risking a glut.

Florida has more condo-hotel units in the pipeline than anywhere else in the country, but analysts say the expected 31,500 condo-hotel rooms may be too much for consumers. At least 30 projects are under way in Broward and Palm Beach counties, the Sun-Sentinel newspaper reported. Miami-Dade County, where total figures weren’t available, also has been an ideal spot for condo-hotels because of its booming hotel market.

Investors often choose condo-hotels as a good alternative to second homes, and buy hotel rooms from developers who also rent the properties when owners aren’t there. Condo-hotels can sell for between $200,000 and $3 million and rent for as much as $300 a night.

As of July, there were nearly 106,000 condo-hotel rooms planned nationwide. Nevada developers’ ambitions rank second to Florida, with more than 30,000 rooms planned, while California is a distant third.

Homeowners hit again with insurance charges

South Floridians with homeowner insurance will pay more to bail out a state property insurance fund. New charges are intended to lower the $1.7 billion deficit of the state-backed home insurance Citizens Property Insurance Corp., which is considering adding another extra charge to all homeowners as the scandal-plagued organization tries to recover from the cost of recent hurricanes. The approved cost will be $20.70 for every $1,000 of annual premium paid.

The extra charge will go into effect in late 2006 and early next year, reported the Sun-Sentinel. South Florida homeowners have already seen insurance price increases as a result of the deficit.

Brokers say the housing market in South Florida has suffered as a result of the home insurance increases.

Condominium market continues to slow

According to the Florida Association of Realtors, condo sales statewide dropped 37 percent during the first six months of 2006 from the same period last year; 4,260 condominiums sold this year as opposed to 6,739 units in 2005.

In Miami, 837 units were sold January through June, a 12 percent decrease from last year’s 949 units. Market watchers say the recent lull is a short-term issue due to the surge of units.

Developers shift to affordable housing

As Miami’s luxury condo market softens, the affordable housing market is picking up.

Developers recently announced plans to build residential developments that provide affordable units to the middle class.

One local developer, MFM Construction Corp., is bringing forth the 132-unit River Grand condo project to NW 15th Avenue, just west of Downtown. Units run from the low $200,000s to the high $300,000s.

Another developer is building a 168-unit condo at 5400 West Hallandale Beach Boulevard in Pembroke Park. Units start at $165,000.

“There’s been such a surge in luxury condominiums over the past five years,” said Cara Mantovani of Mantovani Real Estate, which is brokering sales for the Pembroke Park project. “There’s a tremendous demand for this type of housing in South Florida.”

Vulture funds swoop in on cooling South Florida market

Investors are looking to profit from the downturn in the South Florida housing market through vulture funds and by picking up preconstruction condos that speculators are desperately looking to sell, according to the Sun-Sentinel.

Mark Zilbert, president of Zilbert Realty Group in Miami Beach, said that half the buyers who hold contracts on preconstruction condos — most of them speculators — don’t want to complete the purchases on their condos.

“They just want their deposit back to get out of it,” he told the newspaper. “So an opportunity lies for someone approaching a buyer who bought an apartment in 2003 or 2004 and offering them their contract price.”

Zilbert said that the investor has to be prepared to settle on the unit and hold it for a year or so in order to turn a profit — which may or may not be the case depending on how the market fares going forward.

Others are putting money into vulture funds to pick up bargains when they think the market has hit bottom. Deerfield Beach real estate analyst Jack McCabe, who has formed McCabe Acquisitions LLC for such investments, is taking minimum investments of $5 million for the fund. He plans to acquire blocks of condos in multifamily developments and said he’s prepared to hold the properties for up to 10 years.

Miami Briefs from Previous Month

Slumping sales could mean more rental development as banks raise lending requirements [more]

Brooklyn area starts to thrive as bargain home hunters swell its population Kensington: Downhill from the Slope, interest climbing sharply” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Higher-end retail, posh condos dot Lower East Side strip; Salvation Army site latest conversion From flophouses to fancy on the Bowery” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

‘Modern’ condos rise in Queens enclave, drawing those priced out of Williamsburg and LIC Signs of change lift clouds over Sunnyside” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Everyone agrees the growing Brooklyn enclave needs more retail. But what kinds will thrive? Williamsburg boutiques may give way to big-box bevy” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Twenty-two years in real estate taught Kenneth Malian to look closely at every market, which bolstered his belief that some sites would inevitably be overlooked as the most recent building boom swept through Manhattan. Traffic doesn’t halt builders’ Holland Tunnel condo vision” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Landlord’s battle illustrates trend of buying deteriorating buildings for big profits Pinnacle Group: One big city landlord and many little headaches” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Deputy mayor: City likes World Trade Center site retail
The city is satisfied with retail plans at Ground Zero, according to Deputy Mayor Daniel Doctoroff. The designs for three new office towers at Ground Zero will include 800,000 square feet of retail space. That’s enough, Doctoroff said last month, to satisfy the city’s demands for a substantial retail presence at the site. Most of this retail will be above ground and concentrated on Church Street.

Effort to keep Stuyvesant Town, Cooper Village affordable
City Councilman Daniel Garodnick, a longtime resident of the Peter Cooper Village and Stuyvesant Town complex, is organizing a group of investors in the hopes of buying the complex to keep its more than 11,200 apartments affordable. MetLife, the complex’s owner, announced last month it wanted to sell Cooper Village and Stuyvesant Town for reportedly around $5 billion.

Group may toss Governors Island bids
The Governors Island Preservation and Education Group may toss out all the bids to revamp the 172-acre island between Brooklyn and Manhattan, Crain’s reported. The costs of the bids are reportedly too high. The city-state agency in August pared the list of Governors Island bidders to 10.

New World Trade Center site tower designs unveiled
New designs were unveiled last month for Towers 2, 3 and 4 at the World Trade Center site. Each is designed by a renowned architect — Norman Foster, Richard Rogers and Fumihiko Maki — and, together, the towers will occupy sites between Church and Greenwich streets, along the eastern edge of the trade center site. All three could be completed within the next six years.

MTA mulls other bids for Hudson rail yards
Metropolitan Transportation Authority chairman Peter Kalikow said last month that the MTA is considering other bidders besides the city to buy the Hudson Rail Yards on the far West Side, the New York Post reported. Two weeks earlier, the MTA got a new appraisal of the 26-acre railyards. The valuation is $1.5 billion — three times the city’s bid of $500 million, the New York Times reported.

Developer may reduce size of Atlantic Yards project
The size of the proposed Atlantic Yards project in downtown Brooklyn may soon be reduced. Developer Forest City Ratner is mulling a 6 to 8 percent reduction in the project’s size, which would eliminate hundreds of apartments and slash the height of the project’s tallest tower, the Times reported.

Manhattan DA charges four with contractor extortion
Four men from Akbar’s Community Services and P & D Construction Workers have been charged by the Manhattan district attorney with shaking down construction sites around New York City. Their victims were numerous contractors and minority workers who were forced, under threat of violence, to hand over a large portion of their pay, the New York Sun reported.

City nabs unlicensed home contractors
The city announced last month that it had caught 135 home contractors operating without licenses, the New York Daily News reported. The crackdown was based on recent homeowner complaints.

Building New York City on platforms
More details are trickling out about the Bloomberg administration’s plans for accommodating the 9 million New Yorkers expected to populate the city at the end of the next 20 years. Among the details: Building a platform over Sunnyside Yards, the 166-acre commuter train yard in Queens, which would support 35,300 apartments, the New York Observer reported.

Politics snarls Moynihan Station plans
The proposed Moynihan Station transit hub is snarled in a major imbroglio that involves development firms Vornado and the Related Companies as well as Gov. Pataki, the Empire State Development Corporation, state Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and many others, the Observer reported. The plans to revamp the Farley Post Office Annex have evolved into much larger plans that include moving Madison Square Garden a block west.

Likely governor sounds off on Atlantic Yards, Freedom Tower, rent regulation and more Spitzer’s views on city real estate issues emerging” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Electronic checks will speed mortgage application process, but may spur ID thefts Ken Harney – IRS to electronically verify buyers’ incomes” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Pressure’s on appraisers to try new approaches in cooler market Ken Harney – Home appraisal in slower times” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

A story in the September issue, “Lawyers head west in Times Square,” misstated the name of a broker at Studley. He is David Goldstein.

A story in the September issue, “Forest Hills arrives late to development game,” listed the incorrect Massey Knakal Realty broker who marketed the so-called Yellowstone Portfolio at 64-22 108th Street. The broker who marketed and sold the portfolio is Tom Donovan.

Two stories in the September issue, “Where to hang your hat” and “Lower prices, slower movement in Manhattan,” misspelled the name of the president of development marketing firm the Marketing Directors. She is Adrienne Albert.

Rising construction costs threaten Dubai housing boom; overlooked commercial sector may offer opportunities
Rising construction and land costs have slashed Dubai property developers’ profit margins by 25 percent in the past year, the Gulf Times newspaper reported.

The residential market is bracing for a surge of new residential units that have been built or planned since Dubai opened its property market to foreign investment in 2002.

Investment research firm Prime Emirates said in August that 105,000 residential units would be completed in Dubai by the end of next year, creating a surplus of up to 33,000 units by 2008.

Hamid Yazdani, general manager of High Rise Real Estate, whose company is constructing 35 buildings in Dubai, said the cost of cement and steel has risen 20 to 25 percent in the past year, cutting into developers’ sizable profit margins.

Meanwhile, developers may be overlooking the commercial sector, which might still be attractive despite rising construction costs because the it is underserved, said Harshit Kantaria, managing director of property management firm Aspire.

Kantaria estimated that 90 percent of the property under construction in Dubai is residential, and said that not a single commercial project has been completed since 2002.

Major office developments, which include Business Bay and Jumeirah Lake Towers, will only hit the market in 2008 and 2009.

Observers have estimated commercial prices will rise 50 percent a year, at least, until 2008. They have climbed 200 percent in the last two years, the Gulf Times reported.

Ireland may be overpriced after decade of growth
Prices in Ireland may be too high, investors say, after more than a decade of double-digit percentage increases.

Housing prices in the island republic have increased an average of 10 percent each year for the past 13 years, according to the International Herald-Tribune.

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, in fact, recently reported the country’s 53 successive quarters of property price increases was the longest property boom it has recorded.

It also reported that Ireland’s real estate may be overpriced by as much as 20 percent, and cited concern that rising interest rates may lead to a sharp downturn.

Last year, the sale of Walford, a 4,000-square-foot house on Shrewsbury Road in a south Dublin suburb set an Irish record when it sold for about $70 million.

Developers willing to pay top dollar are also responsible for driving up prices in areas of the Irish capital, where they can tear down existing homes and build multiple houses on one site. Native buyers flush with money due to Ireland’s economic resurgence are the main purchasers, instead of foreign buyers looking for a bargain as in previous years.

“That would be typical of every development that has been marketed in Ireland recently,” said broker Ronan O’Driscoll, director at Hamilton Osborne King. “It has been taken up by the local market rather than international buyers.”

Mexican housing market feeds off U.S. capital
South of the border, the Mexican housing market is continuing to feed off American dollars.

Legal problems and fraud have previously kept foreigners from investing in Mexico, but recent legal changes allow foreigners to own property through bank trusts. Brokers say the boom in Mexico’s real estate industry is also a result of partial ownership developments, where foreign investors can buy a share of a condo or a home.

Despite the softening of the U.S. housing market, Americans are continuing to invest in second homes in Mexico. This year, foreign investment in Mexican housing is expected to reach $20 billion, reported the Los Angeles Times, up from $17.6 billion in 2005.

The shifting market could change things, however.

“The cooling real estate market could take this from being a very, very positive trend to a mildly positive trend,” said economist Christopher Thornberg.

Fenwick Keats and Goodstein latest to combine; more deals may follow Brokerage mergers continue in Manhattan” class=”read-more-link”>[more]

Mark Jaccom and two partners made a splash in 2002 when they facilitated the buyout of Julien Studley from the eponymous commercial brokerage that he founded. Now Jaccom has exited Studley, announcing in late September that he had taken a top role with GVA Williams.

Jaccom, now president of GVA Williams’ tenant representation division, had a last hurrah at Studley with a 205,000-square-foot lease inked late this summer by insurance firm the Willis Group in the World Financial Center in Downtown. The deal, which Jaccom helped broker, is a sign of what’s to come with the new post, he says.

The transition to GVA Williams came out of his friendship with Bob Freedman, CEO and president of the firm, Jaccom said. “I’m looking to enhance the firm,” he said. “It has a strong reputation, a great name and no debt since it’s privately held.”

Jaccom will be advising corporate tenants, and has plans to build a consulting group that will advance the services of the brokerage group. He wants a group of 20 to 30 individuals, including lawyers, researchers and economists, who will help brokers in complex transactions.

GVA Williams has plans to expand to Boston, Chicago and Washington, D.C. The company has a Midtown office and branches in New Jersey and Westchester.

You don’t have to win “The Apprentice” anymore to work for Donald Trump. Lee Bienstock, the runner-up in the fifth season of the reality TV show, which ended in June, is now the associate vice president for corporate development at Trump Mortgage.

After a 15-week job interview that Bienstock calls “a crash course in business,” he says he’s determined to make Trump Mortgage the premier financing company.

“People will always need financing,” Bienstock said of the mortgage business now that home sales have slowed down. “One trillion adjustable mortgages are coming up and people will need a lot of consolidation.”

Bienstock, 23, majored in management at Cornell University and worked at Merrill Lynch and the consulting firm Accenture.

E.J. Ridings, CEO and president of Trump Mortgage, says the branded company is working its way to becoming a popular option as a home financer nationally. The firm has licensed mortgage brokers in 25 states.

“We’re going to educate borrowers on the options,” Ridings said. “There are so many products coming to the market, but it doesn’t have to be a gut-wrenching experience.”

First American buys KTR Newmark
The First American Corporation last month acquired KTR Newmark Real Estate Services and KTR Newmark Consultants. As part of First American, the combined businesses will operate under the name KTR Valuation & Consulting Services and be headquartered in New York.

Weichert affiliate moves headquarters
Residential brokerage Weichert Realtors, Mazzeo Agency last month moved into the entire seventh floor at 51 East 25th Street. The newly renovated 4,450-square-foot space at the Stanford Condominium will house the brokerage’s 35 agents. The firm’s office was previously located at 24 East 23rd Street.

Home sales info available by cell phone
A technology company is offering a new service called Recently Sold Homes that lets customers retrieve home sales data over their cell phones. Customers stand in front of a property and the company, Smarter Agent, beams sales data to the phones on the 10 closest homes sold within the last three years.

Sotheby’s acquires Long Island firm
Long Island brokerage Daniel Gale Sotheby’s International Realty announced the acquisition of Frank Huntington Real Estate, a residential broker based in St. James.

Mortgage groups announce merger
Two major trade groups representing the mortgage industry announced a merger at the end of August. The National Home Equity Mortgage Association and the Mortgage Bankers Association say the merger will provide a “strong voice” for the industry in Washington, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Trump Mortgage expands national presence
New York City-based Trump Mortgage has acquired additional state mortgage licenses, bringing its total coverage to more than 25 states.

Cushman & Wakefield acquires London firm
Cushman & Wakefield last month announced it had purchased Andrew Mayer Tyser, a boutique investment and development firm based in London. Firm partners Andrew Mayer and Bill Tyser will join Cushman & Wakefield as equity partners.

Residential

A.C. Lawrence
Rachel Tiss, Cristina Zampiero and Michael Richman joined the firm.

City Connections Realty
Elliot Adler joined as a broker. He was at Sumitomo Realty.

Halstead Property
Stephen Kliegerman was promoted to executive director in the development marketing division. Roberta Benzilio joined as senior director of sales in the development marketing division. She was COO at Century 21 Kevin B. Brown & Associates.

The Marketing Directors Inc.
Jana Manning was named project manager.

Commercial

Broad Street Development
Jill Burrowes was promoted to leasing associate from administrator.

Cushman & Wakefield
Michael Berne joined to lead the senior housing and healthcare group.

Douglaston Development
James Angley joined as chief operating officer.

Eurohypo AG
Daniel Vinson was appointed managing director.

Grubb & Ellis
John McGinley joined as director of management services.

Jones Lang LaSalle
John Ryan III and Michael Shenot were promoted to managing director. Randy Abend was promoted to vice president.

Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels
Jeffrey Davis was promoted to senior vice president.

Massey Knakal
George Brown joined as a sales director in the Brooklyn office. Daniel Woods joined as an associate in the Brooklyn office.

Newmark Knight Frank
Stephen Apple joined as senior managing director. He was director of sales for Massey Knakal.

PBS Realty Advisors
Jeffrey Kahn joined as an associate.

Robert K. Futterman & Associates
Stacey Leibowitz joined as vice president.

Rose Associates
Jeffrey Heifetz joined as managing director.

Sheldon Good & Company
Misha Haghani was appointed director of real estate auctions for the Northeast division.

Sinvin Realty Corp.
Alan Lee and Simone Lillian joined the firm.

Sonnenblick Goldman
Dave Karson was promoted to director from vice president. Linda Yang was promoted to senior associate from associate. Steven Vazquez, Amy Shah and Matthew Lembo were promoted to the level of associate.

Studley
Stephen Berliner joined as executive vice president and branch manager of the Midtown office. Evan Margolin was promoted to managing director from associate director. Allyson Bowen was promoted to assistant director from associate.

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From the Irony Department: Blogs covering housing bust going bust

Forget a housing bubble burst. How about a housing blog burst?

Several Web logs dedicated to the national obsession that is real estate have recently bit the digital dust, including one run by the mighty New York Times. Last month, the Times discontinued “The Walk-Through” after weeks of dwindling numbers of posts by its business reporters. Also, many thought the blog lacked a distinctive voice.

The Walk-Through, too, might have been stymied because of its parentage — it was one of the first blogs produced by a larger media company, and that opened it to threats of lawsuits for its posts, said Manhattan appraiser Jonathan Miller, who runs his own housing blog, Matrix.

Despite The Walk-Through’s final steps, the blog medium remains popular, especially in the Big Apple, where real estate sits firmly between politics and the Yankees as a topic of conversation. Popular sites including Curbed.com, the New York Observer’s blog “The Real Estate,” Brownstoner.com, and The Real Deal’s own blog, TheRealDeal.com, continue to thrive.

“The change in market hasn’t had an effect,” Miller said. “In fact, they’re poised for more traffic because people have more questions.”

Don’t pound on the ceiling. Imagine the drama, instead.

The built-in drama of the New York real estate market is paying off for Brooklyn-based Partial Comfort Productions. The theater company ran its third real estate play in September.

Artistic director for Partial Comfort Productions, Chad Beckim, wrote “Nami,” a glimpse into the lives of apartment neighbors who don’t know each other at the beginning of the play.

“A lot of people don’t think about their neighbors,” Beckim said. “New Yorkers live in such tight, confined quarters, but they remain anonymous — it’s kind of remarkable.”

The play, which ran through September at the Kirk Theater at 410 West 42nd Street, received excellent reviews from most city publications.

“Real estate is not a tame subject,” Beckim said, “but it’s one that people may not pay that much attention to.”

The young, upstart theater has been unintentionally addressing real estate, says Beckim. “We’re producing plays on places you live or work and the confines of those spaces,” he said.

Last year “….A Matter of Choice” addressed eviction because of the Second Avenue subway construction through Spanish Harlem.

Forget drive-in movie theaters — watch on water

Brooklyn movie theaters are thin on the ground, but the idea of a riverside movie theater for Greenpoint was, well, floated several weeks ago during a city Parks Department presentation of plans for a $100 million refurbishment of the Brooklyn neighborhood’s waterfront.

“The movie screen could be one of the many potential additions to the waterfront,” said Phil Abramson, a spokesman for the Parks Department. “It’s not in the actual design, but it is a potential future use and it would be in a good location.”

Proposed waterfront fixtures included a boathouse, a boardwalk for the 25-acre Bushwick Inlet Park and a performance center, among many other uses. But Abramson said the plans are still in the preliminary stages and will evolve with community input.

Despite the need for movie theaters in the area, the floating movie screen might just be wishful thinking. The idea of a floating screen was also mentioned during the Hudson River Park renovations in Tribeca, between Chambers Street and Pier 40 at Houston Street. But the idea didn’t pan out during renovations completed in 2003.