The City Council completely changed how broker fees work in New York City. Now what?
The Fairness in Apartment Rentals Expenses Act passed this week by an overwhelming majority, mandating that whoever hires a rental broker is responsible for said broker’s commission.
The measure goes into effect 180 days after it becomes law — that is, if it becomes law. The mayor has 30 days to veto or sign it. If he does neither, it becomes law. The mayor has repeatedly criticized the measure, but stopped short of saying he will veto it. In June, he said, “We’re going to look at the legislation…We’re going to examine it and make a determination.”
He said the same thing in the days leading up to the bill’s passage, and on the day of the City Council’s fateful vote, a City Hall spokesperson said the administration was “closely watching this bill.”
It is unclear whether that translates to quietly watching this bill become law without signing it or agreeing to sign off on it in exchange for passing City of Yes for Housing Opportunity without gutting it.
Other comments made by the mayor make it seem like he doesn’t have much appetite for vetoing the measure.
“We should have thought this through better, but the City Council is the other arm of government, and they made the decision, and that’s a decision we have to live with,” the mayor said on Pix 11 on Wednesday night.
Meanwhile, the Real Estate Board of New York is considering suing to stop the measure from being implemented. The group previously fought off a similar measure by the New York Department of State, which issued guidance interpreting part of the 2019 rent law as a prohibition on forcing tenants to pay broker fees.
What we’re thinking about: The City Council’s review of the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity ends on Thursday. Where do negotiations stand? Send a note to kathryn@therealdeal.com.
A thing we’ve learned: New Jersey’s last drought emergency was called in March 2002 and not lifted until January 2003, according to the state Department of Environmental Protection.
Elsewhere in New York…
— A number of veteran city attorneys don’t think Jay Clayton, Trump’s pick for U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, will show leniency to those in the president-elect’s good graces, such as a certain mayor facing federal bribery and corruption charges, Gothamist reports. “That’s just not who [Clayton] is,” Joshua Naftalis, a former federal prosecutor in the Southern District, told the publication.
— Gov. Kathy Hochul on Thursday announced that she is reviving congestion pricing, Politico New York reports. The amended plan will initially charge drivers entering Manhattan during peak hours $9, down from a proposed $15.
But the plan is not quite in the clear: A federal judge still has not ruled on a lawsuit seeking to invalidate the environmental review that helped pave the way for congestion pricing. A decision forcing a redo of the review would put the plan at the mercy of the Trump administration.
Closing Time
Residential: The priciest residential sale Friday was $10.6 million at 48 Willow Place in Brooklyn. The Brooklyn Heights home is 5,500 square feet and was listed by The Corcoran Group’s Deborah Rieders and Sarah Shuken.
Commercial: The largest commercial sale of the day was $66.2 million for 40 East 35th Street. Ian Bruce Eichner’s Continuum Company purchased the former Murray Hill church site, which was facing bankruptcy. The developer took out a $205 million construction loan with plans for a 173,000-square-foot condo project, per TRD.
New to the Market: The highest price for a residential property hitting the market was $43 million for 11 East 74th Street, a 10,800-square-foot townhome in Lenox Hill. Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices’ Craig Dix has the listing.
Breaking Ground: The largest new building application filed was for a 35,056-square-foot, eight story, 28-unit residential building at 556 Howard Avenue in Brooklyn. Nikolai Katz of Nikolai Katz Architecture is the applicant on file. — Joseph Jungermann