Manhattan rents are flat, Brooklyn rents and sales prices are both up more than 10 percent  September to September and Queens is about to become the new Brooklyn according to appraiser Jonathan Miller.

Adding fuel, the City Council this week gave final approval to a $3 billion, 5850 apartment development plan for Willets Point and another $400 million, 1000 unit project replacing the graffiti covered (on purpose) 5pointz warehouse in Long Island City. Then, to top it off, the Council zoning committee reached a deal for another 2200 unit, billion dollar development on Hallets Point.

The good times seem to be rolling for hotel construction as well, with the number of units projected to increase 10 percent to more than 90,000 in 2014, according to the Wall Street Journal. Occupancy rates are currently running 84 percent, but tourist visits are only projected to rise about 5 percent by the time the new units are available. Hmmm. Average room rates, meanwhile, are up about 4 percent to $238 a night.

Affordability is on everyone’s mind and Trulia.com, the national real estate listing site, has found that the middle class really cannot afford home prices in big cities. The good news is that San Francisco is less affordable than New York. The bad news is that only 2.5 percent of housing for sale in Manhattan is affordable to the median income family, and only 25 percent of housing in the New York-NJ Metro area.

Have a drink and talk about the market with our friends at CHIP at 6 p.m. November 14th in The Morgan Library. RSVP at 212 838-7442.

Backflow prevention devices to keep building wastes and chemicals from entering the drinking supply have been required for years, but new buildings will need them to keep sewage out under legislation enacted Wednesday. In another action driven by the lessons of Hurricane Sandy, Mayor Bloomberg also signed a bill requiring backup power for automatic flush toilets.

Earlier in the week, Mayor Bloomberg announced the new WiredNYC certification system — intended to be a LEED-like certification for office broadband.  The idea is to help tenants find well connected buildings and encourage building owners to up their Internet game.

In a case where the City’s right and left hands were at odds, the Environmental Control Board dismissed a violation and fine issued by the Department of Buildings  for the illegal renting of a Class A apartment  for a short term stay through Airbnb. The violation, of course, was issued to the building owner, but in this case Airbnb backed a challenge by the tenant –presumably because tenants don’t tend to lose in proceedings in New York City. In fact, the ECB ruled that it wasn’t technically an illegal rental because the tenant’s roommate was in the apartment with the paying visitor the whole time.

The Mayor did have a victory in another City agency this week, however, when the City Planning Commission approved his Midtown East rezoning proposal.  The plan goes next to the City Council.

Property taxes are unfair, according to an analysis by the Independent Budget Office for The Daily News. Poor neighborhoods are over assessed and  rich neighborhoods are under assessed, and the problem is compounded by assessment caps intended to promote fairness. Surprise.

Surprise, too, that Congress is dysfunctional. The budget standoff in Washington means, in the short term, that  FHA cannot fund new loan commitments. HUD will temporarily be able to renew HAP contracts with funding from prior year appropriations and, for the same reason, can make Section 8 tenant assistance payments into November, but we will see what happens after that runs out.

The City released the second annual report on building energy benchmarking, Wednesday, establishing from two years worth of data that individual building usage is generally consistent. Apartment buildings built in the 1970s seem to have the worst energy performance in that sector, although there is a smaller range in energy use among multifamily buildings, a factor of three, versus office or retail that typically vary by a factor of about six. Excel spreadsheets with data for every property reporting are available online.

Tuesday, the City Council approved rezoning of a 55 block area of Crown Heights to limit building height and the City Planning Commission began considering a similar proposal to limit high rise development in Ozone Park. Maintaining the status quo trumps addressing the housing crisis, as usual.

The Real Estate Board of New York made a similar point Wednesday in a report on landmarking and affordable housing. Since 2008, no affordable housing units have been built in landmark districts of Manhattan, and just five units since 2003. Not surprisingly, landmark districts tend to be wealthier than other areas — leading to the conclusion that historic means nimby to rich people.

Also this week, the Furman Center at NYU issued its quarterly housing report, indicating that multifamily building sales and prices were up from the first quarter, along with foreclosures. The recession has a long tail, perhaps due in part to the slowness of judicial proceedings.

ABO members have until Monday to register for free passes to the International Builders Show in Las Vegas, February 4-6th at buildershow.com

Finally, we are sad to report that longtime ABO member and  Vice President Lawrence Laiken passed away this week. As founder of Larrin Management, he was a stalwart of the industry and will be missed.

HUD announced this week that the FHA had exhausted its multifamily commitment authority for the fiscal year. They will process insurance applications received after September 16th, but can’t issue commitments until Congress provides more funds. Congress, of course, can’t even agree on a temporary resolution continuing current funding for the entire government beyond October 1st.

Another deadline is looming in March 2015. That is when the State Brownfield Tax Credit expires and it would not be a big deal now except that redeveloping brownfields takes so long that if  you started today you probably could not complete the approval process in time to get the credit. ABO members can get discounted admission to a panel on What Developers Need to Know About New York State’s Brownfield Programs organized by New Partners for Community Revitalization on October 17th. Register by clicking here.

Perhaps developers won’t need any government assistance with  financing if the plans for crowdfunding construction work. Prodigy Network , which raised $171 million in $20,000 increments to build a skyscraper in Bogota, Columbia is planning to raise $31 million in equity in $100,000 chunks to build a hotel here. Under new rules effective next week, implementing the 2012 federal JOBS Act, it is simpler to advertise investments that aren’t registered with the SEC. Some real estate firms are planning to solicit funds in $100 increments.

If no one cannot finance anything, there are still plenty of old buildings in New York. How old? Check out this interactive map that shows the age of every property and color codes neighborhoods by age. Zoom in for details. Some of the data is wrong due to problems with Department of Buildings Records, but this is another great example of how to manipulate newly public data sets.

Turns out that an elected official can keep a promise and not pander to special interests. NJ Governor Chris Christie this week  vetoed a new rent control bill that would have allowed regulations on new senior housing. New Jersey passed a law in 1997 barring rent regulations for thirty years on new construction — which successfully encouraged new housing development — but state legislators wanted to break the pledge in response to complaints from residents at some senior complexes built since then. “Rent control distorts the market for rental housing and depresses the housing supply,” the governor said.

Meanwhile, back on this side of the Hudson, it looks like the race for Mayor will be between Bill de Blasio and Joe Lhota. Much like in the Democratic primary, the race may boil down to a referendum on the success of Rudy Giuliani and Michael Bloomberg in managing the City vs. liberal hopes…or increased taxes and spending vs. holding the line. One of the more interesting results of de Blasio’s call for taxing the rich was a series of reports showing that around 34,500 households out of 3.6 million currently pay 43 percent of New York City income taxes. An even smaller number pay the lions share of that and could easily be persuaded to move their primary residences.

Goodwill Industries runs a construction worker training program – including everything from painting and drywall to a certificate program for Residential Construction Superintendents. Please contact ABO for resumes and contact info if you are looking for workers.

ABO group purchasing benefits now include an additional 5 percent  discount on hotels booked through Expedia. It can be used for business or leisure travel and as an employee benefit.

ABO will be presenting a panel on Management Tech at 12:15 Tuesday, September 17th, during the NYARM Expo at the Hotel Pennsylvania, 401 Seventh Ave. Join Andrew Hoffman of Stonehenge , Greg Carlson of Carlson Management, Harry Spring of WASA Architecture and Engineering, and Dan Margulies of ABO for a review of the next big things.

Real estate lending in New York could be limited by a new state policy allegedly targeted at “Slumlord Prevention.” Governor Cuomo yesterday announced that banks would not get State Community Reinvestment Act credit for loans based on “Financial projections underlying the project that include the conversion of affordable units to market rate rents.” That includes just about every loan on existing regulated buildings, as well as any future loan apply online for, so it could put a damper on both sales and refinancing. There are no direct penalties under the State CRA, but the banks CRA ratings affect State approvals for mergers, expansion and other applications. It is advised that you secure a loan before looking at oceanfront condos for sale Myrtle Beach SC or any piece of real estate.

Tuesday is Primary Day. Your business and the City’s quality of life depends on your vote. The New York Times, Daily News 1, 2, and New York Post have endorsed Christine Quinn in the Democratic Mayoral primary and Joe Lhota in the Republican Primary. Newsday endorsed William Thompson and Joe Lhota. The Daily News also has a handy interactive City Council map showing the candidates for each district and short bios.

The International Builders Show is scheduled February 4-6th in Las Vegas, but ABO members registering this month get free passes for themselves and spouses and discounts on education programs. Non-members get some discounts too. ABO, through our RAM program, will be hosting a panel on management training February 5th at the show.

Sooner and closer to home ABO will be presenting a panel on Management Tech at 12:15 Tuesday, September 17th, during the NYARM Expo at the Hotel Pennsylvania, 401 Seventh Ave. Join Andrew Hoffman of Stonehenge , Greg Carlson of Carlson Management, Harry Spring of WASA Architecture and Engineering, and Dan Margulies of ABO for a review of the next big things.

For now, we suggest to visit the https://reali.com/san-francisco-bay-real-estate/ website to get more information.

Four candidates for City Council, Joyce Johnson, John Whitehead, Robert Cornegy, and Olanike Olabi, are being or were recently subject to eviction actions by their landlords, the New York Post reported this week.

The City Department of Housing Preservation is stirring controversy with an attempt to ‘right-size’ Section 8 occupancies by moving single tenants out of larger apartments and into smaller ones at Knickerbocker  Plaza. Politicians who would rather leave seniors alone than rationalize subsidies are objecting, and no one is talking about the parallels in rent controlled housing.

Is there a drone in your future? Join us for an ABO seminar on new Management Technology, from 12:15 to 1:30 September 17th during the NYARM Expo in the Hotel Pennsylvania. RAM continuing education credit is available for the entire NYARM program.

Meanwhile, if you or your employees aren’t already Registered in Apartment Management, the next certification class begins that evening, September 17th. Contact olga@registeredmanager.com for details.

Your NAHB representatives in Washington have joined a national construction industry coalition to fight proposed OSHA rules on silica dust that could require spraying water to reduce dust when cutting kitchen counters, or even when cutting icy asphalt roof shingles on a peak in winter.

The New York State Builders Association Research and Education Fund is offering two classes for the Certified Aging in Place Specialist designation on Long Island in October. CAPS I, Marketing and Communication Strategies  for Aging and Accessibility on October 15th and CAPS II, Design/Build Solutions for Aging and Accessibility on October 16th. Everyone is getting older. Get ready for it.

Are you leaving money  on the table again? If your company  performs a significant amount of physical construction services, or you are an architect, engineer, or surveyor, you can get  22% off  Verizon Wireless corporate calling plans. Employees receive up to an 18% discount (15%, plus an additional 3% discount if enrolled in online billing) on their plans. Pricing options are also available on data plans, accessories and devices. ABO members can sign up at  mynpp.com. If you have any questions or would like to have a Verizon business sales representative reach out to you, please call NPP at 800.810.3909 or email customerservice@mynpp.com.

 With exactly one month to go before the Mayoral primary it would be nice if the mainstream media focused on issues instead of personalities. Failing that, Housing First!, a coalition of civic groups and for-profit affordable housing developers, is maintaining a record of what the candidates say about housing policy, updated when new information is available. Here are some of the positions defined so far:

Sal Albanese wants to change the 80-20 housing programs to 70-30.

Bill de Blasio wants to make inclusionary zoning mandatory and raise taxes on vacant lots.

Adolfo Carrion Jr. will create a Housing Czar to oversee affordable housing efforts and rezone to promote transit oriented development.

John Catsimatidis will create a new department to reduce the housing construction bureaucracy .

Joseph Lhota will group housing and community development management in City Hall and reduce property taxes to encourage private development and their securtity systems with cameras in atlanta installation experts to make sure of the safety of this properties.

John Liu wants to repeal the Urstadt Law, make inclusionary zoning mandatory for upzonings, and require affordable housing to meet energy efficiency standards.

George McDonald would change zoning and tax incentives to encourage development of studio units.

Christine Quinn would overhaul the Housing Maintenance Code with new powers and penalties, incentivize the conversion of existing units into affordable middle income housing, build New York’s first LGBT senior housing community, claiming “We buy houses Orlando too” now.

William Thompson Jr. would create new low interest loan programs to preserve private owned affordable units, sell government land to fund more housing, and repeal the Urstadt Law.

Anthony Wiener would replace 80-20 with 60-20-20, create a new  Mitchell Lama style program, incentivize brownfield development, and repeal Urstadt.

Meanwhile, Governor Cuomo’s new Moreland Act Commission to investigate political corruption turned first to real estate this week, issuing subpoenas to five developers whose buildings got  421a tax benefits under legislation passed this year.  Somewhat ironically, most if not all of those subpoenaed contributed to the Governor as well as legislators…including days before he signed the legislation. A spokesman said that suggesting the governor could be influenced by a campaign contribution was ‘beyond reckless’.

ABO Update will be on hiatus until August 30th.

The State Division of Housing and Community Renewal was arbitrary and capricious in denying an MCI to an entire building where work in a handful of apartments was not done properly, according to the Appellate Division decision in Matter of 20 Fifth Avenue LLC. The court found that DHCR had no explanation for changing a policy that previously excluded the apartments with problems from an MCI order, but allowed it for the rest of the building. The case, which has dragged on for a decade, was remanded for reconsideration by the agency.

In a less rational decision, the Appellate Term remanded a succession case where the lower courts found that a wife who had separated from her husband and had then  rejoined him in his apartment just before his death had not met the statutory requirement of living together for two years before the tenant vacated.  1504 Associates vs. Wescott also makes a strong point that the illegal immigrant status of the wife is irrelevant to succession under stabilization. She may not be entitled to be in the country, but she may be entitled to an apartment, the court said.

Builders and buyers with a long view may want to check out opportunities around Hunts Point, Morris Park, Parkchester and Co-op City. The MTA has a plan to connect Metro North stations from the east Bronx to Penn Station, making the commute to the West Side just 20 minutes.

Even longer term, perhaps, will be the development of Seaport City, the proposed storm barrier protecting lower Manhattan. Mayor Bloomberg announced the publication of an RFP for a consultant to study the technical, financial, and legal feasibility of a multi-purpose levee that would block floodwaters and create new land for residential, commercial, and/or recreational use. The Mayor clearly hopes to leave his successor a road map for the ambitious project.

Looking backwards: How old is that building in Brooklyn?
Bklynr.com, a local website just launched an interactive map showing the age of all 320,000 structures in the borough. The map is based on new data sets released by the City, and is not only interesting by itself, but is a great example of new uses of municipal data and mapping to show information for planning and development.

ABO has moved to:
369 Lexington Avenue, Suite 215
New  York, NY 10017
Our phone and fax numbers remain the same. Please update your records.

We’re moving with help from a local pack and mover on Tuesday, July 30th, to:

369 Lexington Avenue, Suite 215
New  York, NY 10017

Please update your records. Our phone and fax numbers will remain the same. If you have trouble reaching us on the phone early next week, please email and we will get right back to you.

Unfair property taxes were in the news again this week, although it didn’t sound like any mayoral candidates were paying attention. The Furman Center at NYU issued a study documenting how individual co-ops and condos in some luxury buildings sold for more than the full market assessments of the entire buildings they were in. The report explained the tortured history of co-op and condo assessment laws that attempted to make up for the fact that single family homeowners get a tremendous tax break in New York City while co-op and condo owners whose homes are taxed at class 2 rates would have been robbed by comparison…just because of the form of ownership. Interestingly, the Furman study concludes that the burden of the co-op and condo tax benefit falls mostly on other class 2 properties, primarily renters whose rents are pushed up by tax shifting.

Reddi Form and Progress Lighting have been added to the more than 20 manufacturers, including Lutron, Delta, Honeywell, that offer rebates to ABO members for building products purchased from anyone at any price. Part of the NYSBA Member Rebate program, members can apply for rebates  until August 23rd for anything purchased since January. Why leave money on the table? You don’t even need receipts. Just fill out the form.

Mayor Bloomberg this week proposed legislation to require replacement of smoke detectors at the end of their useful life with new models that include a non-removable ten year battery. He also introduced two bills announced last week  requiring visible public access stairways in new construction and substantial rehabs and amending fire door closure rules to promote the use of stairs to fight obesity.