Wall Street Journal, July 30, 2019–Peter Grant (subscription)Goldman Sachs’s newly reorganized real estate investment unit is reviving a fund business the firm shut down after it suffered steep losses during the financial crisis.
Category: Top National News
The City That Never Deletes: How New York City Became a Real Estate Data Mecca
Commercial Observer, July 22, 2019–Nicholas RizziData, the fuel on which so much of the technology and appraisal of real estate runs, is up-to-date and in abundant supply in New York City, but still living in the dark ages in the rest of the country.
California Is Divided Over Development Amid Severe Housing Shortage
NPR, July 18, 2019–Darius RafieyanCalifornia’s governor wants cities in his state to build more housing, but some of them don’t appear to be moving fast enough. The state has taken Huntington Beach to court.
Anbang Bidding Proves Investors Still Want High-Profile Hotels and Big Portfolios
National Real Estate Investor, July 15, 2019–Bendix AndersonThe frenzied bidding for a portfolio of high-profile luxury hotel properties owned by Anbang Insurance Group shows just how eager investors still are to put their money into full-service luxury hotels in the U.S.–and the bigger the deal, the better.
Manhattan Condo Slump Starting to Imperil City Developers
Wall Street Journal, July 16, 2019–Konrad Putzier, Esther Fung (subscription)High-rise developers in Manhattan are coming under stress as tough market conditions are starting to undermine some of the city’s most prominent luxury condo projects.
SEC Calls for Orderly Transition Away From LIBOR
National Mortgage Professional, July 15, 2019–Phil HallThe SEC called on market participants to “proactively manage their transition” away from the London Interbank Offered Rate, which is set to expire in 2021. In June, the Mortgage Bankers Association’s LIBOR Outreach Committee found 92 percent of commercial and multifamily mortgage lenders it polled have already begun planning for the transition away from LIBOR.
Insurance Companies Expand Multifamily Financing Options
Colorado Real Estate Journal, July 13, 2019–Cooper WilliamsAccording to research conducted by the Mortgage Bankers Association, the insurance companies’ mortgage debt holdings increased by 9% in 2018, which is higher than the overall market average for multifamily debt holdings.
Fed’s Beige Book Shows ‘Widespread Concerns’ on Tariffs–But Positive Economic Outlook
MarketWatch, July 17, 2019–Greg RobbBusiness contacts were generally positive through early July about the economic outlook for the coming months despite “widespread concerns about the possible negative impact of trade-related uncertainty,” according to the “Beige Book” survey released by the Federal Reserve on Wednesday.
This Startup Wants to Sell You a Slice of a Rental Home
Wall Street Journal, July 8, 2019–Ryan Dezember (subscription)A California startup is hoping investors will buy portions of houses as well. Roofstock, which operates a website where investors buy and sell occupied rental properties without disturbing tenants, has launched a marketplace where investors can buy stakes as low as 10 percent in single-family rental homes.
New York Condo Conversions Near the End, a Casualty of Rent Reform
Wall Street Journal, July 8, 2019–Josh Barbanel, Will Parker (subscription)A longtime New York City practice that promoted homeownership, transformed neighborhoods and enriched thousands of middle-class renters is effectively over. It ended on June 14, when a New York state law to strengthen tenant protections went into effect.