Page 4 - The NY Cooperator September 2019

4 THE COOPERATOR — SEPTEMBER 2019 COOPERATOR.COM Tuesday, October 29, 2019 The Cooperator Expo New York Jacob Javits Convention Center, 655 W. 34th St., New York, NY 10:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Learn about the latest building services from more than 250 exhibitors, attend educa- tional seminars, get free advice from industry experts, and network with your peers at this leading real estate trade show in New York. For information, visit coopexpofall.com. Tues., September 17, 2019 Bisnow: Brooklyn State of the Market Sunset Yards, 341 39th St., Brooklyn, NY 7:30 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. As renters continue to flock to Brooklyn for more space and a discounted price, luxury vacancies are giving some developers pause. However, despite Amazon’s departure from Long Island City, Brooklyn saw two of the most dynamic companies open up shop in the Borough. Find out how Brooklyn is doing in the current market cycle at Bisnow’s Annual Brooklyn State of the Market. For information, visit www.bisnow.com. Wed., September 18, 2019 CNYC: Condominium Survival Guidance Location: TBD 7:00 a.m. In the last three decades, condominiums have gone from a rarity to a highly popular form of home ownership. Unfortunately the law has not kept pace with the growth of con- dominiums, while other states have detailed Condominium Acts that provide boards and unit owners detailed guidance on how to operate their condominiums and clarity with regard to the rights and obligations of boards and owners. This places the board in a terrible position in attempting to operate a complex building and, deal with everyone’s demands. And then there are the myriad of city and state mandates: annual tests to perform, reports to file, deadlines to meet, coupled with day-to-day issues that can arise in the condo community. CNYC board chair Stuart Saft, Esq., will lead a discussion of these issues and others that you raise. Board members and unit owners of CNYC member condominiums are welcome at no cost, but advance registration is required. Non-affiliates are welcome, too, at a fee of $50 if paid in advance or $75 at the door. Reserve your place at workshops@ CNYC.coop, or 212-496-7400. Thurs., September 19, 2019 Anderson Kill’s Co-op and Condo Group: Part IV: “Attorneys’ Fees and Fines” Anderson Kill P.C., 1251 6th Ave., New York, NY 4:30 p.m.- 5:30 p.m. Registration: 4:00 pm - 4:30 pm; seminar: 4:30 pm - 5:30 pm; networking cocktail reception: 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm. CLE APPROVED: This program is appropriate for both newly admit- ted and experienced attorneys. For informa- tion, visit www.andersonkill.com. CAL EN D AR Industry Pulse Sept-Oct Insurance Mackoul Offers New York State Mandat- ed Anti-Sexual Harassment Training New York State has enacted several significant measures regarding sexual ha- rassment in the workplace. Effective as of October 2018, all New York State employ- ers are required to adopt a written sexual harassment prevention policy and institute annual anti-harassment training for all em- ployees. New York Insurance firm Mackoul Risk Solutions is providing a low-cost solu- tion to educate your employees on sexual harassment by offering training for build- ing employees and board members who have direct interaction with those employ- ees. Mandated training will be provided for property management firms as well. For more information and to avoid costly fines for non-compliance, contact Rebecca Scandaliato at 516-279-1215 or email at rscandaliato@mackoul.com Transactions Fashion Model Sells Downtown Condo for $2.23M Ingrid Seynhaeve, a Belgian-born mod- el who has worked for Victoria’s Secret and Saks Fifth Avenue, sold her downtown Manhattan condo in March for $2.23 mil- lion, the New York Post reported, citing property records. The features of the three- bedroom/two-bathroom duplex at 7 Essex Street include a 900-square-foot two-level deck and tall ceilings. Toby and Kaitlin Carter were reported to be the buyers of the 2,000-square-foot unit. Milk Factory Condos Launch Sales Milk Factory, a new condo develop- ment in East Williamsburg, is ready to be inhabited. New York YIMBY reported that sales have launched for the four-story building, once the Borden Dairy distri- bution facility. Thirty-two units make up the 40,000-square-foot development, with prices starting at $787,000; a penthouse with two bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a private terrace will run you about $1.287 million. Amenities for the building will in- clude a community garden, a fitness room, and bike storage. Occupancy is expected to start this fall, according to the development team. Lena Dunham Finally Sells Brooklyn Condo Actress and writer Lena Dunham, best known for her work on the HBO show Girls, finally sold her condo in Williams- burg at a slight loss, according to Variety. The 1,987-square-foot, three-bedroom/ two-and-a-half bathroom apartment found a buyer at $2.628 million; Dunham purchased it more than a year ago for $2.9 million. Its many highlights include giant windows, 13-foot-high ceilings, a powder room and laundry closet, and views of the Williamsburg Bridge and the Manhattan skyline. The apartment initially listed at $3 million in late 2018 but was then later taken off the market after failing to find a buyer. It was listed again in April at a re- duced asking price of $2.65 million. Real Estate Magnate Lists $75M Pent- house Developer Stephen Ross, the man be- hind the highly-publicized Hudson Yards development, has put his penthouse at the Time Warner Center on the market, the New York Post reported. The billionaire and his wife Kara put up their 8,500 square-foot unit for $75 million that reportedly has a private gym, a den with wood paneling, and city skyline views. The Rosses are re- portedly moving to Hudson Yards. A ‘Healthy’ Condo Can Be Yours for $23.9M Curbed had previously reported in Jan- uary about an Upper West Side apartment on sale for $25 million that was touted as one of the ‘healthiest homes in New York City’ due to its health-conscious design and features. Now another Manhattan apartment is following suit, according to House Beautiful. The four-bedroom/seven- bathroom penthouse at 66 East 11th Street in Greenwich Village reportedly has “an- ti-microbial coating on countertops and doors, Vitamin C-filtered showers, built- in aromatherapy, a circadian lighting sys- tem, and oak floors that allegedly improve posture.” Other aspects of the apartment includes an open chef’s kitchen, a powder room, and a rooftop with a solarium, ac- cording to the listing by Douglas Elliman. The asking price for this Greenwich Village penthouse? $23,995,000. Finance Report: Thousands May Have Paid More in Property Taxes A Department of Finance computer glitch may have resulted in thousands of New Yorkers – including actor Bruce Wil- lis – possibly overpaying in property taxes, according to the New York Post. The de- partment had recently installed an $18 million computer system that issued prop- erty tax bills but without the inclusion of the 421-a tax abatement, which offers tax breaks to condo owners and developers (In Willis’ case, records reportedly showed that he overpaid his property taxes for his Manhattan condo by $36,283). Jackie Gold, an official with the Department of Finance, told the Post that the department is work- ing on the technical issues and that “at the end of the day everybody’s going to get the full exemptions that they’re entitled \[to\].” Product News Sentient Buildings Launches Neuro™ Sentient Buildings, a cloud-based build- ing automation company, announced in a press release the launch of Neuro™, an IoT monitoring, analytics and control platform that centralizes remote access to building operations. Utilizing a single pane of glass, Neuro enables owners and managers to share real- time data across their ecosystem, and gain insight into a property’s efficiency, comfort and controls. Owners and managers have access to a close-up view of building per- formance, operational cost and equipment including air handlers, boiler plants, cool- ing towers, thermostats, and lighting down to the zone level. “Neuro presents a simple, streamlined portal view to all users involved in a build- ing,” said David Unger, CEO of Sentient Buildings. “The platform receives real-time and historical data from cloud-connected control systems, and enables users to see what they want, when they want to.” Trends NYSAR: Pending Sales Rise in NYS as Mortgage Rates Continue to Drop in 2Q 2019 With mortgage rates dropping yet again in the second quarter of 2019, pending sales in New York State inched up one per- cent from 39,663 homes to 40,054 units, according to the housing market report re- leased by the New York State Association of Realtors (NYSAR) According to a NYSAR press release, a 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 3.80 per- cent in June – the lowest rate since Novem- ber of 2016, according to Freddie Mac. Ac- cordingly, the 40,054 pending sales for the quarter were the second highest total since the second quarter of 2017 in a quarter- over-quarter comparison. The median sales price continues to trend upwards, elevating 5.7-percent in the second quarter from $265,000 to $279,999. This marks 42 consecutive months that the median sales price is up in a year-over-year comparison. Year to date, the median sales price is also up; 5.8-percent to $275,000. Inventory saw a slight decline of 1.1-per- cent from 72,166 homes for sale to 71,344 units in a year-over-year comparison. The month’s supply of homes for sale remained unchanged at 6.4 months. n 2019 PULSE/CALENDAR Please submit Pulse items to David Chiu at david@cooperator.com