A 4.25-acre waterfront assemblage on Brickell Bay Drive has traded for $520 million, marking the largest single land acquisition ever in Florida. The site, at 1001 and 1111 Brickell Bay Drive, offers 485 feet of uninterrupted Biscayne Bay frontage and is the last developable parcel of this scale in Brickell’s financial district.
The purchase was made by a joint venture between Oak Row Equities, OKO Group, and Mariposa Real Estate, with TYKO Capital as senior lender.
The project is expected to set a new benchmark for ultra-luxury living …
by Riccardo Ravasini 
In 2025, Manhattan’s office market marked a clear return to pre-pandemic levels, closing the year with its strongest quarter since 2019. Nearly 12 million square feet were leased in Q4 alone, bringing annual leasing activity to around 42 million square feet, the highest volume in six years.
Availability declined for the seventh consecutive quarter, sublease space fell to pre-pandemic lows, and asking rents began to rise.
(source: The Real Deal, picture: Fung Martin)
by Riccardo Ravasini 
New development condo sales in New York City slowed in 2025, with contract signings down about 11% year over year across Manhattan and Brooklyn. The weakness wasn’t driven by fading demand, but by a lack of appealing new product. Buyers remained selective, favoring well-located, well-priced buildings and choosing to wait rather than compromise. Re-launched developments performed strongly after meaningful price resets, confirming that realistic pricing can unlock demand.
Inventory continued to shrink, further limiting options, and looking ahead, the pipeline for 2026 and 2027 remains thin, suggesting the demand–supply imbalance is …
by Riccardo Ravasini 
Contract activity has risen 5.7% from the past month and 3.3% from this time last year, remaining 5% above typical seasonal levels. The median sales price for a Manhattan apartment is $1.17M, reflecting a 4.1% year-over-year increase. Supply, measured as the number of active listings, stands at 4,896 units, down 7.4% year over year. Pending sales have increased 8.5% compared to last year, signaling continued buyer engagement. As a result, the Market Pulse stands at 0.6, placing the market slightly towards the seller side but still in the neutral zone.
by Riccardo Ravasini 
The recent completion of the JFK Hilton conversion to affordable housing, now known as the Baisley Pond Park Residences, offers a clear case study in the optics of modern real estate. While the project was a private venture led by Slate Property Group and RiseBoro Community Partnership, mainstream media and official announcements focused almost exclusively on Governor Kathy Hochul. Despite the state’s financial contribution covering less than a third of the total cost, the narrative was framed as a direct achievement of the administration.
This dynamic exists because …
by Riccardo Ravasini 
Manhattan is back on top of StreetEasy’s annual list of NYC neighborhoods to watch, which tracks areas with the biggest jump in buyer and renter searches year over year. For 2026, the borough claimed three spots in the top four, led by the Financial District, followed by the East Village (2nd) and the Lower East Side (4th). This is a dramatic reversal from last year, when the borough barely managed a single entry.
The Financial District ranked first after searches surged nearly 47 percent from 2024 to 2025. Long …
by Riccardo Ravasini