Larry Silverstein has reached a tentative deal with advertising firm GroupM for office space at 3 World Trade Center, paving the way for construction of the 80-story Lower Manhattan skyscraper, the New York Post reported.
GroupM – a division of advertising giant WPP — will take more than 500,000 square feet at the 2.5 million-square-foot tower in a 20-year deal, sources familiar with the transaction told the Post. The two sides signed a term sheet Monday, and are expected to …
by Riccardo Ravasini 
New York City’s average rental rate inched past the $3,000 mark for the first time in the second quarter, according to new market data reviewed by the Wall Street Journal.
Rents in the city – excluding Staten Island – rose 1 percent from the first quarter to $3,017, the highest in the country and nearly $2,000 more than the national average of $1,062, according to data from real estate research firm Reis.
The rental hikes stem from an extremely tight …
by Riccardo Ravasini 
AM New York reports that the first phase of the Second Avenue subway is more than half finished as of July. Blasting for the 72nd Street station finished in February, but rock-crumbling explosives will be detonated inside the 86th Street station cavern through August, with possibly more blasting in ancillary areas. The end of blasting at 86th Street means the end of the muck houses that handle the debris. Residents will see an improvement in their quality of life near …
by Riccardo Ravasini 
This is not a joke. A report compiled by international brokerage and consulting firm Knight Frank, which is based in London, indicates that New York City occupies only the 8th place in the ranking of the world’s priciest cities.
According to Knight Frank, in New York, $1 million buys approximately 474 square feet of luxury real estate. The tiny principality of Monaco, where $1 million buys only 172 square feet, was ranked # 1, followed by Hong Kong (204 square …
by Riccardo Ravasini 
Real Estate History – 1943: White-only Stuy Town plan approved –
The city’s Board of Estimate approved land and tax breaks for Stuyvesant Town even after the developer said the housing project would be for white residents only, 70 years ago this month.
Board members voted 11 to 5 to give a 25-year tax exemption and the use of eminent domain to assist Metropolitan Life Insurance Company in building its $50 million development on Manhattan’s East Side.
by Riccardo Ravasini 
The choice used to be an easy one. Those who could afford it chose the city. Those who wanted more space for their bucks chose the lower borough. That is no longer true these days. With sale prices and especially rents rising sharply in Brooklyn, many home-seekers are finding that popular Brooklyn neighborhoods no longer come at the discount they’re expecting.
Let’s look at rentals. The June issue of The Real Deal analyzed market data and found that rents have …
by Riccardo Ravasini