Good news for renters — particularly those in the market for NYC’s luxury apartments. The average rent throughout Manhattan and Brooklyn dipped in January while concessions like free rent and comped building amenity fees reached new highs. According to Douglas Elliman report, the use of concessions hit an all-time high for the fourth consecutive month, with more than 30 percent of leases including a concession now.
In Manhattan, the median rent has been on the decline for six consecutive months, …
by Riccardo Ravasini 
Developer Simon Karam of The Karam Group, which owns the most land in Brickell and Miami Beach, has recently submitted plans to the city of Miami’s Urban Development Review Board for a 78-story mixed-use retail and residential skyscraper in Brickell. This new development would be on the site of what’s now a Burger King-anchored shopping strip near Brickell City Centre, which opened its 500,000-square-foot shops in November. Karam’s plans call for 392 residential condo units, 66,618 square feet of retail …
by Riccardo Ravasini 
Brooklyn and Queens will see more ambitious real estate projects in 2017 compared to Manhattan. In fact, according to an analysis done by The Real Deal of offering plans accepted for sale by the New York State Attorney General, more condos in Brooklyn and Queens were approved to launch sales over the past 12 months. Between November 2015 and November 2016, a combined 3,577 condos were approved for sale in the two outer boroughs compared to 2,614 in Manhattan.
Of …
by Riccardo Ravasini Since January 2016, the 421a abatement — which saves developers big in taxes and creates some affordable housing — has been unavailable for new development projects. But that will soon change with a forthcoming bill that will revive the developer tax cut in exchange for setting aside subsidized affordable apartments. With a new name “Affordable New York,” the tax abatement program would create 2,500 units of new affordable housing per year and will extend the tax incentives for 40 years, …
by Riccardo Ravasini After five years of stalling and discussions, a two-block section of the East River Esplanade between Catherine Street and Pike Slip finally got the green light to move forward as planned. The hold up, in a nutshell, was due to the Department of Environmental Protection’s plans to redo some water mains near the proposed stretch of esplanade that would have prohibited the city’s Economic Development Corporation from moving forward with the redevelopment. Those plans have now been dropped since the …
by Riccardo Ravasini 
Aston Martin’s first-ever entry into the real estate market kicks off with the Aston Martin Residences — a 66-story waterfront tower with 390 units in downtown Miami with views of Biscayne Bay and the Miami skyline. The building will be helmed by developer German Coto and designed by Revuelta Architecture and Bodas Mian Anger. Aston Martin’s design team will oversee the tower’s interior spaces, which will feature a two-story fitness center, two lobby areas and a full-service spa. Other amenities …
by Riccardo Ravasini