The Trust for Public Land gave the Big Apple 4.5 out of 5 “park benches” in its annual ParkScore index. Although New York came in behind Minneapolis, the nonprofit gave the city high marks for the parks’ proximity to residents and for overall investment in its public spaces.
The trust used three factors to determine its score: the percentage of residents living within a 10-minute walk from the park, median park size and the amount spent on park creation and …
by Riccardo Ravasini 
With record-high rents and extra-tight inventory, fewer Manhattan property owners are dangling incentives to lure renters and brokers to their buildings. But the practice persists in certain neighborhoods where competition to fill rental units is fierce; landlords are paying brokers’ commissions to fill rental units in these cases.
Even as Douglas Elliman data shows overall average monthly rents hitting a five-year high of $3,247 in April, brokers said that owner-paid commissions, or OPs, linger in select locations. OPs, of course, …
by Riccardo Ravasini 1924: Third Madison Square Garden site acquired
A boxing promoter in partnership with circus owner John Ringling and others purchased a former streetcar barn on the West Side 90 years ago this month, where they built the third incarnation of Madison Square Garden. This was the first of four arenas bearing the name to be built outside of Madison Square Park.
George “Tex” Rickard led the group that paid $2 million to the Eighth Avenue Railway Company for the parcel …
by Riccardo Ravasini Almost two-thirds of Florida housing sales in the first quarter of this year were done in cash, according to the study by the research firm RealtyTrac. That is the highest rate in the nation and well above the national average of 42.7 percent.
Five Florida metro areas also had the nation’s highest rates of cash sales. Those areas were Miami, Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Sarasota, Palm Bay and Lakeland.
High rates of cash sales show that investors are still finding Florida …
by Riccardo Ravasini 
Given the positive trend of New York City real estate over the last few years, many areas have been improving and prices rising, in some cases at a very healthy pace. Manhattan is the core of NYC real estate and of course everyone and his mom want a piece of it; Brooklyn has become another household name all over the world; Queens has gained traction with the development of areas like Long Island City and Astoria; but relatively few people …
by Riccardo Ravasini For the first time, the Chinese have become the biggest foreign buyers of apartments in Manhattan, taking the top spot from the Russians – whose activity has dropped off in light of recent developments in Ukraine and Russia.
Wealthy Chinese are pouring money into real estate in New York and some other major cities around the world, including London and Sydney, as they seek safe havens for their cash and also establish a base for their children to get an …
by Riccardo Ravasini