Weekly Roundup: Brooklyn, inventory, bidding strategy, prices, Airbnb, interest rates, owning vs. renting, inspired renovating and much more

Brooklyn’s fast-climbing home prices make it nearly as expensive as Manhattan

Transaction volume strongest in years, even with diminished supply

Graphic demonstrates depth of Manhattan inventory

Bicycles becoming new amenity in some buildings

Permits for new residential buildings skyrocket in first quarter

In this seller’s market, every minute counts

So does the right strategy in a bidding war

‘Hybrid’ home-seekers on the hunt

Prices in the Hamptons Continue reading

Weekly Roundup: Rent squeeze, U.S. price gains, rates reversal, stocks vs. housing, declining buyer regret, best inflation hedge, tomorrow’s market

‘Gatsby’ lends a whiff of luxury, glamor to buildings

With declining vacancy rate, rents in Manhattan and Brooklyn keep rising

Navigating school zones trickier as more families with young children put down roots

85-year-old man adopted 62-year-old woman of privilege for her to claim $100-a-month Queens rental

Brick Underground lists eight best site for finding a no-fee apartment

Blog on worst rentals would be funny if Continue reading

Weekly Roundup: New development sales, eccentric buyers, agents’ frothy remarks, free mortgage tutorial, economics of price changes

With inventory tight and prices climbing, sales of new condos plunge

Yet developers, marketers designing ever more spectacular penthouses, townhouses in buildings old and new

Recent law change could make maintenance-free apartments less rare

Buyers do the darndest things

New Yorker magazine lets you click on subway stops to gauge wealth

Beachfront homeowners in Southampton building ramparts against storms

No, says New York magazine, it’s not a bubble again

Disgraced athlete latches onto quarter-acre Texas compound in gated community after dumping old Austin home

Artist makes mark in SoHo with purchase of Continue reading

Weekly Roundup: ‘Insane’ market, rising prices, pronounced seasonality, surging sales, wasted electricity, 65,000-acre Quebec spread. . . more!

Next Weekly Roundup April 5

Bidding environment now ‘absolutely insane’

Contract activity soars above prior years, thereby confirming both item above and my Wednesday post

Prices soar 11 percent from January 2012

Prior to usual seasonal increase, February rents in Manhattan Continue reading

Weekly Roundup: New. . . rent data, celebrity moves, U.S. market reports, interest rates, generation of investors, forecasts and more

November rents in Manhattan ease slightly as Sandy contributes to drop in inventory

Almost burned, one tenant unscathed after renting out apartment via Airbnb

Mayor calls for immediate redrawing of FEMA flood maps

Sunlight in apartments comes at a cost

NY Fed’s interactive tool provides housing market data

Insurance won’t cover loss in event of apartment misuse

Many of the city’s newest transplants favor Manhattan

His new home is, strangely, no fixer-upper

London house of singer who died tragically young sold at auction below original asking price

Retired Yankee’s condo sale long way from home run

Chef’s purchase Continue reading

Weekly Roundup: Storm effects, U.S. price and sales trends, credit scores, timing of rate locks, buyer rebates and growing optimism. Much more!

Daylight Savings Time Ends Saturday Night

Firm cost of storm’s damage to area homes long way off, but total will be astronomicalperhaps as much as 64 percent of $50 billion total

Sandy ravages Long Island’s East End, decimating homes of the rich and famous

Storm could shape how residential housing along the water is built, marketed, sold

Buyfolio collaborative service for consumers and agents finds deep-pocketed buyer

‘Prewar’ speaks volumes

Boards may promise buyer applicants one thing, then do something else

World Series pitcher lists California mansion for $11.45 million

Buyer of late pop star’s estate so eager to move in that he’ll occupy the place before sale closes

Actress takes substantial loss on her sale of Hollywood Hills house fit for a queen

Late Oscar nominee’s duplex overlooking Central Park on the market for $13.95 million

Case-Shiller records continuing upward price trend

Homewnership, rental vacancy rates Continue reading

Weekly Roundup: Latest rent stats, celebrities’ real estate, state of U.S. market, mortgage fraud, house swapping, growing consumer optimism

Manhattan rents shoot up 8.2 percent in a year, reaching $3,195 monthly

And Tribeca has biggest change in rents from prior month

Beating out other applicants means renting only what you can afford — and much more advice

Before signing lease, understand landlord’s perspective

Brooklyn, Queens attain highest average sales price in Q3 since 2007

Co-ops and condos Continue reading

Weekly Roundup: Shortage of condos, rates down again, strong signs of U.S. recovery, ugliest house

Lottery opens for 682 affordable housing rentals in Clinton

Number of condos projected to enter market in next few years likely to fall short of demand

With supply of condos dropping steeply, prices rise strongly

Basic steps can smooth apartment sale even before listing or searching

Biggest moving decision for parents centers on schools

Fierce competition in Manhattan pushes investors to outlying areas such as Nassau County

High rents causing drain of the middle class, comptroller reports

But billionaires buying many rooms they can afford with unforgettable views

New site grades each city block based on reviews of everything from crime to school, amenities (register free)

Rents for Boerum Hill studios swell 10 percent since July, topping gains elsewhere in Brooklyn

Accepting cash offer, an Ives grandson stymies plan to turn late composer’s home into museum

Actress is stoked to sell her Village duplex for $7 million

Music mogul lists 66th-floor condo for $8.5 million

After moving to California and renting out her downtown condo, Ryan’s daughter asks $1.645 for the unit (3rd item)

Curbed rounds up the buy and sell of Law and Order cast

Real divorce has couple putting Beverly Hills estate on the market for $26 million

Resales climb, prices go up and inventory Continue reading

Weekly Roundup: Supply in U.S. and NYC dwindles, rates keep falling, Oprah takes bath, hell is hoarder at home, Shiller’s glass half empty

Obama slept here, and so can you for $2,400 a month

Median price of new condos up 15.4 percent from year ago, inventory down 19.1 percent

Q2 prices in Brooklyn, Queens edge up as inventory plunges

With prices falling in the Hamptons, sales pick up

Boards only set policies and six other surprises that rookie members may confront

New rental units in the city undergoing shrinkage

New handful of properties set to come on market at $90 million or more

Retired detective names safest, riskiest units in apartment building

Sales volume, property values remain well below peak levels, says NYU’s Furman Center

Number of residential building permits skyrockets, especially in Manhattan

Super rich Continue reading

Weekly Roundup: Higher floor premiums, chef on the move, growing demand, record low loan rate, renovation advice, views of Fed and economists

Open house, other signs indicate market is ‘willing to stop flirting with recovery and commit wholeheartedly’

First-time foreclosures continue to decline, but trend is unlikely to last

With surging demand, Manhattan rents climb 7.1 percent higher than year ago

Flawed system caused dramatic swings in assessed value of some co-ops and condos, comptroller’s office says

Plaza’s developer negotiates $600 million sale of former hotel

Inventory gap yawns between 2012 and much higher average of prior three years

Increasing number of first-time homebuyers decide it would be cheaper — and smarter — to own rather than rent

Appraisal executive demystifies premium for higher floors

Some co-op boards becoming more comfortable with corporate ownership

U.S. attorney’s civil complaint seeks ownership of Washington Heights rental building allegedly purchased with illegal cash

Northern Westchester towns, villages vie with Hamptons for summer renters

And Long Island real estate industry finds itself accommodating numerous buyers from overseas

Celebrity chef buys SoHo penthouse

Actor’s newly listed home is a long way from Continue reading