Weekly Roundup: Hamptons, celebs, new-home sales, lower interest rates, auction spat, Baby Boomers, marble stains, housing’s headwinds

Court approves of class action lawsuits by tenants claiming rent overcharges when apartments illegally deregulated

Study: Living in New York actually relative bargain for the wealthy

Hudson Yards finally on track

Regret may define things you might do within your four walls

For politicians, finding a rental apartment differs from searches the mere mortals endure

Sandy deals lingering blow to Hamptons residential prices

Upper East Side developers scramble to convert projects as luxury market rebounds

Details of navigating schools choice provided by BrickUnderground

Council hearing on Fair Cooperative Procedure Law is set for April 30

Outdoor space on ground floor is expensive, but higher up more so for good reasons

Relationships sour between landlords and tenants of Dumbo lofts in converted factories

Q1 sales in the Hamptons 29.4 percent lower than same time last year

It’s time for spring house, garden tours

Interior designer with TV show finally 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: Apartment bargains, price gains, sinking supply, mixed prognostications

Residential sales market attains highest peak in total dollars citywide since 2008 financial crisis, sales trail 2010

When it comes to the middle class, Manhattan naturally has one of its own

Winning design for micro-apartments allows for 55 250-to-370-sf modular units in Kips Bay

An UWS townhouse is listed for. . . $50 million

Closed sales in the Bronx slide to five-year low in 2012 as median inches up to $288,990

Major architecture firms expect 10-20 percent staff growth

First-floor apartment one of eight ways to get more space for less money

Zillow calculates 8.3 percent rise in home values

It is possible to avoid double taxation when refinancing in the city

If you can’t be too rich or thin, apparently you can have too much house

Average home price in the Hamptons sets record with surge of luxury sales

Sold price of Gramercy condop trimmed 67 percent from price that fashion designer had paid

Singer’s original $18 million asking price for Tribeca penthouse off key

It’s selling days 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: Rents rise again, celebs on the move, U.S. prices up, Omaha one ‘livable’ city

Biggest and best Manhattan residential properties exceed prior peaks

Council raises fines on owners who illegally turn residential units into hotel suites

Owners of glam Brooklyn condo accuse developers, other companies of lapses in $200 million lawsuit

Manhattan rents again at all-time high, so apartment hunters accept compromises

Actor contracts to purchase three-bedroom Central Park West co-op that had rejected Mariah

After actress’ and partner’s move to the Village, she sells co-op in the city for $1.59 million

Can rock star feel the profit today in sale of his West Hollywood condos?

Johnny Continue reading

Weekly Roundup: Sales up here, U.S. prices low

Even with tight inventory, February had most signed contracts for the month since 2008

State says 2011 economy, jobs grew far more than previously estimated

The light that star architects shine on their buildings often dims on resale

Rental brokers Continue reading