HAPPY NEW YEAR Resolution: If you're going to buy real estate, do ...

Ben Flavin?s 2013 Real Estate Predictions?

It?s traditional to adopt a New Year?s improvement resolution. If you?ve been thinking about buying real estate, here?s my real estate predictions for 2013, which argue that you?ll improve your financial health if you don?t wait too long to pull the trigger on your property transaction. These predictions are based solely on my own observations as an attorney active in real estate transactions, negotiations and my experience with condo and co-op boards, affordable housing organizations and housing developers.??

1. 1.???? Continued Price Increases during 2013, and beyond. This is not an original thought; most real estate experts agree. It doesn?t take a crystal ball on this one. Tight inventory, great pent up demand and growing demographic trends, as well as experience over the last year, argue for increasing prices. Realtor Ari Harkov of Halstead Properties predicts New York City price increases over the year of between 5-10%. He?s not alone. Recent reports from the National Realtor?s Board predict continued significant average price increases for 2013 and 2014.
2. 2.???? New York City will be one of the ?hot markets? nationally. The national real estate market trajectory is clearly higher ? but property markets are really regional, not national. I predict our city will be a ?hot? market in 2013 for lots of reasons; consider these:
   1. a.???? New York has become the hottest tourist market again. In 2012 we attracted a record 52 million tourists, a 2.1% increase over 2010, and significantly ahead of projections. We attracted one-third of all foreign visitors to the U.S. as Big Apple tourists.
   2. b.???? New York City really is the safest big city in America. Not only was the murder rate at another record low in 2012, but the City also posted a new better-than-national average life expectancy record pushing city life expectancy over 80 years for ?new? New Yorkers.
   3. c.???? It?s more than likely Europe and other foreign economies will continue to struggle in 2013, meaning continued and stronger interest from abroad in our real estate.
   4. d.???? Stocks finished strong in 2012 ? a hot stock market affects New York real estate values. ?
   5. e.???? NYC has excellent job growth in expanding economic sectors like education and health care, and demographically attracting an outsize number of echo baby boomers.
   6. 3.???? Mortgage interest rates will stay historically low throughout 2013. This isn?t a guess. It?s an assurance from the Federal Reserve and its Chair, Ben Bernanke, to continue low interest rate monetary policies until we hit much lower unemployment. The good news is rates in the current low 3% range significantly reduce prices for anyone who finances; the bad news is mortgage providers are fussy about credit ratings and demanding of big down payments. If a buyer has an all- or lots-of- cash offer, she can demand price or closing-cost concessions.?????? ?
   7. 4.???? Look at the expert reports: Since New Year?s Day, Manhattan based Real Capital Analytics forecast a boom in 2013 new city real estate development and the National Association for Business Economics predicted continued real estate recovery in an otherwise gloomy report. In December the NY Daily News reported rents in Brooklyn up a sizzling 10.1% in Brooklyn and Pricewaterhouse Coopers put New York City number 2 on its list of the 10 Best Communities for Real Estate Investment in 2013 (behind only San Francisco).?

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More 2013 Real Estate Predictions: I predict lots of hot city neighborhoods, and here are a few:

-??????? Brooklyn generally, especially Greenpoint near the waterfront and Bushwick near the L line.

-??????? Anything near the Highline or the Hudson Yards project. .

-??????? Anything near Freedom Tower as the WTC site work progresses and rents up.

-??????? Anything along the Second Avenue subway line.

-??????? The no Sandy damaged East Village, picking up interest from TriBeCa and the FiDi.

-??????? ?Roosevelt Island as the Cornell Tech campus progresses.

-??????? Commutable outer-borough hoods like Astoria, Long Island City and Sunnyside in Queens.

-??????? Continuing ?hot? places like Williamsburg, Harlem and MiMa (formerly Hell?s Kitchen).

For Condo and Coop Boards: You should be prepared for more interest and questions this year about flooding and emergency preparedness. You?ll need to answer how the Sandy flooding affected your building, if there was no damage how close was any water, and whether any mechanical equipment is on the lobby level or below grade. You should also be prepared to disclose any bed bug history in the building.

Boards and building managers should keep in mind their duty to disclose material matters that effect property value to potential buyers, like flooding concerns, foreseeable assessments or environmental building issues. The need to disclose is a case-by-case issue, but if the concerns are known to you and not apparent to a potential purchaser, you should discuss the matter with your attorney.

I?ll keep closely following the New York City real estate market and legal matters concerning homes, apartments, condos and coops. You can expect more on real estate matters in future postings.

Source: http://benflavinlaw.com/law-blog/happy-new-year-resolution-if-youre-going-to-buy-real-estate-do-it-now/

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