Category: News + Insight

    By Serj Markarian, Licensed Associate Real Estate Broker Rents are climbing once again, with Manhattan’s median rent rising 6.4% year-over-year to $4,500. This marks the fifth consecutive increase across the Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens rental markets—an unusual trend for February, typically a slower period. However, bidding wars have continued to drive prices higher in both…

Today, we present the latest on inflation and Wall Street bonuses. Welcome to a good news, bad news edition of The Line. Retail Sales Rose Less than Expected in February The core personal consumption expenditures price index—or PCE for short—rose 0.4% last month, and was 2.8% higher than a year ago. Both figures were higher…

By Gregory Heym, BHS Chief Economist and and host of Crossing The Line With all the tariff threats out there these days, it's appropriate that today's column is all about inflation. Consumer Prices Rose Less than Expected in February After some brutal days for stocks, we certainly needed some good news on inflation this week. The…

By Serj Markarian, Licensed Associate Real Estate Broker With interest rates declining for the sixth consecutive week—bringing the average 30-year fixed rate down to 6.67%, its lowest since October—mortgage applications have risen by 7%, with weekly demand surging 11%. As homebuying season gains momentum, sellers responding to this increased demand should carefully price their homes to…

By Cindy Gokay, Licensed Real Estate Salesperson  New York City’s City of Yes zoning reforms are set to reshape the skyline—offering developers unprecedented opportunities for new builds, commercial conversions, and maximizing property value. If you’re looking to stay ahead of the curve, here’s what you need to know.  5 Key Takeaways for Developers 1.  More…

In the ever-evolving landscape of real estate, policies that promote transparency and fairness are crucial for a healthy market. One such policy is the National Association of Realtors' (NAR) Clear Cooperation Policy (CCP) which is now under attack. “Clear Cooperation is being picked apart by large real estate companies with huge market share and eager…

By Serj Markarian, Licensed Associate Real Estate Broker Some of you may have heard about Local Law 97, a key piece of NYC legislation enacted in 2019 to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from buildings, which account for about 70% of the city’s total emissions. The law requires buildings over 25,000 square feet to cut emissions by…

By Gregory Heym, BHS Chief Economist and and host of Crossing The Line It's the first Friday of the month, which means today is all about jobs. The Line: Job Growth Lower than Expected in February Payrolls rose by 151,000 last month, below the 170,000 Dow Jones forecast. Not the best news in the world, but certainly not the worst. Here are the other headlines of the report:…

In a recent opinion piece for RISMEDIA, CEO Bess Freedman expanded on her concerns surrounding Compass’ Private Exclusive Network. “For months, Compass has been touting a Private Exclusive Network as part of a three-stage marketing strategy for homesellers, and while it sounds great in marketing jargon, its core purpose is much more dubious," writes Freedman. Compass…