A report from the Wall Street Journal on New York. “A penthouse at 220 Central Park South has sold for $100 million, making it the third New York City residence ever to close for $100 million or more, according to people familiar with the deal. Luxury agents said this particular sale has little relationship with today’s market, which is more sluggish for luxury homes. The contract for the home was likely signed a couple of years ago and is closing now that the tower is nearing completion, according to people familiar with the building.”
“‘I don’t think this is a barometer for what’s happening right now,’ said Frances Katzen of Douglas Elliman, who wasn’t involved in the deal. ‘It’s a deal predicated on a different market.’”
“Ms. Katzen pointed to the new mansion tax in New York, which increased taxes for purchasers of ultrahigh-end real estate, as well as an oversupply of luxury condos as reasons why the market has slowed. ‘The pricing you’re seeing now is much more measured,’ she said.”
The Independent on New York. “Welcome to East End real estate, 2019. Municipalities have lots of things they want to buy, and usually have a nice stash of cash to purchase with. That’s because the Community Preservation Fund is like an allowance, only better: every time a property sells, the fund is injected with cash thanks to a two-percent tax.”
“But the ‘allowance’ is shrinking. The Peconic Bay Preservation Fund hit a new low, it was announced last week. Revenues are down 22 percent when compared to the first 10 months of 2018. Worse still, monthly CPF revenues for 2019 have been lower than the same month for 2018 every month thus far. It’s a trend, folks. Real estate pundits are sending mixed signals. Some think the market has finally bottomed, and others, pointing to a glut of unsold properties on the market, think there is still room to sink.”
From Mansion Global on Florida. “Recently retired basketball star Dwyane Wade lightened the ask of his waterfront Miami mansion, bringing its price tag down to $29 million. That’s a $3.5 million discount from the $32.5 million the sprawling estate had been asking since September, listing records show.”
The Herald Mail in Maryland. “There has been growing concern about vacant and abandoned houses in Hagerstown and owners of the homes being delinquent on property taxes. The properties repeatedly show up on the tax sale list, but often the houses are not sold because of their mounting tax bills.”
“The Hagerstown City Council and the Washington County Board of Commissioners have been considering a plan that would involve the county forgiving property taxes due on the properties to make them more attractive to new owners. Jonathan Kerns, the city’s community development manager said the city will seek housing-based nonprofit groups that might be interested in taking over the properties. A property could perhaps be sold to a nonprofit for a dollar, he said.”
From Celebrity Net Worth. “American Idol alum and The Voice coach Kelly Clarkson is trying to sell a beautiful 20,000-square-foot lakeside mansion in the hills of Hendersonville, TN, but she’s evidently been unable to find a buyer. As a result, TMZ reports that the asking price of the house has been slashed by more than a million dollars, bringing it down to $7.5 million. That’s $1.25 million less than the house’s original asking price when it was listed in March 2017.”
From USA Today on California. “While Gavin Newsom campaigned last fall on the enduring attraction of the mythic and potent California dream — egalitarianism, upward mobility, natural beauty — that postcard image has taken a hit. Homelessness is soaring; 25% of the nation’s 600,000 homeless live in California. In San Francisco alone, apps have sprouted up to track human waste on sidewalks, people with mental illnesses have attacked other residents, and some companies have canceled downtown convention plans.”
“But what would he say to someone who has given up on California’s golden dream and isn’t willing to wait for Newsom to polish it? ‘I would tell those folks I have a sensitivity to that. They’re not wrong: The median price of home is comically high in California,’ he says, veering off into details on his team’s ‘deep dives’ on housing solutions with city officials in Vancouver and Singapore. ‘I’m empathetic and sympathetic, and it’s disturbing to me,’ he says. ‘But that said, I feel for them. You’re missing the opportunities this state can provide. We had a historic decade in venture capital investment, a historic decade of job creation. There is no Trump economy without California’s success. This is Florence in its golden age.’”
From The Motley Fool. “Good morning, and welcome to the Toll Brothers Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year and Conference Call. Martin P. Connor — Chief Financial Officer: Looking forward, we are projecting first quarter deliveries of between 1,650 units and 1,850 units, with an average price of between $800,000 and $820,000. The drop in average price from $863,000 a year ago is strategic and reflects changes in the mix as we execute on our geographic and product diversification strategy. It also reflects our increased focus on the affordable luxury segment and a reduction in the number and mix of homes being delivered in California to more lower-priced and attached homes.”
“Douglas C. Yearley — Chairman and Chief Executive Officer: Sure. So just to give a bit of an update, Southern Cal was pretty flat to last year. Northern Cal was down year-over-year and that was primarily driven by a number of cancellations that we had that came through in Q4 from a large community outside of San Francisco called Metro Crossing. Overall, we’re encouraged by what we see in California. It feels a lot better. Our mix is a bit different as we mentioned where the prices down a bit.”
“Christina Chiu — Barclays — Analyst: And then on the California margin differential versus the remainder of your home building business, how does the differential this quarter given the mix down in California that you mentioned earlier compared to what you’ve previously seen? Martin P. Connor — Chief Financial Officer: I think the California marketplace a year ago was hit a bit harder than many of the others and so the margin there is down a couple of 100 points compared to where it has been in the past.”
“Kenneth Zener — KeyBanc — Analyst: So I hear you about the asset turns and stuff. I just want to start with California where you — Doug seem to be saying 25 units came out of the Metro Crossing, and that would put California down about 7% year-over-year adjusted for that. Is that correct? I assume Southern California flat, Northern California was still weaker. Martin P. Connor — Chief Financial Officer: Maybe — the improvement maybe is not as dramatic, but yes, somewhere in that ballpark, yes.”