A sampling of last week’s press coverage of CORE and CORE properties.

“Slim supply gives condo prices new pop”
Crain’s
Record rents, low interest rates and wealthy buyers looking to invest their fortunes are all helping to pump up the condominium sales market, Crain’s reports. One of the projects benefiting from the lack of new inventory is CORE’s Walker Tower development (above). “Walker Tower is shattering record prices for downtown,” CORE CEO Shaun Osher tells Crain’s. For more on Osher’s take on the current real estate market, read his comments on the new housing shortage.

“Trophies On Display: In Gaga Global New York, the Loudest Listings Bag the Billionaires”
New York Observer
In the Observer’s look at the current culture within Manhattan’s luxury real estate world (”If you’ve got it, flaunt it. That’s the new rule of thumb in luxury real estate, anyway.”), CORE Managing Director Emily Beare commented on the important roles advertising and publicity play in marketing expensive properties.

“What’s new”
New York Post
The Post’s big fall real estate preview featured CORE’s upcoming 93 Worth Street project on its cover. The former garment factory in TriBeCa, built in 1924, will launch sales later this fall with prices from $1,250 to $2,000 a square foot. Click here for more on the project.

A sampling of last week’s press coverage of CORE and CORE properties.

“Meg’s house hunt”
New York Post
The $10.95 million townhouse listing at 233 West 20th Street listed by CORE’s Tom Postilio (above) caught the eye of actress Meg Ryan, who just put her Bel Air mansion on the market.

“Developers tap Core to market new condominium at 15 Renwick Street”
The Real Deal
As we mentioned last week, a new boutique luxury condominium building in West SoHo will break ground in the fall at 15 Renwick Street, and CORE will be the exclusive sales and marketing agent for the building.

“Executive Moves”
Crain’s
Jarrod Guy Randolph’s move to CORE as vice president and associate broker was featured in Crain’s.

“Jennifer Gilbert at One Museum Mile”
Real Estate Weekly
A gallery of photos from the “I Never Promised You a Goodie Bag” event at One Museum Mile.

“Halal and hipsters on West 29th Street”
The Real Deal (11/1)
West 29th Street is in the midst of transforming from gritty to glam in the wake of the success of the Ace Hotel, and The Real Deal spoke to CORE Senior Vice President Lawrence Rich (right) about the changes in the neighborhood, and what’s to come.

“3 residential brokerages shift into drive”
Crain’s (11/8)
Crain’s on CORE’s growth, including the recent relocation of CORE’s main corporate office to a 5,000-square-foot space in the Flatiron District at 104 Fifth Avenue. Said CORE CEO Shaun Osher: “There was an opportunity to move to this new space, that truly reflects our brand, in the most exciting office market in New York City.” Check out photos from CORE’s housewarming party on Facebook.

“Osher’s Core acquires residential firm R.P. Miller & Associates”
The Real Deal (11/8)
Residential real estate firm R.P. Miller & Associates, helmed by industry veteran Reba Miller, was acquired by CORE last week. The Real Deal got comments from Miller (who has sold over $1 billion in property during her long career) and CORE CEO Shaun Osher about the deal. Miller will take over the role of managing director of sales at CORE.

“Less Than $1M For a Pre-Civil War House in Fort Greene”
Curbed (11/9)
Doug Bowen’s and Win Brown’s listing for a historic townhouse at 141 Clermont Avenue in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, caught the eye of real estate blog Curbed, which remarked: “It’s currently configured as two one-bedroom apartments (squeezed into 1,324 square feet!) but would be easy enough to renovate into a single-family residence. Side bonus: the lot is 25′x100′ and it’s got a driveway.” This is the same Fort Greene charmer that was featured in CORE’s Three of a Kind last week.

New residential developments are what everybody is talking about in the New York City real estate world these days, and Crain’s just let word slip of one of the newest: 93 Worth Street (right), a 13-story former office building that was just purchased for nearly $50 million by the Izaki Group. The 165,000-square-foot building will be converted into 92 apartments to be sold and marketed by CORE. Built in 1924, the vintage-looking 93 Worth Street is located along a booming stretch of Broadway in TriBeCa, the downtown Manhattan neighborhood that has become synonymous with converted loft residences and the celebrities who love them.

CORE executive vice president Doron Zwickel told Crain’s that apartments will range from studios to four-bedrooms, and be priced from $1,250 per square foot to $2,000 per square foot. “The prices will be in line with other residential developments in the neighborhood,” he added. “We will be competitive and aggressive.” Amenities at 93 Worth Street will include a gym, children’s playroom, residents’ lounge and 3,845-square-foot roof deck, but renovations have yet to begin, so this one’s still a bit in the future. And based on what we know about new Manhattan development heading forward, that future is looking more and more bright.

Everywhere I look, it seems as if there is a new list written by some “expert” about a caste system of the subject matter’s relative pedigree.

Our culture loves these.

I HATE it!

Here are some examples:

Forbes has a slew of them.

Crains‘ “40 under 40?” (I’m too old for this one).

The Observer’s “100 Most Powerful People in New York Real Estate”. (Very entertaining).

If you want to see a top list of Top Ten Lists, there’s a website dedicated to the phenomenon: www.toptenz.net. I’m putting them on my Top Ten List of “websites with grammatical errors in their domain name”.

David Letterman gets my top prize for Top Ten Lists.

I guess the wise old owl who once told me that “no matter who you are, there is always someone better or worse off than you” was wrong…if you’re lucky enough to be Number 1!

The bottom is staring you in the face

Hindsight is not always 20/20………. and it’s amazing how quickly things turn. For better or worse.

It has been 2 years since the sub prime mortgage industry credit crunch rippled through the globe.

It has been 18 months since the collapse of Bear Stearns.

It has been a year since the fall of Lehman Brothers.

The Manhattan residential market has lost almost 50% value in some sectors since its peak in 2007. A drop that came quicker and more dramatically than ever before. Yes, even more than Black Monday 1987.

Crains’ Amanda Fung covered a story yesterday about the recent activity over the summer. My opinion is that the value of the market has levelled off, and once banks start lending again (hopefully soon), the velocity of deals will pick up. 

Next year this time, there will be a number of people who will be saying “I could have…………. I would have……….I should have!”