New York. New York

[simplyjoe]

A client of mine is advising me that I should look at buying property in NY for myself and my clients. I would be looking for blocks of apartments - say 10+ units. What is the story with NY property? Good buy? Do they have efficient management companies that would handle rent collection, repairs, etc? What rates do they charge? Is there stamp duty? Legal costs? Tax situation for rent? tax on subsequent sale? I just need some info to see if it justifies the trip, more research, etc.

 

[beattie]

A client of mine is advising me that I should look at buying property in NY for myself and my clients. I would be looking for blocks of apartments - say 10+ units. What is the story with NY property? Good buy? Do they have efficient management companies that would handle rent collection, repairs, etc? What rates do they charge? Is there stamp duty? Legal costs? Tax situation for rent? tax on subsequent sale? I just need some info to see if it justifies the trip, more research, etc.

Have you not been following the stories in the press related to the fallout from the US sub-prime shambles? It looks like that the problems could extend past that segement of the market which would mean that the housing problems could get a good deal worse before they get pick up again. Are you in a rush to buy? I would advise you to do some DD and see if you are confident that NY will be immune from any downturn.

 

[NY_Resident]

The Manhattan property market is very very different to the general housing market in the US. The market in Manhattan, like other markets, has appreciated rapidly over the course of the last decade. It has obviously slowed from these past dizzy heights - however, the fundamentals and market are still quite strong. I believe that both rental yields and capitial appreciation prospects are good. Significant numbers of workers migrate to NYC every year for employment reasons - and Manhattan property is always in high demand.

The following blog is excellent and I recommend that you read some of the material on the site. www.urbandigs.com The guy who runs the site (Noah Rosenblatt) is very helpful and even offers his own consulting service for potential buyers and sellers.

You need to spend significant time understanding the Manhattan real estate market (co-op v condo, real estate taxes and tax abatements, common charges, closing costs, your tax situation etc). There are very significant differences versus purchasing property in Ireland. There are also significant enrty and exit charges (e.g., broker commission is 6%!! What was all that comotion about when Irish auctioneers increased their commission rates to 1.5%??!!!!)