Church Guides Harlem Condo

A few doors down from the imposing stone facade of the Abyssinian Baptist Church on West 138th Street, one the most important activist churches in Harlem, a new condominium development is about to go on the market including market-rate penthouses, with open stainless-steel kitchens, granite counters, and terraces, priced up to $970,000. But rather than …

Homebuyer tax credit causing headaches and trouble

Homebuyer tax credit causing headaches and trouble The federal homebuyer tax credit did its job to boost the real estate market, but many involved – from buyers to the IRS – have run into problems with confusing wording and stipulations. The result: Hundreds of thousands who’ve already filed for the credit will have to give …

Apthorp Rentals Raise Questions [New York City]

Apthorp Rentals Raise Questions [New York City] Some recent condominium buyers at Manhattan’s famed Apthorp building are looking to rent their newly purchased apartments, a move that may conflict with their signed declarations to use the apartments as their own residencies. The effort by some owners to rent out their condos could spark additional scrutiny …

Study: Nearly a quarter of all U.S. foreign buyers choose Florida

Study: Nearly a quarter of all U.S. foreign buyers choose Florida International buyers have helped buttress Florida’s real estate market with 22 percent of all foreign clients nationally choosing property in the Sunshine State. That makes Florida tops for attracting foreign interest, according to a summer report by the National Association of Realtors. California came …

Walking away from your mortgage isn’t risk free

Walking away from your mortgage isn’t risk free For underwater homeowners who think they’ve found a solution to their predicament–stop paying the mortgage and remain in the house until they are forced out by foreclosure–the consequences of such a decision are not as simple as they may seem. The short-term advantages of a “strategic default” …

Homeowner fees ‘like extortion,’ homeowner says

Homeowner fees ‘like extortion,’ homeowner says. Two days before closing on a house, Eugene Vrooman got bad news: If he didn’t come up with $14,000, the homeowners association wouldn’t allow his deal to go through. In addition to unpaid assessments, the Bridgewater Community Association demanded money for cosmetic repairs to the home, which had been …