Choice, quality and service: BARNES’ New York office facilitates and supports real estate investments in Manhattan.

Located in the heart of Manhattan, 2 blocks from Central Park, BARNES’ new New York office is taking advantage of the current improvement in the real estate market. “After the financial crisis, the market remains fragile, but shows a return to growth with a 5% increase in prices across Manhattan between the end of 2010 and the end of 2011,” says Christophe Bourreau, Director of BARNES USA (New York and Miami). “Our on-site team of bilingual French/New York consultants is thoroughly familiar with the local market and everything is in place to welcome foreign investors, especially French investors, in the best possible conditions. One of BARNES’ key strengths is its network of professional correspondents, which allows buyers to start their real estate search from Paris, London or Brussels and wherever BARNES is present. We take over from there and welcome potential buyers on site and show them round pre-selected properties. Arrangements can easily be made prior to arrival: all the relevant information is forwarded so as not to waste time when buyers get here.”

Another of BARNES’ key strength is its very thorough follow-up with clients and personalized support from beginning to end of the project, focused entirely on service quality: before the transaction (information, guide, visits…), during (bids, negotiations, overseeing the inspections…) and after the transaction by providing an integrated property management service: rental management or total property management in place of the owner if the latter does not live there. “This guarantee of security goes a long way in reassuring clients who have already invested over here,” continues BARNES’ Director. “As does our relocation service, which is integrated across our offices and provides our clients with a network of experts responsible for helping them with their property investment, or even with their move to New York: attorneys, banks, legal or tax advisers, architects, designers, contractors…”

“BARNES’ pledge of quality” facilitates and secures real estate investments :

The New York real estate market has its own specific features with, for example, a distinction between condominiums and co-ops (see Box). It has experienced a standstill in transactions, as did the Paris real estate market, at the end of 2008, before recovering since mid-2009. “Today, this market offers many advantages for Europeans interested in investing in Manhattan: a dynamic and healthy market, the rental market which has always been active, favorable euro/dollar exchange rate, lots of different properties still available… We also offer a series of services which, from Paris (or elsewhere) to New York, enables our clients to achieve a safe quality investment,” concludes Christophe Bourreau.

As in Paris, the luxury homes real estate market is doing well, with average apartment value increasing by 7% in the past year, at a current price of $2,100/ft² (*that is $23,100/m² or €18,000/m²). In Manhattan, just about one thousand apartments fall into that category which remains 20 to 30% cheaper than similar properties in Paris (average luxury apartment price in New York is $5,620K). Luxury apartments or luxury properties, New York real estate market is now open to foreign investors, especially the French, easily and safely thanks to “BARNES’ pledge of quality”.

* All you have to do is multiply the price per square foot by 11 to get the approximate price per square meter.

Two types of properties :

Unlike France, where the buyer of a property becomes the full and complete owner, the New York real estate market is divided into 2 different property titles:

• the condominium or “condo”: acquisition (as in France) of an apartment and of a proportional part of the collective ownership

• the co-ops or cooperative organizations, which themselves own a building. The prospective buyer of a co-op apartment purchases market shares, therefore becoming a shareholder in that corporation. It’s a complicated process because a board made up of the other shareholders of the cooperative, who are always very demanding in terms of guarantees and not very favorable to foreign investments, must approve the buyer beforehand. Co-ops represent 75% of New York’s real estate holdings and are about 10 to 15% cheaper than “condos” because of the difficulties to be approved and to resell the apartment.

New York real estate figures :

• A +5% increase in average prices from 2010 to 2011, with a current average price of $1,117/ft², that is €12,000/m².

• The housing stock has decreased by 6% over a year, with 7,200 available properties on the market in Manhattan.

Condominium market :

• an 8% increase in prices within a year,

• average apartment sale price: $1,771,000

• median prices: studio apartment for $500K, 1-bedroom apartment for $800K, 2-bedroom apartment for $1,365,000, 3-bedroom apartment for $2,500,000, 4-bedroom apartment for $6M.

(Source: quarterly report by property expert Samuel Miller, $/€ conversions using the current exchange rate).

Contact :

Christophe Bourreau, Tél :  +1 305 613 8570

c.bourreau@barnes-international.com

BARNES New York,

750 Lexington Avenue, 18th Floor.

New York, NY 10022-1200
USA

BARNES Miami,

Tél : +1 305 361 2233

260 Crandon Boulevard Suite 48

33149 Key Biscayne FL - USA

PARK AVENUE – RITZ TOWER

The prestigious Ritz Tower is a beautiful, legendary cooperative building on Park Avenue in the heart of Manhattan.

This pied-à-terre features 2 bedrooms and hotel amenities, such as a concierge and fitness room.

Price : $ 1,195,000