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Recent Posts
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Restaurants & Food / Re: Laly's Restaurant
« Last post by Bel84 on Today at 08:46:41 PM »I was persuaded by all the chat to take out chicken soup from Laly's. It was really good. Very fresh and well seasoned. Next up the vegetable quesadilla. I hope they make it but of course that would mean we have to eat in and not just take out. I'm willing.
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Real Estate & Home Improvement / Looking for a man (or 2) with a van
« Last post by Bel84 on Today at 08:39:05 PM »Hi All,
I need to get 2 tables, 2 chairs, 1 pole lamp, a flat TV and some boxes from Brighton Beach (right off the Belt Parkway) back to JH. They are in an elevator building with a loading zone and I live in an elevated building here.
Not a lot of stuff but probably better handled by 2 guys. Can anyone recommend someone who does this sort of thing. Its probably 3 hours work. Going, coming and loading. Thanks for any help.
I need to get 2 tables, 2 chairs, 1 pole lamp, a flat TV and some boxes from Brighton Beach (right off the Belt Parkway) back to JH. They are in an elevator building with a loading zone and I live in an elevated building here.
Not a lot of stuff but probably better handled by 2 guys. Can anyone recommend someone who does this sort of thing. Its probably 3 hours work. Going, coming and loading. Thanks for any help.
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Restaurants & Food / Re: Jax Hts Starbucks closed by NYC Health Dept
« Last post by am315 on Today at 06:06:01 PM »I find it funny that every almost every restaurant posting devolves into Big Bad National Chain is killing local business and is the enemy of the people. Oh, and all commercial landlords are ripping off tenants and taking all the cash they earn to some nirvana outside NYC.
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Restaurants & Food / Re: Rainbow Berry Frozen Yogurt
« Last post by am315 on Today at 05:59:49 PM »I've always thought the "yogurt" there was pretty bad. And the owners didn't seem so swift either. The woman who regularly works behind the counter is completely humorless and just not nice. You'd think a place that wants to attract kids and families would at least try to have someone kind of nice behind the counter. When they started selling fruit on their doorstep you knew the business was probably in bad shape.
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Neighborhood Chat / Re: Amazon HQ2 in LIC? Yay or Nay?
« Last post by N00b on Today at 05:55:10 PM »lol smaller companies are not going to compete with Amazon where average comp is going to double and they offer equity that's actually worth money versus equity in a private company that isn't worth the paper that their venture valuations are printed on. There's already a robust tech industry in NYC and the talent pool was probably a factor in Amazon's selection. They'll easily be able to pick the top talent around town.
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Neighborhood Chat / Re: Amazon HQ2 in LIC? Yay or Nay?
« Last post by Shelby2 on Today at 04:56:45 PM »There's a condo buying frenzy going on in LIC now -- van loads of Chinese buyers (and plenty of non-Chinese buyers as well).
https://www.mansionglobal.com/articles/amazon-s-move-to-long-island-city-sparks-condo-frenzy-114128
Amazon’s Move to Long Island City Sparks Condo Frenzy
Brokers flooded with clients seeking real estate in Queens neighborhood, reminding some of pre-crash property boom
BY Josh Barbanel | ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON November 13, 2018 | The Wall Street Journal
Even before Amazon.com Inc. decided to put a headquarters in Long Island City, the retail giant’s interest in the Queens neighborhood unleashed a condo gold rush. Amazon’s interest was made known scarcely a week ago, yet brokers say they are already selling units—sometimes sight-unseen—via text message. Others are renting vans and packing them full of clients eager to view multiple buildings, or holding group tours in Chinese.
Now, with Amazon’s commitment to the New York City neighborhood, brokers are predicting the apartment market there will surge further. "This is like a gift from the gods for the Long Island City condo market," said Patrick W. Smith, a Stribling agent in the area.
Up until last week, the Long Island City market had suffered from slowing sales and rising inventory. Now, some brokers say the sudden mood shift reminds them of the heady days of New York City’s condo boom just before the housing market crashed during the 2008 financial crisis. "This is the first time in my 20-year career that I have seen the market go from a buyer’s market to a seller’s market overnight, based on a rumor," Mr. Smith said.
During the first six days since Amazon’s interest in Long Island City became public, searches on the listing site StreetEasy.com for residential property in the neighborhood surged 295% from the same period a week earlier, StreetEasy said. The biggest spike occurred in the first few days after the news, when search volume jumped more than 400%, StreetEasy said.
Real estate broker Teresa Ali faced a frenzy at the sales office for the Galerie, a new brick and glass building going up on Jackson Avenue. Though the building, which wraps around a central garden, won’t open until spring, Ms. Ali said her team met with nearly 100 buyers on Saturday and Sunday. More than 60 other buyers were turned away after leaving their names.
The same building logged 34 visits from potential buyers for the entire previous week, she added. "Multiple offers were on the table" after Sunday’s open house, while four more offers came in overnight. "It was bedlam," Ms. Ali, a sales manager at Halstead Property Development Marketing, said. Her team ran simultaneous group tours in English and Mandarin over the weekend.
‘Buyers are hoping it will become the next Silicon Valley and want to be in on that,’ one broker said of the sudden surge in interest in Long Island City.
Speculative investors and buyers who plan to live in the neighborhood are betting on the promise that an Amazon headquarters would bring new amenities and stature to a once dilapidated industrial neighborhood, pushing up prices in the future.
The past week was the building’s best ever, with deals on six of its 84 units and several more under negotiations, she said. There were 20 appointments last weekend, compared with four the week before.Eve n before the Amazon decision, Ms. Lee said, prices were scheduled to go up.
"Clients I hadn’t spoken to in seven or eight years started texting me," said Eric Benhaim, the president and founder of Modern Spaces. "I sold 20 apartments via text." He said his firm’s agents, who represent many new condo developers, were now meeting with these clients to work through the paperwork.
Brokers say there are about 350 new condominiums on the market in Long Island City and about 50 resale apartments. Some of these resale units had lingered on the market for weeks without attracting any interest but are now in demand, too, said Mr. Smith.
On Friday, he found that weekend appointments at many condo sales offices were filled. So on Saturday, he took five clients on a tour—on foot and by Uber—of open houses. And on Sunday, Mr. Smith rented two dark blue minivans with drivers, and he and an associate each rode shotgun while showing properties to groups of five buyers.
Other clients met them along the way, he said, so by the end of the day they had chaperoned at least 15 clients.
"The showroom was jam-packed and only grew," Mr. Smith said, adding that other clients crowded into the dedicated conference room originally reserved for his group.
https://www.mansionglobal.com/articles/amazon-s-move-to-long-island-city-sparks-condo-frenzy-114128
Amazon’s Move to Long Island City Sparks Condo Frenzy
Brokers flooded with clients seeking real estate in Queens neighborhood, reminding some of pre-crash property boom
BY Josh Barbanel | ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON November 13, 2018 | The Wall Street Journal
Even before Amazon.com Inc. decided to put a headquarters in Long Island City, the retail giant’s interest in the Queens neighborhood unleashed a condo gold rush. Amazon’s interest was made known scarcely a week ago, yet brokers say they are already selling units—sometimes sight-unseen—via text message. Others are renting vans and packing them full of clients eager to view multiple buildings, or holding group tours in Chinese.
Now, with Amazon’s commitment to the New York City neighborhood, brokers are predicting the apartment market there will surge further. "This is like a gift from the gods for the Long Island City condo market," said Patrick W. Smith, a Stribling agent in the area.
Up until last week, the Long Island City market had suffered from slowing sales and rising inventory. Now, some brokers say the sudden mood shift reminds them of the heady days of New York City’s condo boom just before the housing market crashed during the 2008 financial crisis. "This is the first time in my 20-year career that I have seen the market go from a buyer’s market to a seller’s market overnight, based on a rumor," Mr. Smith said.
During the first six days since Amazon’s interest in Long Island City became public, searches on the listing site StreetEasy.com for residential property in the neighborhood surged 295% from the same period a week earlier, StreetEasy said. The biggest spike occurred in the first few days after the news, when search volume jumped more than 400%, StreetEasy said.
Real estate broker Teresa Ali faced a frenzy at the sales office for the Galerie, a new brick and glass building going up on Jackson Avenue. Though the building, which wraps around a central garden, won’t open until spring, Ms. Ali said her team met with nearly 100 buyers on Saturday and Sunday. More than 60 other buyers were turned away after leaving their names.
The same building logged 34 visits from potential buyers for the entire previous week, she added. "Multiple offers were on the table" after Sunday’s open house, while four more offers came in overnight. "It was bedlam," Ms. Ali, a sales manager at Halstead Property Development Marketing, said. Her team ran simultaneous group tours in English and Mandarin over the weekend.
‘Buyers are hoping it will become the next Silicon Valley and want to be in on that,’ one broker said of the sudden surge in interest in Long Island City.
Speculative investors and buyers who plan to live in the neighborhood are betting on the promise that an Amazon headquarters would bring new amenities and stature to a once dilapidated industrial neighborhood, pushing up prices in the future.
The past week was the building’s best ever, with deals on six of its 84 units and several more under negotiations, she said. There were 20 appointments last weekend, compared with four the week before.Eve n before the Amazon decision, Ms. Lee said, prices were scheduled to go up.
"Clients I hadn’t spoken to in seven or eight years started texting me," said Eric Benhaim, the president and founder of Modern Spaces. "I sold 20 apartments via text." He said his firm’s agents, who represent many new condo developers, were now meeting with these clients to work through the paperwork.
Brokers say there are about 350 new condominiums on the market in Long Island City and about 50 resale apartments. Some of these resale units had lingered on the market for weeks without attracting any interest but are now in demand, too, said Mr. Smith.
On Friday, he found that weekend appointments at many condo sales offices were filled. So on Saturday, he took five clients on a tour—on foot and by Uber—of open houses. And on Sunday, Mr. Smith rented two dark blue minivans with drivers, and he and an associate each rode shotgun while showing properties to groups of five buyers.
Other clients met them along the way, he said, so by the end of the day they had chaperoned at least 15 clients.
"The showroom was jam-packed and only grew," Mr. Smith said, adding that other clients crowded into the dedicated conference room originally reserved for his group.
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Restaurants & Food / Re: Jax Hts Starbucks closed by NYC Health Dept
« Last post by dssjh on Today at 03:58:07 PM »you actually don't *get* a grade pending rating. you get a "C" rating and try to appeal it upwards, or fail and correct the worst violations, then wait for a new inspection.
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Restaurants & Food / Re: Jax Hts Starbucks closed by NYC Health Dept
« Last post by CaptainFlannel on Today at 03:45:44 PM »Quote
Starbucks pays rent, taxes, and salaries here. The workers and managers are members of the general population, not relatives of the owner. As anchor stores, they bring stability to a neighborhood and are a selling point in attracting other businesses. I am not an expert, but I would think toe to toe, Starbucks brings more wealth to a neighborhood than a small, family owned establishment.
All of that can be said for Wal-Mart, except for it bringing wealth to the community it operates in.
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Restaurants & Food / Re: Jax Hts Starbucks closed by NYC Health Dept
« Last post by am315 on Today at 03:14:13 PM »Thanks for posting East...
These conditions sound pretty bad but what's interesting is that it got them closed down.
The Amercan Chicken place up the block has had similiar types of issues and I mostly gotten a "grade pending" rating.
Btw, I do think it's interesting and not a coincidence that the DOH shut a national chain versus a mom and pop.
These conditions sound pretty bad but what's interesting is that it got them closed down.
The Amercan Chicken place up the block has had similiar types of issues and I mostly gotten a "grade pending" rating.
Btw, I do think it's interesting and not a coincidence that the DOH shut a national chain versus a mom and pop.