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This could be one of the most major things to hit NYC: A proposal to convert emptying office space into residential apartments.
Imagine, what if there were suddenly enough apartments, so rents fell just through increased supply? What if people could allocate a reasonable amount for rent, instead of an inflated one?
Midtown Is Reeling. Should Its Offices Become Apartments?
The pandemic has created a crisis in New York City’s commercial real estate industry. Some leaders think it’s time to reimagine the city’s business districts. https://dalehollownews.com/midtown-i...me-apartments/
Interesting. I'm sure it could be done, and would be a silver lining for renters. These apartments might still be on the expensive side though. First, the locations are pretty nice - imagine having a place in Midtown when the city starts to come back to normal big time. Second, converting office space to residential will be very expensive - all the design and structural work, redoing the lighting and ventilation systems, changing the heating systems... Landlords will want to recoup that expense.
Excerpt:
Property taxes represent the largest source of city revenue, and commercial property accounts for
the largest share of that overall levy, 41 percent, according to Thomas P. DiNapoli, the state comptroller.
Response: Opinion
All contributing members of Society pay tax as a direct result of employment.
A wonderful balance between employer and the employee.
Any shift in balance is catastrophic.
There was an old clay animated children's TV show years ago called Davey and Goliath.
One wonderful episode stood out as a direct response to Spiritual balance to which those
words I remember so vividly can apply here in text.
" We could not play baseball if we had all batters and no catchers."
Interesting. I'm sure it could be done, and would be a silver lining for renters. These apartments might still be on the expensive side though. First, the locations are pretty nice - imagine having a place in Midtown when the city starts to come back to normal big time. Second, converting office space to residential will be very expensive - all the design and structural work, redoing the lighting and ventilation systems, changing the heating systems... Landlords will want to recoup that expense.
Even if the apartments are expensive, the general argument has been that as there's more overall supply, prices overall will decrease as competition on the top end will relax prices for some of the lesser units on the high end to be more affordable to the socioeconomic bracket a rung below who then leave the competition for housing in that bracket and opens up more supply for those just a rung below and that propagates down the brackets. However, that would only hold particularly well if these apartments are actually occupied rather than serving as investment vehicles that are otherwise left empty for the most part as even NYC's real estate market is a rather small footnote in relation to the amount of capital globally available for investment.
Last edited by OyCrumbler; 12-14-2020 at 03:52 PM..
That was the plan from the get go. Bankrupt buildings, buy them cheap and make them into affordable housing for bums.
Hotels are already standing on their knees with rooms ready to go.
Even if the apartments are expensive, the general argument has been that as there's more overall supply, prices overall will decrease as competition on the top end will relax prices for some of the lesser units on the high end to be more affordable to the socioeconomic bracket a rung below who then leave the competition for housing in that bracket and opens up more supply for those just a rung below and that propagates down the brackets. However, that would only hold particularly well if these apartments are actually occupied rather than serving as investment vehicles that are otherwise left empty for the most part as even NYC's real estate market is a rather small footnote in relation to the amount of capital globally available for investment.
Response:Opinion
Well done. Manhattan apartments as Banks for foreign investors as opposed to dwellings for real New Yorkers.
Worth Considering:
Laws implemented giving owners who reside in said apartments and work in New York City
an extra tax benefit while further taxing foreigners who invest and not residing in apartments.
Each of those units, as an office, represents jobs with income. If they're apartments, charging rent, will there be enough jobs paying enough money for people to be able to afford them?
The financial district is a good example. It was a business area with some apartments, mostly subsidized, probably because as a non-residential area it had no services. After 9/11, it began converting all the offices to apartments and there were no more jobs other than service sector while there were a LOT more people with not enough services to support them. You ended up with a lot of apartments owned by people far, far away who didn't need jobs to buy apartments. The first supermarkets to open could charge what they wanted because they were the only option for miles.
Something needs to happen to bring rents down in NYC, but it's going to be a bit more complicated than pushing people into empty office space.
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