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NEW YORK HOME SALES DIP 3 PERCENT IN OCTOBER, CNY NUMBERS MIXED
ALBANY, N.Y. — New York realtors sold 12,359 previously owned homes in October, a decline of 3 percent from 12,751 homes sold in October 2017.
That’s according to the New York State Association of Realtors (NYSAR)’s October housing-market report.
Sales data
The October 2018 statewide median sales price was $260,000, up 6 percent from the October 2017 median of more than $245,000, according to the NYSAR data.
Pending sales totaled more than 11,600 homes in October, a decrease of 0.3 percent compared to the same month in 2017.
The months supply of homes for sale held steady at the end of October at 6.3 months supply. A 6 month to 6.5 month supply is considered to be a balanced market.
The number of homes for sale totaled 70,704 in October, down 1.3 percent compared to October 2017.
Central New York data
Realtors in Broome County sold 160 existing homes in October, up about 2 percent from 157 a year ago, according to the NYSAR report. The median sales price jumped about 15 percent to $121,000 from more than $105,000 a year ago.
In Jefferson County, realtors closed on 140 homes in October, up about 37 percent from 102 a year ago, and the median sales price remained unchanged at $150,000 compared to a year ago, according to the NYSAR data.
NYSAR also reports that realtors sold 200 homes in Oneida County last month, down about 12 percent from the 228 homes sold during October 2017. The median sales price rose about 5 percent to nearly $136,000 from $130,000 a year ago.
Realtors in Onondaga County sold 490 previously owned homes in October, a sales decrease of about 5 percent compared to the October 2017 total of 516. The median sales price rose 5 percent to $145,000, up from nearly $138,000 a year ago, according to the NYSAR report.
All home-sales data is compiled from multiple-listing services in New York state and it includes townhomes and condominiums in addition to existing single-family homes, according to NYSAR.
UB ranks among top 60 U.S. universities for R&D spending
The University at Buffalo ranks among the 60 U.S. colleges that are most active in research and development, according to a new report from the National Science Foundation.
UB devoted $401.6 million to R&D programs in 2017, putting it in 59th place in the foundation's annual Higher Education Research and Development Survey.
Johns Hopkins University, at $2.56 billion, finished as the nation's No. 1 university for expenditures on research and development. Eleven other schools topped $1 billion last year, based on the foundation's report.
The top 100 universities in the national rankings combined for R&D spending of $59.41 billion a year ago. Other New York universities that joined UB in the top 100 are Cornell University (13th place), New York University (18th), Columbia University (20th), Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (40th), University of Rochester (68th), Rockefeller University (74th), SUNY Polytechnic Institute (75th), Albert Einstein College of Medicine (81st) and Stony Brook University (95th).
What a great company Paychex is and shows that almost anyone could start with just a dream and ambition. Founder Tom Golisano now spends his time giving away millions across the state.
GUNLOCKE COMPANY COMPLETES EXPANSION AT MANUFACTURING FACILITY IN STEUBEN COUNTY
WAYLAND, N.Y. — The Gunlocke Company, a commercial furniture manufacturer in Steuben County, has completed a $2.6 million expansion project with the help of a state economic-development incentive package.
The expansion included the creation of 110 jobs at its factory in Wayland, the office of Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in a news release issued Tuesday.
The expansion, which utilized existing space at the facility, included the installation of equipment that will allow the firm to increase its chair-production volume. The expanded manufacturing plant is also now able to manufacture additional furniture lines that were formerly produced outside this state.
Pharmaceutical manufacturer plans to expand in Albany area with $56M investment
Pharmaceutical manufacturer PiSA BioPharm plans to expand at the Rotterdam Corporate Park with a $56.35 million investment.
PiSA BioPharm is proposing a new facility with more than 137,000 square feet of manufacturing space. The company would install manufacturing lines to make and package sterile injectables and biomedical supplies.
Of the total project cost, $44.3 million would go toward buying machinery and equipment, and $8 million would be spent on construction and renovation.
PiSA BioPharm Inc. is the U.S. subsidiary of Grupo PiSA, one of the largest Mexican pharmaceutical companies.
The Capital Region Economic Development Council listed the proposal as a priority project in its application for Gov. Andrew Cuomo's annual state money awards. PiSA BioPharm is asking for $5 million from Empire State Development Corp. for the project. The award winners will be announced in December.
The region's economic development council has pushed to grow the life sciences industry in the Albany area, which employs hundreds of people. The University at Albany’s Health Sciences Campus in East Greenbush has 500 public and private-sector employees on site. A $750 million state public health laboratory, consolidating other labs, has state funding to be built in the region.
The manufacturer would create 50 jobs and retain 15 through the project. The company has an internship program that it runs with some Mexican colleges, and it is looking to create a similar partnership with Schenectady County Community College's biological technician associate program.
PiSA BioPharm has its headquarters at 300 Great Oaks Blvd. in Albany. The manufacturer is in the Start-Up NY program, which exempts businesses expanding or moving into the state from paying state corporate, sales or income taxes for 10 years when they expand or relocate to select college and university campuses. PiSA BioPharm partners with the University at Albany for the program.
It was another month of steady gains across the Buffalo Niagara labor market in October.
The state Department of Labor reported Thursday that the two-county area picked up 6,300 jobs in the private sector, a 1.3 percent increase from a year ago. With 100 more positions related to government, the area added 6,400 nonfarm jobs, up 1.1 percent.
Notable industries with employment gains included: goods producing, construction, services, and trades and transportation. Jobs in leisure and hospitality and restaurants and bars accounted for the majority of job losses.
The Albany and Syracuse metropolitan areas matched Buffalo's 1.3 percent private-sector gains, adding 4,800 and 3,500 jobs, respectively. Rochester was up 0.9 percent with the addition of 4,100 jobs.
There was also a 26,600 person increase in the state’s civilian labor force, the largest monthly gain recorded since March 2004.
New York state’s unemployment rate fell to 4.0% in October 2018, matching its lowest level on record (last reached in May 1988), according to the preliminary figures released labor department. Rates for individual metropolitan areas will be released next week.
Upstate New York seeing 'sluggish' economic growth
Job growth across upstate New York has been slow, and it has become harder for businesses to find new hires, researchers at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York found.
The Albany region has been a bright spot, adding jobs faster than Buffalo and Rochester. Syracuse has only recently recovered the jobs lost during the recession. Utica and Binghamton have lagged behind.
The labor market across upstate has tightened. Businesses in some regions might have more trouble finding new hires than in other areas, said Jaison Abel, assistant vice president and head of regional analysis at the Fed, who worked on the research.
"Within upstate New York, there's very different economies," Abel said. "There's parts of that region, Albany, Buffalo, Rochester, to some degree Syracuse, that are attracting workers."
The Albany area stands out among upstate cities in recruiting new people to the area, Abel said.
"Albany has done a good job of attracting not just people, but high-skilled people," he said.
Abel spoke during a Tuesday presentation of the labor market conditions in the second Federal Reserve district. That district includes New York state; northern New Jersey; Fairfield County, Connecticut; Puerto Rico; and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Downstate New York has added jobs faster than the national average. Abel's findings described upstate's growth as "sluggish."
As the population ages and people move away from upstate New York, the labor pool is shrinking, Abel said. Wages are growing, though, as employers look for more workers.
"More firms are telling us they’re increasing wages," he said. "By how much is a little harder to answer."
Job are being added upstate in higher wage occupations such as computer and math and in practicing health care. Lower wage occupations, including food preparation and personal care, are also adding jobs.
Some middle-wage occupations, those that pay between $30,000 and $60,000 on average per year, lost jobs from 2015 to 2017. That included production and administrative support.
PICENTE WRITES CUOMO, DIBLASIO SEEKING DRONE COLLABORATION WITH AMAZON
UTICA, N.Y. — Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente, Jr. is asking for collaboration between e-commerce company Amazon and the county’s drone test site at Griffiss International Airport in Rome.
Seattle, Washington–based Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) chose the Long Island City section of Queens as one of two locations for its second headquarters. The second site is in Northern Virginia.
In letters to Gov. Andrew Cuomo and New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio, Picente urged the leaders to help facilitate a partnership between Amazon’s “downstate interests” and upstate communities, noting Oneida County’s drone research and development.
“In Oneida County there is a natural fit that I believe must be explored between all parties,” Picente said in the letter forwarded to media outlets. “Amazon has been clear they intend to be a leader in developing an unmanned aerial-vehicle fleet that would revolutionize package delivery. The best place in the nation to do just that is in the city of Rome.”
Picente wrote that he believes Upstate has “strong pieces” through which Amazon can work with the region and its universities “to achieve win-win investments” for Upstate communities and the company.
“Areas such as research and development, job training, a commitment to hire upstate workers and bringing more fulfillment center to upstate, just to name a few,” per the letter.
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