Archive for May 2008

New York–Subprime loan market issues caused famed commercial real estate developer Harry Macklowe to sell the iconic General Motors Building for $3.95 billion to Boston Properties, Forbes said Tuesday.Real estate management company Boston Properties will pay $1.5 billion in cash, $10 million units in limited partnership interest and assume $2.5 billion in debt to own…

London–The dollar dropped to a one-month low against the euro as the market awaited reports expected to show home prices and consumer confidence were falling, Bloomberg reported Tuesday.The dollar declined from $1.5770 late Monday to $1.5818 against the euro in London–the lowest point since April 24.The dollar also weakened against the Swiss franc and British…

New York–U.S. home prices dropped again in the first quarter due to continued subprime loan issues, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller home-price indexes–but the Commerce Department said that new home sales rose.The indexes–published monthly by New York-based Standard & Poor’s–showed that home prices declined 14 percent in the first quarter compared to a year ago. The…

Washington, D.C.–Complaints against landlords, real estate agents and mortgage brokers are rising, but the federal government is filing fewer housing discrimination charges, USA Today reports.The majority of renters and buyers filing complaints with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development involving issues such as landlord discrimination are unlikely to get help because HUD is…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorDes Moines, Iowa–BSB Design received the Export Achievement Certificate from the U.S. Department of Commerce at the 11th Annual Capital City Consular Corps luncheon in Sacramento, Calif., for its expansion into the global marketplace.The international architecture and community planning firm officially decided to go global 20 months ago. The company’s…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorTrenton, Mercer County, N.J.–CB Richard Ellis recently brokered the sale of two separately owned apartment complexes located in Trenton and Mercer County, N.J. for $4 million. Greenwood Avenue Gardens and Beechwood Gardens together contain 80 rental units.CB Richard Ellis’ Miller/McFadden Multi-housing Group lead by associate Mark Duszak represented both the…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorNew Orleans–Sisters of the Holy Family, along with Providence Community Housing, Christopher Homes and Enterprise, recently broke ground at the Delille Inn Apartments, a 51-unit senior housing community slated to undergo $7.1 million in renovations.’it took a long time for everything to fall into place and meanwhile people were either…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorNew York–Home Quest, a New York-based brokerage boutique, has created a new technology that allows home buyers to receive the latest real estate market information through text messages sent directly to their cell phones.”Most of our customers are very busy and sometimes it is unrealistic to expect a customer to commit…