Co-op Lender Reports Increased Volume

By Dees Stribling, Contributing Editor

New York—Lending to co-ops continues to be brisk, according to a specialist in the field, National Cooperative Bank. In March, the company originated more than $77 million in those kinds of loans, compared with $51 million in February.

The March lending involved 26 New York-area properties. According to Edward Howe III, managing director of NCB’s New York office, co-op boards have opted to secure funds now to complete renovations or upgrades to the building this spring. They are especially eager to do so in the current low interest rate environment.

Howe himself originated nearly $51 million in new loans during the month, including the largest loan of the month, a $6.5 million first mortgage and a $975,000 line of credit for a 138-unit co-op located at 1523 Central Park Ave. in Yonkers, N.Y. In February, Howe originated nearly $24 million in new loans, including an $8.8 million first mortgage and a $500,000 line of credit for 83rd Street Tenants Inc., an 81-unit co-op located at 8 East 83rd Street in Manhattan.

New York’s co-op market, generally considered condo-like (though different in ownership structure) has been seeing increasing activity as the economy improves, just as condos have. According to a recent report on the market by Easy Street, the total number of co-op resales in Manhattan was 1,680 in the first quarter of 2013, up 14.7 percent from the same quarter a year earlier.

Also, according to the report, co-op inventory has been dropping, just as inventories of most kinds of residential properties have been. More than 7,130 units were listed for sale in Manhattan in the first quarter of 2012; by the first quarter of 2013, the number had dropped by 17 percent.