Archive for January, 2009

New York City Flat Iron Building Purchased For Future Hotel Project

When I lived in Manhattan the Flatiron Building was right down the street. The unique architecture and location overlooking Madison Square Park and the view up both Broadway and 5th Avenue was amazing.
The ability through architecture to create a unique building that fit it’s surroundings is truly shown in the Flatiron Building.
So when I read that an [...]

26Jan2009 | Tom Royce | 1 comment | Continued

Why The Politicians Are Wrong To Panic Now

I have to admit, I am a huge fan of John Stossel. He has the ability to cut through the BS that the rest of the media and our politicians are feeding us a regular diet of. His latest article cuts through the panic that is racing through Washington as we face a recession.
I have [...]

25Jan2009 | Tom Royce | 1 comment | Continued

Slash suing Sotheby’s over anemic party pit

Sotheby’s International Realty is in hot water with former Guns N Roses guitarist Slash over a home that they brokered in 2006. The home was not large enough and did not have enough parking for the party’s Slash and his wife wanted to throw.
Now they are on the hook or a million dollars plus [...]

25Jan2009 | Tom Royce | 3 comments | Continued

Real Estate Agents Face New Perils As Small Business People By Federal Government

Real estate agents are the truest example of small business people in the country. They work hard without a safety net, they only make money if there is a sale, and they take tremendous risks for themselves and their families in the hope of a better life.
And that life is going to be getting [...]

24Jan2009 | Tom Royce | 2 comments | Continued

Top 10 States With The Highest Level of Federal Land Ownership

Who is the biggest landowner in California? Who owns nearly 85% of the land in Nevada?
Why it is your federal government out of Washington. Now most of the land that is owned by the United States government is not the highest grade land, but seeing the quantity in these states that the Feds own is [...]

24Jan2009 | Tom Royce | 3 comments | Continued

CondoDomain Sued By Investors Because Of Focus Shift

(Disclosure: I am a big fan of Anthony Longo and his vision for CondoDomain — I am not completely impartial in writing this post. Also, I do not know the details besides what I read in the Inman article linked to at the bottom of the post.)
CondoDomain.com is being sued by 2 of it’s investors over [...]

23Jan2009 | Tom Royce | 3 comments | Continued

Centex Corp. Sells Only 1,080 Homes For Quarter

Centex Corp., one of the largest home builders in the country, had a dismal 3rd quarter to end 2008.
They sold only 1,080 homes. Now lets put that into perspective.
In 2005, Centex Corp. sold 37,022 homes for the year, or an average of 9,255 homes per quarter as the #4 builder in the country. [...]

23Jan2009 | Tom Royce | 0 comments | Continued

Rhode Island Housing Shortage May Show Way For Recovery

Rhode Island is different than many states, it has an inventory shortage in it’s housing stock. Many of the same loans that were written across the country, the subprime and Alt-A loans, were also sold to those living in Rhode Island.
What experts are now watching is that Rhode Island is ahead of the curve. The housing [...]

22Jan2009 | Tom Royce | 1 comment | Continued

37,100 Housing Starts In December 2008 – Down Significantly

Housing starts for the month of December were down significantly according to a report from the NAHB.
The numbers are actually worse as most of the media report the annualized number and a seasonally adjusted number.
However when you are looking for homes that started having concrete poured and nails that are being hammered in the month [...]

22Jan2009 | Tom Royce | 1 comment | Continued

Kansas City Real Estate Legend Allen Block, 93, Passes On – RIP

The real estate industry lost another great one this week when Allen Block passed away at the age of 93.
What truly amazes me is that you would think the stresses of running a real estate brokerage would take years off ones life, yet it seems that rarely do you hear of a young real [...]

21Jan2009 | Tom Royce | 0 comments | Continued