NYC safest of US cities over 1M

The NY Sun covers a Morgan Quitno Press report based upon the FBI’s recent Uniform Crime Report in New York Scores Well in Report on Safest Cities

On a list of America’s safest cities released yesterday, New York City is ranked first among cities with a population of more than 1 million. Of cities with populations of more than 500,000, New York took fourth place…Of all 371 cities, New York ranked no. 145.

New York City, which is much further down the list than other major cities on the East Coast, ranked as the 227th most dangerous city. Some of the more dangerous cities included Baltimore, at 12th, Philadelphia, at 29th, and Boston, at 58th.

Greenspan too rosy?

Despite positive comments from Greenspan, MarketWatch asks Has housing bottomed? Most economists say no.

Experts disagree over whether we’ve seen the bottom of the housing slump, or if it will get much worse, before it gets better.

Encouraging data on the housing market in the past few weeks have some observers insisting that the worst is over. But others say the small improvements are merely statistical blips and that the market still has much further to fall.

Depending on who’s right, the economy could either bounce back from the current soft patch and reaccelerate next year, or it could continue to weaken, forcing the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates to stave off an abrupt economic chill or an outright recession.

Stuy Town/PCV sold to Speyer for $5.4B

This has been covered everywhere, but make sure you read the NY Times article with its amazing photo as well as the Sun.

The oldest Certificates of Occupancy on file: Stuy Town CO, PCV CO as well as the latest deed.

The Grunt says it’s the last hurrah for the real estate market.

Update: According to our undoubtedly flawed math, they will pay about $450 per sqft.

NY shows its strength!

Crain’s covers the Federal Reserve Board’s Beige Book with Fed says New York economy showing strength.

Even real estate, which is markedly weaker in New Jersey and in Upstate New York, remained relatively strong in the city, the Fed reports: “Manhattan’s co-op and condo market showed signs of resilience in the third quarter.”

The report notes that both the number of apartments sold in Manhattan and the price per square foot were up roughly 6% from a year ago. Commercial real estate also remained strong, with further signs of tightening in the third quarter.

Is there pain in your future?

Brownstoner blogs the Real Estate Journal’s “Prices in 100 U.S. Cities Expected To Decline for Next Few Years” which speak of “widespread doom and gloom for the nation’s housing market” which has NYC hurting the most during the quarter of 4/08 with a -3.5% drop.

The Real Deal notes the similar BusinessWeek story “Analysis: City price drops by next fall” which says that everyone sees declines but that “Observers with different methods of analyzing the housing market come to some similar—and some dissimilar—conclusions”.

Number 7 line going west

In $2.1B for 7 to West Side the NY Daily News reports that the MTA and city hall have agreed to extend the 7 line to Javits, contingent upon financing.

Meanwhile, Mark Page, a Bloomberg representative on the board, conceded that the agreement allows the city to pull the plug if the financing, which will involve selling bonds, falls apart. But such failure was unlikely, he said.

“The city is extremely committed to making the West Side redevelopment happen,” he said. “Technically, if the money side of this collapses, so does this deal, but I have no expectation of that happening.”