Amazon has just sparked a real estate frenzy to rival Cyber Monday with its choice of two locations -- Long Island City, New York, and Arlington County, Virginia -- to host massive new corporate complexes promising $2.5 billion apiece in local development. A three-bedroom condo with Manhattan views that had sat on the market for months, priced at $1.7 million, is suddenly drawing would-be buyers now that Amazon has announced plans to build part of its new second headquarters in Long Island City. Online searches for homes in Long Island City — long an industrial area in the Queens borough of New York — soared 248 percent last week, real estate brokerage Redfin said. Searches in the other winner of Amazon's sweepstakes, Crystal City, Virginia, jumped 84 percent. Real estate agents say they're hearing from investors who'd like to become landlords and from sellers who've decided to pull their homes off the market, sit back and wait for prices to go up, up, up. The surge … [Read more...] about Amazon’s two HQ2 picks are suddenly white-hot real estate markets
Real estate
Top Houston real estate agents jump to new firm
By Nancy Sarnoff Published 1:40 pm CST, Wednesday, November 14, 2018 Mike Mahlstedt Mike Mahlstedt Image 1 of / 7 Caption Close Image 1 of 7 Mike Mahlstedt Mike Mahlstedt Top Houston real estate agents jump to new firm 1 / 7 Back to Gallery Compass, a 6-year-old company that touts a proprietary data and technology platform for buying and selling real estate, has lured some of Houston's top agents to join its new office here. Joining Compass are Mike Mahlstedt and Marnie Greenwood of Heritage Texas Properties; Courtney Robertson, Carol Rowley, Caroline Bean, Louise Carter and Leigh McFarlane of Greenwood King; and Bryan Beene of John Daugherty Realtors. Together they represent more than $7.4 million in total commission income, Compass said Wednesday. RELATED: Houston home sales rebound in October "We're attracted to dynamic markets that represent really big … [Read more...] about Top Houston real estate agents jump to new firm
Suddenly, a pair of quiet real estate markets are white-hot
Josh Boak, Ap Economics Writer Updated 11:48 am PST, Wednesday, November 14, 2018 A former dock facility is shown with old transfer bridges, with "Long Island" painted in large letters at Gantry State Park in the Long Island City section of Queens Borough in New York, Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2018. Amazon announced Tuesday it has selected the Queens neighborhood as one of two sites for its headquarters. less A former dock facility is shown with old transfer bridges, with "Long Island" painted in large letters at Gantry State Park in the Long Island City section of Queens Borough in New York, Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2018. ... more Photo: Bebeto Matthews, AP Photo: Bebeto Matthews, AP Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close Image 1 of 3 A former dock facility is shown with old transfer bridges, with … [Read more...] about Suddenly, a pair of quiet real estate markets are white-hot
‘Amazon Effect’ on Real Estate Anticipated, Feared in Northern Virginia
As news of Amazon's move to Northern Virginia sinks in, residents and real estate watchers are monitoring the impact the announcement will have on rent costs and sale prices. Northern Virginia realtor Jen Walker said she's already seen what's being called "the Amazon effect." Overnight, some of her potential buyers changed their minds from passing on a home to buying it. "They woke up this morning, saw the Amazon announcement and they decided they wanted to move forward with a contract," she said. "They said, 'We’re going to get priced out if we don’t do this now.'" Getting priced out is what Alex Howe fears will happen to low-income families in Northern Virginia. Howe is a member of the D.C. chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America. The group runs the website NoVa Says No to Amazon. “We’re going to see, I think, an explosion in rents and housing prices. And folks in these communities, like up the street in the Chirilagua neighborhood — developers … [Read more...] about ‘Amazon Effect’ on Real Estate Anticipated, Feared in Northern Virginia
Đồng Nai investigates Alibaba Real Estate’s unlicensed land sales
Viet Nam News HCM CITY — The People’s Committee of Đồng Nai Province has instructed the provincial police to investigate the sale of house foundations by Alibaba Real Estate Joint-Stock Company in the province’s Long Thành District. Alibaba Real Estate advertised plots with foundations on social media. The real estate projects were located near the planned Long Thành International Airport, which was connected to National Highway No 51. However, none of the projects have been licensed. Many customers and real estate investors paid deposits on plots of land in Long Thành District, hoping to have a property near the airport. Chairman of the district People’s Committee Võ Tấn Đức said no real estate projects by Alibaba were licensed in the district, and asked customers to be careful when considering purchasing land from the company. Đức said Alibaba had advertised projects covering over 60 hectares … [Read more...] about Đồng Nai investigates Alibaba Real Estate’s unlicensed land sales