Brick Underground

New Yorkers making tracks south are in good company. Florida is reeling in new residents—and their wealth—while states like New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut experience a net loss.

A new report from RentHop calls a spike in sublet listings “early evidence the city may be seeing an outflow of residents to the suburbs or other metropolitan areas.” For the first two weeks of May 2020 compared to the same period a year ago, RentHop saw an increase of more than 150 percent in average daily sublet listings compared to the first two weeks of April 2020, “the most dramatic” spike ever recorded by the website.

Steven Wagner, a co-op and condo attorney with Wagner Berkow & Brandt and the president of his 420-unit building’s co-op board notes that an executive order issued by the governor has given buildings the option of postponing this year’s annual meeting due to coronavirus, as well as the option to hold the meeting virtually. But the executive order did not extend any deadlines that may be in your building’s bylaws for becoming a candidate. Most bylaws allow you to be nominated as a candidate at the meeting.

The latest weekly Manhattan sales market report from UrbanDigs found 133 new listings as more sellers entered the market for the week of May 11-17—representing the third weekly increase in new listings—an increase of 39 percent over the prior week.

“Board operations for both condos and co-ops are affected by multiple executive orders issued by the governor as a result of the coronavirus,” says Steve Wagner, partner at the Manhattan law firm Wagner, Berkow & Brandt. It’s worth speaking with your building’s attorney concerning annual meetings, closings, and move-in policies.

The number of listings going off market continues to outpace the number of new listings, however an increase in new listings suggests that sellers may slowly be returning to the market, says Noah Rosenblatt, CEO of UrbanDigs.