New hires for Mirador featured in Mann Report

New hires for Mirador, including Christine DeFrancesco, Rafal Zbrzezny and Kireolos Zakhary, were featured in the June/July issue of the Mann Report. With 15 years of experience in real estate, Christine will be joining us at a leasing manager. Rafal and Kireolos have joined us as leasing agents, with nine and 14 years experience respectively. Read the full article here.

Mirador’s Jessica Milton Featured in DNAInfo on Mass Transit Issues Affecting Real Estate

With the L train shutdown on the horizon, brokers are finding it more difficult to rent apartments in the Brooklyn area. Mirador Real Estate broker Jessica Milton says “A lot of people have been concerned and reluctant to move off of the L train,” To make up for this, landlords have to compensate by giving a free month’s rent or accepting renters with credit issues.

Residents are also looking at alternatives to NYC, In Jessica’s experience. “I have a few artist friends who are giving up and moving out of the city and can’t handle it anymore. They’re going upstate. A lot of people are looking at Kingston because they have artist-subsidized lofts up there,” she says.

Read the full article here.

Mirador Featured in Real Estate Weekly for Hiring New Leasing Manager

Mirador is excited to welcome Christine Henriquez to the team as the Leasing Manager for Midtown East. With over 15 years of management experience in real estate, she will oversee agents and on-site operations at the New York Tower on 39th street.

Mirador also welcomed two new agents, Rafal Zbrzezny and Kireolos Zakhary who have been in the industry for over 10 years. Read more about our new team members here.

 

Buying in a Building with a Pool: Mirador’s Kireolos Zakhary Gives Expert Advice in Brick Underground

A common dilemma facing house hunters in New York City is whether or not to buy in a building with a pool, and how much this amenity will add to costs. Mirador Real Estate’s Kireolos Zakhary tells Brick Underground that the pool itself does not add dramatic increases to overall prices. “The pool is just one of the many amenities. The value of the unit is determined with everything else – not only the pool,” Zakhary explains.

However, since buildings with pools usually offer a bundle of other luxurious amenities, the prices of units with pools tend to be naturally higher than those that do not. Buildings with pools are also more common in expensive areas such as “neighborhoods with higher concentrations of new developments or condo conversions,” Zakhary notes, like Tribeca, Chelsea, and the Upper West Side.

 For more advice and to view listings for units with pools, read the full article here.

Common Questions Not to Ask Your Broker, Mirador’s Jessica Milton Featured in Brick Underground

Brick Underground recently polled prominent brokers to find out “the most outlandish requests new NYC renters make.” Those new to the city often have unrealistic expectations of the real estate market, the agents say, such as hopes of fitting a king-size bed into a tiny apartment, or getting a pad with a private outdoor space.

One of the featured brokers is Mirador Real Estate’s Jessica Milton. She says the most common unrealistic question she hears from renters is whether they can use their roommate’s guarantor as their own. “Leases cannot be guaranteed in part,” she tells Brick Underground. “If you all don’t make 40 times the rent combined, then you all need a guarantor(s) who earn 80 times.”

Jessica also notes, “This year, a lot of first-time apartment shoppers seem to be looking to move in and then think they can just sublet for the summer and move back in come September. While this is possible, it’s not practical and most landlords will not allow this.”

Read the full article here.

 

Immigration Uncertainties Impact Real Estate, Mirador Real Estate’s Paul Magyar Comments in DNAinfo

Foreign investors have been a significant part of New York City’s real estate market in recent years, but Donald Trump’s immigration policies are beginning to change that. DNAinfo reports that international buyers are becoming hesitant to purchase property because they’re uncertain they, or their family members, can attain the necessary visas to enter and live in the United States.

In the article, real estate expert Jonathan Miller estimates that foreign buyers “make up between 15 percent of the market, as a baseline — and as high as 85 percent of the buyers in certain new developments around ‘Billionaire’s Row’ in Midtown,” numbers that could fall as the Trump administration attempts to lower immigration. In addition to the controversial travel ban, the administration has sought to limit H-1B visas, which are intended for highly skilled foreign workers.

The story is illustrated with a number of anecdotes, one from Mirador Real Estate’s Paul Magyar, who explains that a New York University student from China recently had to back out of a deal for a three-bedroom in the East Village due to visa issues. Read the article here.

Mirador Featured in DNAinfo about New York Becoming Dog Friend

Apartment hunting in New York can be difficult for dog owners. Many buildings have restrictions on the number and kind of dogs they’ll allow residents to have, and the facilities are rarely accommodating for pooches. Small elevators and bathrooms often mean renters can’t keep large dogs, or more than one, in their homes.

There’s good news for dog lovers, many  buildings across the city are specifically targeting pet owners by lessening restrictions, lowering fees, and offering more space and facilities. As DNAinfo reports, “With the current rental glut, especially in the high-end of the market where prices are slipping and concessions are rising, dog-friendly policies are the latest incentive to lure tenants, experts say.”

One of the experts featured in the article is Mirador Real Estate’s Managing Partner, Karla Saladino. Karla tells DNAinfo, “It used to be maybe one dog was allowed in, and ‘We’re going to weigh it, interview it and analyze it.’ Even a year ago, it was very hard to find something if you had a 40-pound dog or a Lab retriever. It was like, ‘What three buildings can we visit?’ Now it’s 10 buildings.”

The website also spoke with Anna Sankova, an agent for Mirador Real Estate, who relates an anecdote about finding a home in New York for a couple from Boston and their two mini Australian Labradoodles. “We found them an apartment within one weekend while they were visiting,” Anna says. “More landlords, especially in condos, were willing to take two dogs, which was surprising to me. It was not the case before.”

Read the entire article – and see a picture of those adorable Labradoodles – here.

 

Mirador Featured in CityBizList for Hiring New Leasing Manager and Agents

Mirador Real Estate is excited to announce the recent hiring of Christine DeFrancesco Henriquez as the new Leasing Manager for Midtown East. Christine will oversee the Midtown and Upper East Side territory, she comes to Mirador with 15 years of real estate experience.

Additionally, the firm is pleased to announce two new agent hires, Rafal Zbrzezny, an agent with nine years of real estate experience, and Kireolos ‘Kiro’ Zakhary, who, following 14 years of experience in hospitality, joins Mirador from Platinum Properties. Read more about Mirador’s new team members here.

 

Mirador’s Paul Magyar Featured in Brick Underground on Renting Vs. Buying

Owning a home has long been part of achieving the American Dream. But in New York City, the practical reality is that renting a condo or apartment can often be a better deal than buying real estate. Brick Underground recently examined this issue in the article “In defense of renters: Why buying property isn’t always the right decision.” The publication turned to Mirador Real Estate’s Paul Magyar to explain why people who want to invest in New York properties might not see the returns they expect.

With real estate prices booming across the entire city, Paul tells Brick Underground that investors are unlikely to see the value of their property significantly increase. “That idea of a diamond in the rough doesn’t exist in Manhattan anymore,” Paul says. “Theoretically, it’s still there in the outer boroughs, and in places like Jersey City, but they’re fewer and farther between.” Just to recoup closing costs will take at least five years. And if you overlook the surrounding air rights and a new building eventually blocks your view, the value of your property may actually go down. Read the entire article here.

New York’s Mirador Real Estate Forges Strategic Alliance with New Jersey’s ERA Justin Realty Co.

Mirador Real Estate is proud to announce our new strategic alliance with ERA Justin Realty Co., a residential brokerage that operates across the entire Northern New Jersey area. This partnership will allow us to expand our reach into the New Jersey markets, while we in turn will work with ERA Justin Realty Co. to enable their expansion into New York. Our firms will share resources, marketing strategies, and outreach to better serve clients who have a foot in both states and help them find the best real estate opportunities wherever they need.

Jennifer Darby Metzger, owner of ERA Justin Realty Co, said, “It is unusual to find a partnership with a similar vision and set of values, but that is how we felt with Mirador Real Estate, and we are happy to be aligning ourselves with them to provide additional resources for our crossover clients.”

Mirador Real Estate’s managing partner, Karla Saladino, agreed, saying, “I’m approached often about forming alliances, but often they wouldn’t be an appropriate fit for our team. When I met Jennifer, I knew this alliance was exactly the right match I had been looking for in New Jersey.”

Read more about the strategic alliance at Citybizlist.