- How U.S. Retailers Turn Their Bane into Boon with ‘Click and Collect’ “As retail casualties such as Sears or Toys ‘R’ Us kept piling up, costly real estate often got the blame for traditional retailers’ struggle to keep up with e-commerce rivals. Yet last U.S. holiday shopping season showed stores may offer retailers a rare competitive advantage as they scramble to fend off the challenge from e-commerce giant Amazon.com and other online retailers. Enter ‘click and collect.’” (Reuters)
- Inside the Rise and Fall of a Multimillion-Dollar Airbnb Scheme “From the outside, there was nothing especially notable about the small white building on the corner of a cobblestone street in TriBeCa. But until recently, it was a crucial location in a sprawling empire. ‘Beautiful Loft Prime Tribeca 4BR/2BA Sleep 10,’ read the listing on Airbnb for one apartment there. Two of the three apartments in the building were popular with tourists looking to stay in one of Manhattan’s most desirable neighborhoods — at $600 a night each, they were a bargain for a large group.” (The New York Times)
- Trump to Delay Tariff Increases on Chinese Imports “President Trump said Sunday he would delay an increase in tariffs on Chinese goods set to take effect at the end of this week, citing “substantial progress” on issues including intellectual property and technology transfer after a weekend of talks. In a tweet, Mr. Trump wrote that should progress continue, the U.S. would plan a summit with President Xi Jinping of China to “conclude an agreement” that would settle a yearlong trade fight between the two nations.” (Wall Street Journal, subscription required)
- California Considers Wildfire Insurance Fund to Avoid Repeat of PG&E’s Woes “Hoping to prevent another California utility from being driven into bankruptcy by wildfires, state officials may create a new kind of insurance fund to help cover costs from the increasingly devastating disasters. The idea was proposed last year by a state lawmaker who formally introduced a bill toward that end in January. It could potentially also be taken up by a new commission examining wildfire issues and utility infrastructure after it begins meeting for the first time Monday in Sacramento.” (San Francisco Chronicle)
- How This Non-Profit Is Changing the Way Minorities ‘Get In’ Commercial Real Estate “According to statistics, there are less than 1% of minorities in commercial real estate management roles. REAP (Real Estate Associate Program), a nonprofit based in New York City, wants to change that. Launched in 1997 in Washington, D.C., by then president of real estate at Giant Foods, Mike Bush, REAP connects minority talent to a thriving, multibillion-dollar commercial real estate sector by answering one simple question: ‘How do I get in?’” (Forbes)
- As Airbnb Prepares for Wall Street Scrutiny, its Hometown Is a Key Case Study “Airbnb, long a flash point for controversy in its hometown, has achieved detente with San Francisco at the cost of slower growth — while pursuing other expansions that could stir new issues. San Francisco is not alone in reining in Airbnb. Cities from South Lake Tahoe to New York to Paris are cracking down on short-term rentals, concerned about housing availability and neighborhood impact.” (San Francisco Chronicle)
- PGIM Real Estate Completes $12 Billion in 2018 Transactions Worldwide “PGIM Real Estate completed approximately $12 billion in transactions worldwide in 2018 on behalf of institutional and high net worth investors, including investments in real estate equity and debt, and property dispositions. PGIM Real Estate is the real estate investment business of PGIM, the $1 trillion global investment management businesses of Prudential Financial, Inc.” (Business Wire)
- With the Closing of Texas’ First Apple Store, Let’s Remember That Steve Jobs Had to be Talked into Mall Locations “When Dallas-based developer Mark Masinter first got a call in 2000 from Apple founder Steve Jobs, the idea that there would be Apple stores was still a big secret, said Ron Johnson, who was hired by Jobs that same year to head Apple retail. In an interview, Johnson recalled Masinter's first meeting with Jobs. It lasted five minutes.” (Dallas Morning News)
- Court: Triple Five Executive ‘Intentionally Defrauded’ Buyer in N.J. Real Estate Deal “The year before Daniel Preston of Luminati Aerospace brought Triple Five Group to Riverhead as a partner in a massive land deal with the town, one of Triple Five’s top executives was found by a New Jersey court to have “intentionally defrauded” a party to a real estate transaction — to the tune of $1.3 million. Triple Five’s director of business development, Stuart Bienenstock, who has been the conglomerate’s point man in its transaction with the Town of Riverhead, had a $1.3 million judgment entered against him and a partner in Essex County Superior Court in July 2016.” (Riverhead Local)
- Funding for Statewide Non-Profit Housing Network May Dry Up “New York state may be about to leave struggling homeowners out in the cold. A statewide network of roughly 90 nonprofits aiding homeowners will run out of money on March 31, turning away the needy. Advocacy groups have been sounding the alarm for months, but Gov. Cuomo’s $176 billion executive budget doesn’t replace a funding stream that had come from the 2012 National Mortgage Settlement and other settlements, but ends next month.” (New York Post)
0 comments
Hide comments