BY THE EDITORS

The Mortgage Observer Weekly launched this morning! Our new, weekly emailed newsletter will deliver the latest commercial real estate finance news directly to your inbox each Friday morning.

The perfect companion to The Mortgage Observer magazine, this newsletter gives readers the latest transaction news, informative charts, Q&As and more delivered directly to your inbox. If you didn’t get it this morning, here’s just a glimpse at what you missed:

Our exclusive on the syndication that’s in the works for the $280 million Capital One Bank and Bank of America financing of 616 units at Riverside Center in New York.

New York Community Bank‘s $223 million refi of a Stellar Management portfolio of properties, also exclusive to The Mortgage Observer Weekly.

For a six-month trial subscription please visit our signup page. And please download our maiden issue here: Mortgage Observer Weekly, 11/09/12.

To sign up for Mortgage Observer Weekly, click here.

BY ROBERT KNAKAL

New York City’s multifamily property sales market continues to perform better than any other market segment, and with good reason. In addition to there being more apartment buildings than any other type of property in the city, demand from buyers in the marketplace for multifamily assets exceeds demand for any other property type by both number of investors looking to purchase and the amount of equity backing those numerous buyers.

In the first three quarters of this year, 1,011 apartment buildings have been sold, with an aggregate market value of approximately $7 billion. These figures are up sharply from the 418 trades for $1.2 billion back in 2009.

This year, cap rates on elevator buildings across all submarkets have averaged 5.28 percent, and 6.34 percent for walk-ups. These yields are highly correlated to lending rates, and those rates have been at historic lows. The lowest cap rates are in Manhattan at 4.11 percent and 4.98 percent, respectively, and are highest in the Bronx at 6.58 percent and 8.32 percent, respectively. These are the lowest averages among all property types.

To read the full story, click here.

BY ADELAIDE POLSINELLI

With reality shows and the internet glorifying the heady prices of retail condos, skyscraper office buildings, five-star hotels, luxury apartment buildings, trophy apartments and McMansions, it’s no wonder that sideline spectators are enviously calculating the millions of dollars that brokers must make as the gatekeepers of real estate heaven.

Given the high stakes involved in achieving premium prices, how do you get that maestro of a broker to work her magic for you? Not just anyone can convince buyers why they should pay a premium. Not just anyone can get a more qualified buyer on the phone, or source those under-the-radar buyers whom very few brokers have access to. Not just anyone can create a competitive environment while at the same time orchestrating a quiet selling arena where a premium is paid for the privilege of seeing this opportunity.

The answer is by being respectful of what they bring to the table and by making certain that they are compensated fairly.

Many brokers will take on an assignment for a discounted fee just for the bragging rights of getting the listing or transacting the most deals. They are making up in volume what they don’t make in compensation. Unfortunately, this diminishes the added value a great broker can bring to a deal. Some brokers trade quality for quantity and often make elementary errors in judgment and execution in their haste to get to the finish line.

To read the full story, click here.

BY AL BARBARINO

Some city landlords are fuming at an announcement from New York City Marshal Richard McCoy yesterday that all evictions remain suspended through this week as a result of Hurricane Sandy, and that “no target date” has been set for evictions to resume.

“I regret to inform you that evictions still remain suspended until further notices,” states a letter issued by Mr. McCoy, obtained by The Commercial Observer. “The city believes that the unprecedented damage, disruption, and impact of the Hurricane Sandy’s disaster upon the City of New York continues, including thousands of persons, with special needs who require shelter and other financial needs.”

New York City Marshals are appointed by the Mayor to physically carry out evictions, supervising the removal of tenants’ belongings and making sure entry locks are changed. “Currently there is no target date and until we have been informed of such, no eviction dates will be provided (not even a tentative date),” the letter goes on.

While landlords told The Commercial Observer that perhaps the move was well-intentioned, they said they had hoped that the moratorium on evictions would have been lifted by now, as things get back to normal for most New Yorkers.

“That kind of sucks for all the city’s landlords,” said one city property owner who did not wish to be identified. “It sucks shit.”

Though one landlord said that an informal moratorium has been in place on evictions during the month of December for years, another said he would not hesitate to evict people as the holiday season rolls around as the rule was “not in the books.”

To read the full story and see the Marshal's letter, click here.