A report from the Wall Street Journal on New York. "It is deal time for buyers looking to purchase an apartment in one of New York’s new condominium buildings, brokers said. As sales of new apartments have stalled this year, many developers are cutting asking prices and agreeing to go even lower—at a pace not seen in years, brokers said. 'Everybody today comes in and expects a discount,' said Ziel Feldman, chairman of HFZ Capital Group, who has half a dozen condo and co-op projects on the market."

"The third quarter is usually a peak period for apartment sales, but new development sales plummeted in this year’s third quarter, down more than 30% compared with the same quarter in the previous three years, according an analysis of sales records by The Wall Street Journal."

"Though some buildings still report solid sales activity, many buyers are making demands for deep discounts or simply waiting on the sidelines, brokers said."

"'Not all buyers appreciate the level of discount they can get today and are hoping prices will drop further,' said Pamela Liebman, president of the Corcoran Group. 'We won’t know whether or not they will be proved right or not' for a while, she said."

"At 100 Barclay, many listings have sold slightly below asking prices. But that discount grew steeper during the past year or so, according to StreetEasy. The five sales listed in 2018 averaged a discount of more than 10%. A four-bedroom on the 20th floor with large windows, 10-foot-high ceilings and a 30-foot-long living room was listed for $10 million and sold in August for $8.13 million, an 18.7% discount."

"Many in the industry see the slowdown as a healthy shift, especially in the long term. Frances Katzen, a broker with Douglas Elliman, said there was a time when there was 'shock and horror' when a developer cut prices, but no longer. 'It bodes well for the market,' she said."

From Crain's New York Business. "They're not all fat cats. Complaints about 'greedy developers' trace back to ancient times, but the city's real estate business is littered with builders toppled by recessions, cost overruns and disputes with lenders and partners."

"Ruddy Thompson's downfall can be traced not to just one such catastrophe but a combination of them."

"Beyond causing the probable demise of the Upper Manhattan condominium project into which he has sunk more than a decade of his life, the saga has left his once-flush bank accounts empty, his family torn apart, his health in tatters and his future bleak."

"Thompson's story reveals the ruinous potential of a business in which markets can abruptly shift, partnerships can end in betrayal and construction glitches can stymie even the most sophisticated builder."

"'The narrative about developers making tons of money isn't always true,' said David Scharf, a lawyer at Morrison Cohen who became involved in the condo project at the behest of Thompson's ex-wife. 'In the case of Ruddy Thompson, this project has become his Waterloo,' Scharf added. 'It ruined his marriage, split his family and has left him destitute. It's tragic.'"

"His only assets are a Range Rover and a Mercedes—leftovers from the days when he lived an affluent life with his family in Westchester. 'I'm worth less than zero if I get nothing from the site,' Thompson said. 'I'll probably move to China. I was there once, and I know they can use people like me who know English and who are honest.'"

From The Island Now. "Those who have homes at the higher end of the spectrum locally and in NYC, are experiencing much less traffic and a serious slowdown in the market. I see the major issue is how much of the 'higher end' inventory was constructed over the last six years in NYC. What else could a developer do but to construct over the top condos for the rich and wealthy consuming public, who devoured units faster than they could put them up."

"Land values were so great, the only choice was to build those type of units and price them accordingly at the upper end of the spectrum (I say the stratosphere) in order to turn a profit that the developers expected, after paying their hard and soft costs."

"One bedroom apartments in certain areas of NYC had been selling for one million or more. Two and three+ bedrooms were (and some are still trying) selling in the multiple millions, again depending on their location."

"I believe the glory days are over for now. The ten thousand dollar cap on real estate taxes (S.A.L.T. — state and local taxes) has also exacerbated the reduction in prices on all those homes or properties with very high taxes. I also see an increase in the number of people coming out of NYC and its outlying areas."