A report from The Real Deal. "Bank OZK, one of the country’s most aggressive condo construction lenders, signaled in its most recent earnings report that its real estate lending growth is slowing down. 'Lenders in certain markets are very aggressive on price,' Bank OZK CEO George Gleason told analysts. 'We’ve been clear without exception that we are not going to sacrifice our credit standards.'"

"Bank OZK is one of the largest and most aggressive condo construction lenders in Miami, Los Angeles and New York City, lending at a time when other banks are pulling back."

From Miami Agent Magazine. "After a strong first quarter, Miami Beach sales hit a snag in Q2 2019. In almost all property categories, median sales prices fell compared to the previous year. Price cuts were particularly severe in Miami Beach’s luxury market, with high-end condo prices down 24.3 percent to a median of $2.55 million."

From Mansion Global on New York. "While there were several record-breaking headline luxury sales in New York during the first half of 2019, the overall top-tier market, with a starting price point of $5 million, was considerably bleak, dampened especially by the co-op market, according to a report. The number of sales in luxury co-op buildings dropped to 84, down 21% year-over-year."

"'Very few people want to buy high-priced co-ops,' said Garrett Derderian, managing director of market analysis at CORE. 'The sales level is the lowest since 2013; while the annual decline is the highest in the past 10 years.'"

"The luxury market will likely experience more downward pressure in the second half of the year, considering a glut of inventory, the impact of the newly implemented mansion tax, and slowing demand, according to CORE. There are 15.4 months of supply of luxury homes, many of which are super-prime 'shadow inventory,' or units in new developments yet to come onto the market."

"'Buyers are keenly aware of this and all negotiating at all price points,' Mr. Derderian said."

The Detroit Free Press in Michigan. "In the wake of economic collapse, the city of Detroit saw a surge of new construction and redevelopment announcements between 2013 and 2017 as property developers rushed to benefit from the sudden revitalization momentum in and around downtown."

"Yet some development projects have stalled out or barely progressed since their announcement. They exist only in archived news stories or colorful renderings of what would have been built if the construction financing came through. Many of these projects were announced with dramatic headlines, packed news conferences and group photos of beaming developers and elected officials."

"Everyone grew excited for what was about to happen. But then, nothing happened. 'People get caught up in the fever and the excitement, but a lot of these might be secondary sites at this point,' said Steve Morris, managing partner of Axis Advisors real estate firm. 'Financing has never been more available, and at a lower rate, but the lender may not approve a secondary site that is questionable.'"

"'Somebody announces (the project) a year and a half before they’re ever going to get in the ground. Then when they start doing the numbers, their costs go up,' said Dennis Bernard, president of Southfield-based Bernard Financial Group. 'Rents continue to go up, but not the huge jumps that they did initially when everyone started (developing) downtown. And suddenly, the math doesn’t work.'"

"Announced in late 2016, The Ashton Detroit was to be a newly constructed 11-story luxury condos building at the western edge of downtown with floor-to-ceiling windows, elaborate penthouses and an indoor swimming pool, and be finished in 2018. But those dreams proved fantasy."

"This March, one of the project's developers said that they failed to meet lenders' requirements to pre-sell at least 50% of the planned 83 condos to get construction financing. So they decided to drop the condos idea and build a 154-room hotel on the site instead, with a groundbreaking happening as early as this summer. So far, nothing has happened."