Daily News Reporter Seeks First Time Home Buyers Having Difficulty Collecting First Time Home Buyers Credit From the IRS

Due to my sales track record as a Bronx Real Estate Associate Broker, I am fortunate enough to get calls from various reporters asking for Real Estate or Bronx related information. Many times they seek out contact with individuals who can be interviewed for their stories. I hope this blog site can be used to connect reporters with more Bronx residents who have real stories to tell.

Please see the e-mail sent to me by Ms. Karen Angel of the Daily News. For those interested in expressing themselves that fit the content of her next story, please do feel free to contact her. Her phone number and e-mail is in the e-mail sent to me earlier today.

Sincerely,
Gregory

*******
Greg,

I am writing a story for the Daily News on first-time homebuyers who are entitled to the first-time homebuyer credit but have not received it and are experiencing hardship as a result.

Please have anyone interested in being interviewed for the story contact me at kangel@nydailynews.com or 212-210-1683.

Many thanks,

Karen Angel

Karen Angel
New York Daily News
450 West 33rd Street
New York, NY 10001
*******

Daily News Content Continues to Extole Virtues of Bronx Real Estate... But Why Would It Pay for a Slogan and a Marketer?

As many of you have probably noticed, we've ceased posting our "Round'em Up" feature for a while... We've been away a bunch this summer and haven't had tons of time to devote to updating the blog, and keeping up with Bronx-related news stories has been a challenge.

We missed this Daily News article about a developer who actually doesn't seem evil who is doing well for himself rehabbing properties in the BoogieDown, and wanted to share it with you. Click here to check it out. This piece is actually part of a larger real estate series called 'Bronx Special: You Have to See It To Believe It!' Okay, I'll admit, I added the exclamation point in that title myself... but I had to. The title was so cheesy that I could just picture flipping on my tv at 2am and seeing Erik Estrada standing proudly in front of Tracy Towers yelling, "The Bronx -You Have to See It to Believe It!"

Daily News also recently had a nice feature on Silver Beach Gardens, a waterfront cooperative community nestled between the Throgs Neck and Whitestone Bridges in the Bronx. Interestingly enough, they beat the New York Times to the punch, as the Gray Lady featured Silver Beach Gardens and its neighboring Edgewater Park community in their 'Living In' column just a few days later. There are some other Bronx real estate items from the Daily News here and here as well.

All this recent press has the ole BD wondering aloud once again: does the Daily News have some sort of stake in the BoogieDown's real estate game? Their general coverage of the Bronx is always pretty awesome, but the recent uptick in positive real estate coverage has us a bit baffled.

We're certainly not complaining, but we would love to know why the News ran a piece a few weeks ago about a real estate marketer (David Williams, Seventh Art Group) who recently built a fluffy website as part of his efforts to rebrand the Bronx. We're all about folks doing their part to help the BoogieDown's public relations issues, but we were really surprised to see the following disclaimer at the bottom of the 'Bronx - Think Again' website:

Produced exclusively for the Daily News by Seventh Art Group. Please visit us at seventhartgroup.com

Huh???

*Clearly, the above photo is fake and Erik Estrada has not endorsed Bronx real estate... Apparently the Daily News hasn't gotten their hands on him yet.*

~ErLu

Daily News Continues to Recognize the Hotness

I'm not sure if the Daily News has a huge stake in Bronx real estate or what, but coming fresh off the heels of an entire special Bronx edition last week (there was even an accompanying marketing website and cheesy slogan [BD thinks its own "The Bronx is Burning - Burning Hot!" is much better than "If You Think You Know the Bronx- Think Again!"]), there is another article profiling a few happy new arrivals to our beloved borough. The first paragraph says it all:

"By now everyone should know it. The combination of cheap apartment prices, lots of green space and convenient transportation to Manhattan has more home hunters from other boroughs and outside of New York taking serious looks at living in the Bronx."

Just an fyi for whomever fact-checked the piece: it would be much more accurate to say that Mosholu Parkway and its environs make up an emerging neighborhood near the New York Botanical Garden, rather than the Bronx Zoo. The Zoo is close, and we bring our little one there often, but NYBG is much closer and convenient to the hood.

Thanks for the recognition, Daily News!

~ErLu

Go Buy The Daily News Today

There is a whole special "Bronx Edition" on newsstands.

Here's a little article by Daily News real estate writer, Jason Sheftell recognizing the real estate hotness of the BoogieDown:
"You Have To See It To Believe It"

Here are some other choice pieces:

"The Closer (Real Estate Gossip)"

"Bronx Brand"

"Opportunity Knocks"

Thanks for helping get the word out Daily News...

~ErLu

Some Foxy News for the Bronx

We've linked to this good news in our Round'em Up, but of course we'd like to highlight it further (we wouldn't be good Bronx cheerleaders if we didn't, right?):

Daily News' Silver Fox (AKA Bob Kappstatter, shown left) reports that major crimes in the Bronx were down for 2008. Click here to check out the full piece.

One theory the NYPD cites as helping to bring crime numbers down is "victimology," which basically means that in drug-related crimes, the perp isn't the only one who's likely to have a criminal record. The po-po have also been targeting gangs and violent youths in the BoogieDown.

Additionally, Operation Impact has helped bring crime numbers down (particularly in the rough and tumble hood of Morris Heights) by flooding crime-ridden areas of precincts with rookies. Talk about baptism by fire... geez.

Thanks for sharing the good news Kappy!

~ErLu

The End is Nigh!

This is just a little reminder about the impending apocalypse that is seemingly heading our way.

BoogieDowner commenter "Tired of Being Broke" sent this article along from the Daily News, which alerts us to the lunacy that is Brooklyn real estate prices.

Catey Hill of the News writes that rents and median home prices now outstrip those of Manhattan:

"The median rental prices in DUMBO, Park Slope and Fort Greene were higher than those in the East Village, Lower East Side, Upper East Side, Midtown East and Murray Hill. The median sales prices in Brooklyn's Fulton Ferry and DUMBO neighborhoods were higher than those in Midtown East, the East Village, Murray Hill and the Lower East Side[...]"

Now might be a good time to stock that bomb shelter or get going on that "bucket list."

*pic of mumbling schizophrenic lunatic courtesy of http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2188/1820071783_376c38e980.jpg?v=0*

~ErLu

Some Links...

Some other pieces of interest from the Daily News:

Bronxites really like crazy baby names

Hunts Point Terminal Market home to king of the chestnuts

Kappy speaks to the dead at Woodlawn about term limits

Mott Haven preschoolers learn the importance of good health

~ErLu

BoogieDowner Do-Gooder

Daily News' Clem Richardson filed a report yesterday highlighting an inspirational program at Bronx Community College for women who have lost their jobs or weren't able to enter the workforce for various reasons. The Displaced Homemaker's Program has been in existence for 26 years and is run by BCC's director of adult education and training program, Blanche Kellawon (pictured right in blue).

Ms. Kellawon not only preps women for the workforce by providing services such as computer training and resume and cover letter writing, but she also teaches students how to do market research to determine what career paths will be most profitable.

For more information about these programs, call (718) 289-5858, or (718) 289-5827.

*Photo courtesy of Schwartz/Daily News*

~ErLu

Anyone Can Be an Artist in the Bronx

Daily News' Dorian Block reports today that the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) is offering even the least creative of us the opportunity to become an artist.

In preparation for their upcoming show, Kiku: The Art of the Japanese Chrysanthemum, NYBG is seeking volunteers to work with artist Tetsunori Kawana as he contructs a 20-foot-tall bamboo structure in the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory courtyard.

Anyone interested in participating must be able to commit at least two hours per day to the project, which is taking place seven days a week from 9am to 5pm. To participate contact Jackie Martinez, director of volunteer services, at (718) 817-8564 or email volunteer@nybg.org.

*Photo courtesy of www.nydailynews.com*

~ErLu

Quest for Challah in the Bronx...

As today is Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, we thought it appropriate to highlight Daily News reporter Dorian Block's quest last week for challah bread made in the Bronx.

After trying about five different bakeries in the Bronx, as well as speaking to the faithful at Temple Emanuel in Parkchester and the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, Mr. Block was finally able to find authentic Bronx challah bread at M & M's Kosher Bakery on Johnson Avenue in Riverdale.

One thing Bronxites of any faith can mostly likely agree on is that challah bread is hella good.

*Photo courtesy of Alvarez/News*

~ErLu

More On Bronx Development Projects

Click here to read the Daily News' Bill Egbert's take on the various development projects taking place in the Pelham Bay section of the Bronx and beyond.

The article seems to suggest that observers are hopeful that the Wall Street crisis will actually have a positive impact on the Bronx in the form of budget-conscious companies capitalizing on the real estate bargains to be had in the BoogieDown.

Assuming any incoming businesses work with local community boards and observe zoning restrictions, an influx of new companies in the Bronx would bring with it the promise of new jobs for the borough.

Maybe if Yofiore, a yogurt shop based in uber-expensive Brooklyn Heights, had set up shop in the Bronx, they wouldn't be forced to sell fro-yo for $11 a pop in order to pay their monthly rent of somewhere around $14,000 for a measly 600 square foot shop. Just sayin'...

~ErLu

The Brooklyn Mark-Up Reaches New Heights

After the New York Times feature on BoogieDowner came out, we received a few emails from friends of ours who live in our former borough who said, "Please, take it easy on Brooklyn."

And you know what? We will take it easy on Brooklyn... Right after this post about $11 frozen yogurt on Court Street. (The beauty of the world wide inter-web allows me to have my fingers crossed behind my back right now without anybody knowing...)

A Daily News article by Veronika Belenkaya states that a fro-yo shop in Brooklyn Heights, Yofiore, is charging their customers $11.87 for a large frozen yogurt with toppings. One of the toppings is actually Tiffany solitaire diamonds... psych! Gotcha, right?

Seriously, this is disgraceful.

When asked for comment on the issue, one resident said, "This is downtown Brooklyn. Whatever flies in Manhattan flies here." That's the problem a-holes - it shouldn't "fly there" because you don't live in Manhattan. You live in Brooklyn... You know, the place where a naked dude just got tasered by the NYPD and fell to his death and hipsters are getting attacked by machetes? Now tell me again, why is the Bronx so scary?

So why the exorbitant price tag for something as simple as frozen yogurt? The shop's owner seems to have gotten caught up in the media-generated real estate frenzy in Brooklyn and pays somewhere around $14,000 for his 600 square foot space. Anybody else a little concerned about the inevitable bad outcome from these grossly over-inflated property values in Brooklyn and the countless numbers of new construction Fedders buildings that are littering the borough?

*Photo courtesy of Rosier for Daily News*

~ErLu

Interesting Opportunity for More Park Space in Bronx

Daily News' Alison Reiser is reporting that a retired educator/amateur anthropologist (and longtime Bronx resident) named Mike Cohn is pushing for North and South Brother Islands (in East River off the BoogieDown) to be added to the Gateway National Recreation Area, the nation's first urban national park.

Cohn said to the Daily News, "It's simply a matter of adding the two islands and a path along the Bronx shoreline, from Hunts Point to the Randall Island Walkway. I want to make the South Bronx a place worth seeing and going to."

North Brother Island (which appears to be the more illustrious of the Brothers, having been the site of the Slocum maritime tragedy resulting in the deaths of over 1,000 people) was used as a place to quarantine tuberculosis and typhoid patients from 1880's to World War II... If you want to see some really disturbing pics of the decrepit facility, please click here. Apparently, the facilities built there were even used as dormitories for City College, Columbia University, and Fordham University students, who would take a ferry back and forth to the mainland. Talk about a stressful living situation... Had I know this, I would have never complained about my crowded quadruple room in Hughes Hall at Fordham in my sophomore year. For more background on the island, click here.

Having just learned all this information in researching this post, I have to say I would love if these islands were somehow made accessible to the public. It seems irresponsible to have islands of such historical importance just sitting vacant for some many years.

The BoogieDowner supports Mike Cohn in this impressive effort!

*Photo courtesy of www.correctionhistory.org*

~ErLu

Businesses Fleeing Manhattan!

Okay, maybe they're not exactly fleeing by the droves, but a recent Daily News article by Gene Roman states that some smart, economically savvy business owners are heading for the outer boroughs. Of course the Bronx was featured as one place where businesses can expect to find bargains, along with economic incentive programs, which will help them grow and flourish.

Scott Tabankin, owner of Aggressive Shade, Glass & Mirror, decided to move his family's business to Mott Haven after 50 years in Manhattan. In addition to getting an additional 500 square feet for his company, he paid $10 per square foot in the Bronx, as opposed to $29 per square foot in Manhattan. With the help of the Bronx Overall Economic Development Corp., Mr. Tabankin was even able to secure a low-interest loan to pay for renovations.

For more information regarding relocating your business to the South Bronx, please visit the South Bronx Overall Economic Development Corp.'s website.

~ErLu

Commuting from Gun Hill Road About to Get a Little Easier

The Gun Hill Road station at White Plains Road will be the site of the Bronx's first "intermodal transport facility," which is currently being designed by the Metropolitan Transit Authority.

Daily News' Dorian Block reports that passengers shuffling between the 2 and 5 trains and many different bus lines will now have more direct transfer access and will not have to cross busy White Plains Road. Riders will also be protected from rain and snow - nice!

Now that the Gun Hill Road station has been renovated, the MTA's next step is awaiting design approval by the Transportation Department which should come through by the end of the year. The project is expected to be completed by 2010.

Nice to see a thoughtful redesign of such a heavily used station which will now be not only much more convenient for riders, but also much safer. I never thought I'd utter these words, but, "Kudos to you, MTA!"

*Photo courtesy of Giancarli for Daily News*

~ErLu

Baez Making Headlines (For All the Wrong Reasons...)

Frank Lombardi of the Daily News reports that one of our esteemed City Council members from the Bronx, Maria Baez (leader of the Bronx delegation), has the worst attendance record out of all the council members. In fact, she has only been present at less than half of this year's City Council meetings.

6 train stalled? Dog ate your homework? Can't get a babysitter? Death in the family? Have a case of the poopey-pants? Migraine? Don't want to miss the finale of Dancing With the Stars? Car broke down? Bathroom flooded? Need a mental health day?

I mean really, how in the world do you continue to come up with excuses to get out of doing your job. Actually, I'm not even saying once you're there you need to actually do anything. Just show up for Christ's sake!

Each day my pride continues to surge for our Bronx political leaders.

~ErLu

Seriously Mr. Castro?

It's borderline pathetic that not one week after we discussed Nelson Castro having a shocking nine registered voters supposedly living in his one-bedroom apartment, we are again commenting on yet another indiscretion.

In his article "Democratic Party Knew About Castro's Rap Sheet," Bob Kappstatter of the NY Daily News reports that Norman Castro, a Bronx Democrat who's gunning to replace Assemblyman Luis Diaz, has an actual criminal record.

I'll let you decide which charge is more shocking:

Four years ago, Castro plead guilty to collecting about $5,000 in unemployment funds while still working.

Also, he was caught this past March driving in East Harlem with a revoked license and for owing over $3,000 in unpaid parking tickets.

Nelson Castro, you must be the classiest guy I know. Well, I don't actually know you, but I feel like I do since you're in the news so much. But I tend not to hang out with shady dudes with criminal records, so I doubt we'll ever meet... That is unless I suddenly need to do an apartment share and one of your eight roomies drops out - smooches!

*Photo courtesy of Noonan for Daily News*

~ErLu

The Gays are Coming - Yesssssssss!!!!

We've actually been waiting to do a post on this issue for a while now, but we wanted to wait until there was an actual news story to tie in rather than just saying, "Hey BoogieDowner readers, we've been noticing a lot more gay couples while walking around our hood. How about you?"

In her article "Gay pairs like the boros, raising kids in Bronx," The Daily News' Stephanie Gaskell reports that a recent study by UCLA's Williams Institute shows that the Bronx is home to the highest number of gay couples raising children, followed closely by Brooklyn. But you know what we said yesterday Brooklyn - second place is for losers.

I'm no cultural anthropologist, but my take on the gay population of NYC is that they tend to be not only extremely stylish, but also ready, willing, and able to get involved with their communities and create stable, enriching residential environments. What more could you ask for in a neighbor?

~ErLu