Blogs

The economic downturn from the coronavirus pandemic has forced many home and business owners into foreclosure. The federal government has instituted emergency mortgage relief measures, however. How can you use these regulations to avoid foreclosure during the era of COVID-19, and what lessons can...

Times are hard for many right now and COVID-19 has affected a large number of homeowners' abilities to pay their mortgages on time, increasing their risk of a possible foreclosure. If you or someone you know is unable to meet their mortgage requirements, you might be entitled to a loan modificati...

Going through a foreclosure is stressful, embarrassing, and scary. It's understandable if you'd like to just hide somewhere until it's all over. Unfortunately, that's not something you can – or at least, that you should – do. Here are three mistakes people often make when they're facing foreclos...

Last March, Governor Cuomo declared a disaster emergency for New York State, and shortly thereafter, Zoom became America's choice platform for distance learning and remote meetings. Now, as the coronavirus continues to have us reorganizing our lives to meet new challenges, two of the biggest con...

The financial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have been hard on everyone, especially small business owners. In the state of New York, mandatory shutdowns of non-essential businesses went into effect in mid-March. Though phased reopening of many industries began in June, many small businesses hav...

Welcome Relief For New York Commercial Property Owners On September 21, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced an Executive Order extending the state's moratorium on COVID-related commercial evictions and foreclosures until October 20. Eviction Protection For New York Residential Tenants New York'...

Debt often provides the freedom to achieve specific life goals, like going to college or buying a home. But when your financial obligations seem mountainous, and you're struggling to keep up with payments, it can feel like a 1,000-pound weight bearing down on you. And that's not good for your hea...

Are you unable to pay off a large loan? You're not alone. Unfortunately, many people can't pay off loans thanks to unexpected issues like job loss, medical bills, divorce, and more. If you're late on payments, it's not too late to take action. Here's what you need to know if you're delinquent on ...

After suffering a financial hardship, you obtained a loan modification from your lender that lowered your interest rate and reduced your monthly payment amount. But now, the troubled economy has put you right back where you were before–falling behind on your loan payments and fearful of defaultin...

New York City's emergency assistance program—called the One-Shot Deal—is meant to help renters avoid eviction due to nonpayment. But with the city's current moratorium on eviction, some locals support the idea of using the program to help renters who are out of work due to the pandemic. Here's wh...

Governor Cuomo may have suspended evictions in New York, but that doesn't mean everyone can breathe a sigh of relief for now. While he originally declared a moratorium on evictions for 90 days in March—and then extended that until August 20—the NYC Housing Court recently started operating again. ...

If you're looking for a home to rent in New York City any time soon—or if you're about to renew your lease—you might be surprised by the lower prices and better incentives offered by landlords. According to real estate experts, many landlords are having trouble getting new leases signed lately du...

Every year, New York's Rent Guidelines Board (RGB) gets together to vote on whether they should increase, decrease, or freeze rent for the city's rent-stabilized apartments. This year, in an effort to help local residents keep a roof over their heads, the RGB voted for a rent freeze. Though it wa...

As NYC grapples with the enormous impact of COVID-19, many construction projects have been put on pause for a while. After all, Gov. Cuomo has only permitted certain projects to keep going in the wake of the pandemic, with the construction of essential buildings being allowed to continue. But tha...

In April, several tenants and tenants' rights groups in NYC were considering a rent strike if they didn't get more help with their housing costs. That strike has moved forward, with thousands of NYC tenants refusing to pay their rent in May. This is the largest rent strike the city has seen in de...

If you have never owned property before and are currently in the market to buy a home in New York, it may come as a surprise to learn that you are required to use a real estate attorney in your transaction. New York is one of the few states that requires an attorney to represent the buyer as well...

It is hard to believe that the 2008-2009 financial crisis is now eleven years behind us. But whether the crisis really truly abated for everyone is up for debate. According to a real estate analysis by PropertyShark, foreclosures more than doubled in New York City since 2014. In 2019, there were...

As a New York landlord, you are probably aware of the most recent changes made to tenant laws. You probably also know that screening a potential tenant is one of the most powerful tools you have to ensure a successful agreement that lasts for a long time. But there are some things you should—and ...

Coronavirus has negatively affected the real estate market as a whole, but some cities have been hit harder than others—with New York City being one of them. In particular, the luxury housing market here has suffered quite a bit. So if you're eyeing high-end property in NYC, here's what you need ...

As the weather begins to warm up, so does the New York City housing market. After all, most people want to be settled in their new home before fall, which means they need to start searching for a home before summer. But as you probably figured, things are a bit different this year, thanks to COVI...

In early April, hundreds of tenants in a housing project in the South Bronx had a concerning surprise awaiting them when they woke up. They had no running water. That's a pretty big deal—and quite an inconvenience—any time of the year. But for this to happen during the coronavirus pandemic, it's ...

As we know by now, New York City has been especially hard hit by the coronavirus. Not only are many people sick, but nearly 40% of residents can't afford their housing costs due to recent layoffs. With so many people renting in this city, there are going to be a lot of residents who can't afford ...

In the wake of COVID-19, New York City agencies have had to make some adjustments to various guidelines. The latest one involves what constitutes affordable housing. Previously, the city defined affordable housing as any building where at least 30% of the units are considered income-restricted un...

The coronavirus pandemic has upended—or at least temporarily paused—regular life for many people. Job loss is just one of the drastic changes millions of New Yorkers have to deal with now, and that means it's going to be hard for many of them to pay rent. In fact, about 40% of New Yorkers won't b...

Tenants in New York can breathe a sigh of relief if they're experiencing financial difficulty due to coronavirus and can't pay rent for now. New York officials voted to suspend evictions starting on March 16 at 5 p.m. and continuing indefinitely. Here's why that happened, and what other decisions...