Blog
HOW MUCH SHOULD I TIP MY BUILDING STAFF? | MJF Weekly Newsletter
This is a question I get from numerous clients, friends, and neighbors almost every year. This year, I seemed to get more than usual. I am always a bit reluctant to answer the question, and most people, in my experience, also keep their tip fig...
IS LANDMARK PRESERVATION IMPORTANT?| MJF Weekly Newsletter
It is if you value the wildly diverse landscape of NYC architecture. I recently attended a fundraiser for the LGBTQ Historic Sites Project, an organization co-founded by a friend of mine. The organization was started about 10 years ago with a m...
ARE YOU GRATEFUL? | MJF Weekly Newsletter
I certainly am. I’ve been “practicing” gratitude for many years now by creating gratitude lists regularly. Sometimes I forget to do it, sometimes I get too caught up in work, and sometimes I simply get too caught up in myself. I’m lucky...
WHAT IS THE GREAT WEALTH TRANSFER?| MJF Weekly Newsletter
The “Great Wealth Transfer” refers to the massive, multi-generational shift of assets from the baby-boomer generation to younger generations such as Gen X and millennials. It is expected to be the largest transfer of wealth in history, with...
WHAT CAN MAMDANI DO? | MJF Weekly Newsletter
We just lived through one of the most emotional mayoral elections I have ever seen in all my years in New York—and it ended with a historic first. A 34-year-old democratic socialist has been elected the 111th Mayor of New York City. The impac...
SHOULD I PERFORM A HOME INSPECTION? | MJF Weekly Newsletter
Outside of New York City, the answer is a resounding yes! Inside New York City? It depends. My clients often ask about inspections, and I explain to them that they are the norm with townhouses but rare with co-ops and condos. I would never disc...
DO WE REALLY NEED ANOTHER BANK BRANCH IN MANHATTAN?| MJF Weekly Newsletter
The answer is yes — if you’re asking Wells Fargo. If you’re a New Yorker and see an empty storefront, you might think, “I wonder if it will become a bank branch or a nail salon.” I’m quick to notice openings and closures of commerci...
DO YOU PREFER OLD OR NEW? | MJF Weekly Newsletter
Either way, you’re in luck when it comes to New York real estate — because we have it all! However, the new—as in new development condos—might be harder to come by in the very near future.