CEO Stuart Siegel / Photo by Katherine Marks for the New York Times
Because of the Brexit, nobody has clarity, despite what the pundits are saying. And because there’s no clarity, there’s uncertainty, which could cause people to pause before investing. So, a wait-and-see attitude could dominate the New York City residential market, unless somebody has a truly compelling lifestyle need to buy.
Unless your kids are in college in the city or you’re transferred and starting work in three weeks, you’re not going to be making real estate moves here right now. For example, we are working with a client from a British financial institution who told us that, because of the Brexit, he’ll wait 60 to 90 days before moving forward on a property he was interested in. I suspect we may be hearing this quite a bit from our friends from across the pond.
The shock and unpreparedness that every corner of the world and every sector of industry felt last week is wearing off as reality sets in. Today, stocks are rallying and gold is up. They might be down again tomorrow. Individuals don’t like this uncertainty and don’t make very large financial commitments during these times.
About Stuart Siegel & Engel & Völkers NYC, courtesy of The Real Deal:
European high-end real estate brokerage Engel & Völkers opened its first Manhattan office at Midwood Investment & Management and Oestreicher Properties’ 19-story property at 430 Park Avenue.
Veteran broker Stuart Siegel was hired to head up the New York operation as the regional CEO. He recently ran a global advisory firm with offices in Switzerland, the Middle East and Italy. Siegel is an alum of Sotheby’s International Realty, as is Laura DesMoine, who was hired as Engel & Völkers’ senior vice president of brokerage marketing. Siegel was formerly CEO of Sotheby’s.
The firm was founded in Hamburg, Germany, in 1977, and now has more than 500 brokerages and 50 commercial offices across 38 countries. As part of a South Florida expansion, two offices in Wellington and Palm Beach opened last year, as previously reported.
