Kim Velsey

New York

Real Estate Reporter at Curbed

Columnist and Contributor at The New York Times

Reporter @NYMag's @curbed. Formerly of the New York Times, the New York Observer and the Hartford Courant.

Articles

The Battle Over Harry Macklowe’s $32 Million Hamptons House May Soon Be Over

2 weeks ago | curbed.com | Kim Velsey

After buying the Georgica Pond house, as seen in listing photos, Macklowe painted it a blinding white (not in violation of any zoning laws) and removed native plantings (very much a no-no). For the past six years, developer Harry Macklowe has been at war with the village of East Hampton over his Georgica Pond mansion and the 2.7 acres of protected wetlands it sits on — land he cleared and modified without permits after purchasing it for $10.35 million in 2017.
A Clinton Hill One-Bed With Arched Windows for $750K

2 weeks ago | curbed.com | Kim Velsey

This Clinton Hill one-bedroom, as shown in listing photos, has a living room with an unusual amount of original 1905 details, including moldings, picture rails, and refinished-brass light fixtures. For under a million dollars, one can find all sorts of housing configurations: park- and subway-adjacent studios, one-bedrooms hidden in carriage houses or former shoe factories, and even the occasional true two-bedroom.
Rich NYC Buyers Aren’t Scared Off by Tariffs

2 weeks ago | curbed.com | Kim Velsey

In New York, the impact of Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs on the real-estate market was immediate: panic, followed by a pause. As the stock market plummeted, brokers reported that buyers were canceling showings, holding off on contract signings, and in some cases even backing out of deals. Sellers understandably were reluctant to list under such circumstances.
New York’s Broker-Fee Fines Are Lower Than Most Broker Fees

3 weeks ago | curbed.com | Kim Velsey

In the months since City Council passed the bill making it illegal for a broker hired by the landlord to charge the tenant a fee, everyone’s been watching to see if it will actually go into effect this June. (There’s a REBNY lawsuit trying to stop it.) But this week, we got a glimpse of what it might look like in practice when Crain’s reported what fines brokers who charge illegal fees would have to pay. Except, they seem kind of low?
A Lower East Side Two-Bedroom With 7 Closets for $850,000

4 weeks ago | curbed.com | Kim Velsey

For under a million dollars, one can find all sorts of housing configurations: park- and subway-adjacent studios, one-bedrooms hidden in carriage houses or former shoe factories, and even the occasional true two-bedroom. We’re combing the market for particularly spacious, nicely renovated, or otherwise worth-a-look apartments at various six-digit price points.
Zillow Hits Back Against Private Listings Networks

1 month ago | curbed.com | Kim Velsey

Even after hiring a broker, most people in the market for a new home spend a lot of time on sites like StreetEasy and Zillow, browsing what they assume is pretty much everything available. But recently, Compass has been talking up its exclusive in-house listings network, on which sellers can soft-launch their listings discreetly and buyers can get early access to the good stuff before it’s swarmed by the general public.
The Tariffs Have Come for New York City Real Estate

1 month ago | curbed.com | Kim Velsey

Trump’s tariffs are spooking buyers, sellers, home builders, and suppliers, causing a widespread pause in the market. In the last week, Holly Mumford, an architect and the founder of Hereabout, a company that sells predesigned home plans, has seen several alarming signs that her business, and the home-building business in general, may be in trouble.
The 300-Day-Old NYC Listings Suddenly Seeing Bidding Wars

1 month ago | curbed.com | Kim Velsey

By the time Lillian Norcross saw the studio apartment in Gramercy Park, it had already been on the market for more than 100 days. It had an older renovation, with a kitchen that would need updating, but it was in a prewar building with a full-time doorman and a roof terrace. At $370,000, it was also the only studio in Gramercy that she could afford.
Kanye West’s Malibu Mansion Has Sold in a Week

1 month ago | curbed.com | Kim Velsey

The Malibu beach house that Kayne West nearly destroyed has sold for all-cash offer between $30 and $34 million. The Tadao Ando-designed Malibu beach house that Kayne West, now known as Ye, bought and gutted, has already found a new buyer a little over a week after going on the market.
Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost’s Park Avenue Bargain

1 month ago | curbed.com | Kim Velsey

Any real-estate broker will tell you that the best deals are in co-ops, particularly the elite, Upper East Side buildings with rigid rules and palatial apartments that have largely been abandoned by the moneyed and powerful in favor of blingy condos. But Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost, both native New Yorkers, were apparently not too put off by the arcane board application to score a real-estate deal.