Gotham Properties International Russia, Meeting with Gotham San Francisco Team…and more!

Up and Running: Gotham Properties International Russia

We are proud to announce the launch of Gotham Properties International Russia. Gotham is excited to take on this new venture with our Russian colleagues and talented new agents.

We would like to welcome our new Russian commercial agent Yana Bekher and residential agent Victoria Kharitonova to our Los Angeles team. With their dynamic real estate experience and understanding of Russian culture, they are a forceful addition to our existing Russian sales team led by Dmitry Litvishkov and Inna Forrest. We can’t wait to take on this new endeavor together!

Visit our Gotham Properties International Russian website to learn more about our Russian projects. In addition to our Chinese and Korean social media accounts, we have recently added Russian social media accounts. Follow us on Facebook and on VKontakte, the largest social network in Russia. Our Russian social media will keep you updated on latest news in Gotham Russia, Russian real estate affairs and much more.

Meeting with Gotham San Francisco Team

Last week, Erik traveled to San Francisco to meet with the business development team, as well as our residential and commercial agents in our San Francisco office. We welcomed new team members – Lisa Tarufelli, VP of Corporate Development and Chelsea Wang, Commercial Investments Broker – who have just joined the Gotham team. Our team had a very productive meeting discussing our advertising and branding strategies in the Bay Area, future operations in San Francisco, as well as our business plan on getting Gotham established in the Silicon Valley.

In addition, we also had the chance to check out potential new office space at 535 Mission Street – an office skyscraper located in Financial District that will be completed in January 2015.

Join us for February Referral Networking Event

Our February Referral Networking Event is taking place next Thursday on February 27, 2014 from 6pm to 8pm at our Beverly Hills headquarters. Please feel free to invite your colleagues and friends in the real estate industry and RSVP on our Eventbrite page.

Gotham is Expanding and Recruiting!

As Gotham continues to grow, we are seeking versatile agents and brokers in our Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Palm Desert offices to represent us and join our team. With our vertically integrated commercial and residential real estate services, as well as our own in-house construction, architecture, development, and property management companies, we truly provide one-stop-shop real estate services. Gotham values ambitious and inventive agents and brokers who have a diversified background and experience in the real estate arena. If you think that you would be a good fit for us, please contact us at 310-247-1212 to set up a meeting with our recruiting team.

Partnership with Immco, Referral Networking event, Fundraising Event for Cancer Research…and more!

Gotham forms strategic partnership with Immco – an EB-5 service company 

We are excited to announce our partnership with Kevin Jeffers  – managing partner of Pinnint/ Immco (HK) Ltd.!

 

Kevin Jeffers is a highly experienced expert in the arena of EB-5 investment (Immigrant Investment Program). In 2009, he initiated a program of bundling investment projects from real estate and technology companies for China’s immigration agent providers operating within the EB5 investor immigration program. Meeting with EB5 regional center owners/ managers and licensed immigration agencies, Jeffers has developed a program to qualify EB5 projects and a proven track record of successful funding.

Immco, also known as Pinnint, is a Hong Kong registered company operating in China and with a US Representative Office in Los Angeles. The company offers EB-5 (Immigrant Investor Program) projects to Chinese investors seeking legal immigration statue in the United States. Applicants must invest $500,000 or $1,000,000 into a US commercial enterprise that can create 10 full-time jobs for two years. With offices in Shanghai and Beijing, Immco has a team of Chinese-speaking staff that process clients’  needs in EB-5 — from sourcing projects, handling all the application paperwork, to connecting investors with immigration lawyers, and of course – satisfying their real estate needs in the US through its collaboration with Gotham Corporate Group.

Gotham works with Immco in providing real estate services for our international clientele who fund EB-5 investment projects in the US. As a vertically integrated real estate firm, we provide services ranging from residential and commercial real estate, construction, design/ build, property acquisition and disposition. With our fully integrated one-stop-shop capabilities, we are able to open doors for EB-5 investors to secure high quality projects in Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York and other major gateway cities in the US. For any inquiries on EB-5, we invite you to contact us at 310-247-1212 or info@gothamcorporate.com.

Gotham Referral Networking Event

Thank you for everyone who joined us for our January Referral Networking Event! With more than 50 guests attending, our event was a huge success!

Every month, we invite real estate professionals to join us for our Referral networking event. It is a great opportunity to learn about Gotham’s exclusive referral co-op platform in the real estate industry. It is a great opportunity to build wealth utilizing a range of services including residential and commercial representation, construction, design/ build, capital management and property management.

 

Please stay tuned for the announcement of our February event!

Fundraising Event for Cancer Research

 

At Gotham Corporate Group, we believe in giving back! We are hosting a fundraising event for a cancer research company that we have recently connected with. It is a privately funded biopharmaceutical company based in San Diego. They have had great success in diagnostic and therapeutic technologies that fight cancer, and are preparing to begin phase II clinical trials at UC San Diego. The event will be taking place on Feb 19 at Rivabella in West Hollywood. Please feel free to enquire about how to participate.

Gotham’s CEO Values Every Client, Deal and Real Estate Agent

Always a great day at Gotham Commercial where CEO, Erik Coffin, values every client, every deal, every real estate agent – Kudo’s Tommy Becker!

Gotham’s Growing – With New SF & NY Offices

We’re very pleased to announce that Gotham Properties International has opened offices in New York and San Francisco! Coming from a competitive LA real estate industry and with property values rising across the country it is the perfect time for Gotham to expand to these major cities. If you’re looking for a townhouse, condo, apartment, investment property or multifamily home we’re more than happy to make your vision come true and your investment profitable.

Builders Say Housing is Back

More builders say sales conditions are good rather than poor, confirming earlier signs of a housing recovery.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

 

Is the housing recovery for real? It looks that way, as a key measure of home builder confidence crossed a major threshold Monday.

The National Association of Home Builders’ index hit 52 in June, marking the first time it has been above 50 in seven years. A reading above 50 indicates that more builders say sales conditions are good rather than poor. The index has been posting gains for the last year, but those moves only indicated that builders thought the market was less bad than it had been. “It’s further confirmation of what we’ve felt for six months at least — that the housing marketis back and will continue to improve,” said David Crowe, chief economist for the trade group.

June is typically a month when builders report slower activity, after the spring buying season peaks. But this year they’re reporting better traffic levels and better sales conditions than they did in May.

The NAHB survey found that 41% of builders said current conditions are positive, almost double the percentage who said they were poor. A year ago, only 15% said conditions are good, while three times as many said it was a poor environment.

There have been many recent signs of a housing recovery, including a drop in foreclosures, a steady rise in home prices and an increase in sales of both new and previously-owned homes. A rise in mortgage rates, up from recent record lows, has done little to slow the the housing market.

In Crowe’s opinion, “it’s not the level of rates that has held back the markets, it’s the access to credit,” he said, referencing the difficulties that buyers have had getting home loans in recent years.

 

Restoration Hardware rides housing wave

 In fact, Crowe thinks higher rates are actually encouraging some lenders to be more aggressive in making new home loans, because they can no longer depend on a stream of refinancing for steady business.

A report is due later this week on the actual level of home building from the Census Bureau. Additionally, the National Association of Realtors will issue a report on sales of previously-owned homes. Economists expect that both readings will show continued improvement. 

New Listing Desert Rose in South Palm Desert, California

Very Desirable South Palm Desert true 5 bedroom, 5 bath pool and spa home with unbelievable down valley city light views and panoramic mountian views. Located on a quiet street, this property has been completely updated with wood floors, new bathrooms, comes with stainless appliances and has plenty of room inside and out for your family and friends.

Chinese Investors Acquiring Los Angeles Real Estate

Chinese Investors Acquiring Los Angeles Real Estate
Contributed by Judy Chen – Director of Business Relations

The housing market in the U.S. continues to make a healthy comeback with primary cities such as New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco witnessing a significant portion of their real estate demand stemming from foreign investors. Los Angeles, in particular, remains one of the top visitation and investment destinations for Chinese homebuyers due to a variety of factors, such as physical proximity, climate, affordability and China’s own governmental policies to name a few.

The California Association of Realtors recently reported that Chinese buyers make up 39.1 percent of the international buyer pool of homes in the state today. Of this group, over 80 percent hail from mainland China.  The country has also become the number one overseas market for tourism in Los Angeles, which is not surprising given its close proximity when compared to other popular destinations such as New York City and Boston. Furthermore, the temperate year-round climate is an appealing factor for both visitation and residency.

In an attempt to deflate the country’s housing bubble, the Chinese government has placed restrictions on multiple real-estate purchases and recently began requiring more upfront equity to qualify for mortgage loans. This acquisitions cap was placed in an attempt to contain the overheating housing market. In many instances, this means only one residential property per family is allowed. This shift in China’s real estate policy along with the general social instability caused by the income and wealth disparity is making the rich feel unsafe in their home country. These reasons highly encourage citizens seeking a safe harbor for their money to invest abroad. Plus, the comparatively affordable housing prices, low interest rates, favorable exchange rates and a steady currency, the RMB, have made real estate investing in the U.S. more appealing than ever before.

This investor pool is attractive to sellers because of their tendency to conduct all cash transactions. Of this group, roughly 40% want property in the U.S. as investments, while 60% are in anticipation of their children’s education. These home buyers tend to favor newly-constructed, luxury product located in premiere neighborhoods.  The Chinese culture also value the importance of education, therefore, homes in high-ranking school districts are another critical factor, since many intend for their children to eventually attend school in the vicinity. There is also great demand for properties in existing Chinese communities, which enables recent immigrants to more easily assimilate into a new country by offering a sense of familiarity.

Acquiring real estate abroad is a prime method for the Chinese to show off wealth and status, particularly within a culture that places so much emphasis on the concept of “face”.  Whether for immigration or simply expanding their source of long-term income through housing investments, as the number of millionaires and billionaires continue to rise, the demand from China will remain significant in the years to come. Therefore, the ability to cater to this demographic will be crucial to the success of any firm in today’s highly competitive real estate market. 

Marketing Director with Experience and Contacts in China

Marketing Director with Experience and Contacts in China  

Full service luxury real estate firm located in West Hollywood is seeking a marketing director fluent in Mandarin with experience in sales and advertising as well as extensive press and media contacts in China for the firm’s expansion into the area. Real estate and investment background preferred, but not required. Position will be based in West Hollywood. Please send resumes to judy@gothamcapitalmanagement.com.

How Social Media Helps Sell Off-Market Deals

Contributed by Mitchell McCarthy – Principal Broker of Gotham Commercial

In today’s market, we are noticing that most sellers prefer to keep their listings “off-market” and would rather entertain offers from individuals that do not locate the property on the MLS.

A number of reasons for this include:

1.)  They do not want to sign exclusive listings with individual agencies

a.    Since most owners get multiple cold calls per week from all different agencies, they would rather let multiple brokers find buyers/investors to bring forth the best offer.

b.    With current inventory levels low, many brokers do not have the leverage to obtain exclusives and are therefore willing to shop around properties without a contrac

                i.      This allows sellers to tell many brokers they are interested in selling and will entertain offers only at a certain price.

c.     This creates problems for many brokers as they want to shop the property around, but at the same time do not have a contract in place to protect themselves.

Solutions: If a seller is adamant about not signing an exclusive listing, then we recommend you get a Single Party Compensation Agreement, stating that if your agency submits an offer that is accepted by the Seller, then the Seller is obligated to pay the procuring Broker a commission stated in the agreement.

2.)   Many sellers are afraid of putting their property on the MLS because if it is priced high and sits there too long many buyers believe the deal is stale and not worthwhile.

If you notice your agency has knowledge of a lot of “off-market” deals, we have found that social media is a very effective avenue to find buyers.

LinkedIn and Facebook: Join real estate groups and post that your company has off-market deals and to contact you directly for more information. Sit back and watch the emails come in. Once you find interested parties, provide them with the financial information and the rent-roll along with a   vague description of the area to determine if they are realistic buyers.

If they are interested and request the address, we recommend you have them sign a Non-disclosure agreement to ensure that they do not circumvent you after all the time and effort put in. Again, if the purchaser wants to submit an offer, make sure you have a single party compensation agreement in place with the seller.

Our goal as agents is to source exclusive listings so here are a few suggestions of what to tell a seller resistant to signing an exclusive contract:

1.)  Exclusive listings allow me to open up the property to my entire network of investors

2.)  MLS creates a bidding environment on your property, which can drive the price up

3.)  Cooperating brokers know what commission they will get if they bring a buyer, encouraging them to help find buyers

4.)  Exclusive listings allow us as an agency to spend money on marketing materials to properly display your listing

Letter of Intent

Hello, 
This letter is written with the intent of forming a synergistic relationship with you. I am the CEO/Owner of Gotham Capital Management, Inc., a member of the Gotham Corporate Group. GCM offers the most profitable referral co-op platform in the real estate industry today. We are the premier entrepreneurial service for real estate agents, independent brokers flippers, asset managers, developers, investors, both private equity and major hedge funds. We have our own in-house (( not contracted out )) commercial and residential construction company, world class architect, interior designer, development team, property management team (commercial and residential), in house legal, money managers, and a 3rd party CPA firm with transparent and audit worthy numbers. All of our services are free, including use of our world class offices and board room with high-rise views of Beverly Hills, and the ocean-scape (feel free to host wine and cheese parties with your clients). Our goal is a responsible, ethical, mutually beneficial long-term, profitable relationship. Our base payout referral schedule is 25% minimum of profit on all construction and design jobs (no matter what size), 15% of gross paid out every month residually on all property management clients, all other opportunity procurement and investor referrals are negotiated in the most generous of terms. Our goal is to make you walk away from every deal happy, utilizing our services throughout your career. We are equity players as well, manage our own private equity fund, will JV (Joint Venture) on profitable projects, or fully fund. We are not looking to disrupt anyone’s independence, or affiliations but to maximize your ability to service your client without them looking elsewhere. We provide a partnership that allows you to fully realize revenue streams you have procured through clients, with out it being diverted to other industries, thus leaving $$$ on the table. We our the ultimate professional tool in your wheel house. Our company is your company, our services are your services. Feel free to contact us for more details @ 310.247.1212 or schedule an appointment with Judy at judy.gotham@gmail.com. We look forward to working with you and making your career more profitable. 

Erik J. Coffin 
CEO 
Gotham Capital Management, Inc. 
www.gothamcapitalmanagement.com 
www.gothamcorporategroup.com 
9255 W. Sunset Blvd. Suite # 1000 
Beverly Hills, CA. 90069 
O: 310.247.1212 
C: 323.377.4878 
F: 310.388.0136