Category : Featured

Light fixtures swung back and forth and the 59-story building creaked so loudly, Lindsay White and her sister Erin could barely hear themselves talk. The sisters and roommates decided to ride out Hurricane Sandy since they were in Evacuation Zone B and nothing happened during last year’s Hurricane Irene. The next day, White walked down 18 flights of stairs to survey the damage. Her building had been spared, but nearby blocks were not so lucky. By Governor Cuomo’s estimate, between 20,000 and 40,000 New Yorkers have been forced to seek housing after Sandy ravaged their homes. In a rental market already airtight, the outlook is grim for many.

By Al Barbarino Julia Bryzgalina walks and talks with an air of confidence that defies her mere 25 years. Dressed to the nines all the way down to a pair of spotless black leather heels, the Platinum Properties’ manager states matter-of-factly that they are no different from the heels she wore as a member of Yale University’s Pistol and Rifle Club. “It’s pretty much the only sport you can do while still wearing heels, which I liked a lot,” she said, grinning slightly, adding that she was the only female member of the team, and quickly erasing any doubt that she is someone who knows what she wants, and that she, well, sticks to her guns.

You don’t have to be superstitious to believe in ghosts. Every previously occupied property has a history, and that history can have real effects on how potential buyers or tenants react to a space. Homes that become the scene of a violent crime can suffer a value loss ranging from 15 to as much as 100 percent of the value of the home, according to Randall Bell, an appraiser who specializes in disasters.