The new York Times
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Square Feet | The 30-Minute Interview
Frederick W. Peters
By VIVIAN MARINO
Published: October 29, 2010
Mr. Peters, 58, is the president of Warburg Realty Partnership, an independent residential brokerage firm that specializes in luxury property. Warburg is involved in several new developments, including Twenty9th Park Madison, a condominium near Madison Square Park, and 555 Lenox Avenue in Harlem.
The firm will soon be joining the cast of the HGTV show “Selling New York.”
Q How is the luxury market?
A In the ultraluxury marketplace — $10 million and up — prices are still off peak but not to the degree that they were 15 months ago. Last year we were 30 to 40 percent off. Today I would say we’re off peak by 15 percent to 20 percent. The lower level of the luxury market — starting in the low $2 millions — was very slow for a substantial period of time. Those units are much in demand in the last six months.
Q Wall Street bonuses are expected to rise. Are you getting any inquiries from investment bankers about buying yet?
A We absolutely are. I think we’re seeing it more so than last year at this time, and that’s not only because of the money. Last year there was a sense that it was unseemly to be looking at spending a very substantial amount of money on real estate. I think this year — even though there’s still some of the sentiment — that perception has diminished.
Q Is this still a sellers’ market?
A What’s interesting is that both sides feel empowered: the sellers, by the fact that 2010 has not been a really bad year, and the buyers, by the fact that there is still enough negative economic news slowing things down.
The way I like to describe the market we’ve been in for the last year is as a brokers’ market. We’re in a marketplace in which you frequently have a buyer and a seller with a different perspective, and it’s the challenge of the broker to bridge the gap. I like these markets in which our skills are really deployed.