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Boston Lost More Than Half Its Airbnb Listings Last Weekend
Boston Lost More Than Half Its Airbnb Listings Last Weekend Out with the short-term leases, in with the regulation. After months of lashing out at Boston officials while they deliberated short-term lease restrictions, Airbnb has eliminated more than half its local inventory to follow City Hall orders. The short-term rental platform dropped somewhere between 3,000 and 5,000 Boston listings Sunday from its roster, Wired reports. Boston's new short-term listing regulations call for hosts to register with the city and only allowed short-term rentals in homes where the owner was present. Platforms like Airbnb and VRBO had to notify the city and remove listings that didn't comply with the new guidelines. While Airbnb previously had more than 6,000 listings, Boston has only approved 737 short-term rental hosts. City officials told Wired they won't know exactly how many listings were eliminated until Airbnb submits a December activity report next month. Boston's push to crack...
Amazon Expands NYC Presence With Major Hudson Yards Office Lease
When Amazon made its stunning decision to cancel plans to build a second headquarters in Long Island City, it said it would continue building its presence in New York City. Now it has cemented those plans, taking on a big office lease on Manhattan's Far West Side. Following months of speculation over where the e-commerce giant would plant its flag, Amazon has leased 335K SF at 410 10th Ave., SL Green's redevelopment of 460 34th St., The Wall Street Journal reports. Amazon plans to fill the space with 1,500 employees, but said it won't receive any state or city tax breaks as part of the deal. "We plan to continue to hire and grow organically across our 18 tech hubs, including New York City," an Amazon spokeswoman told The New York Times. The deal underscores the growing appeal of Manhattan's west side, particularly for tech tenants. Last month, Facebook announced a monster lease at three Hudson Yards buildings, taking in excess of 1.5M SF across 30 floors. Mean...
Gambino Family Bribed HFZ Exec To Siphon Money From Luxury Condo Project, Prosecutors Say
An executive at development firm HFZ Capital Group is facing charges of fraud, after he was allegedly bought off by members of the notorious Gambino crime family. HFZ Managing Director John Simonlacaj pleaded not guilty in Brooklyn Federal Court Friday to charges of wire fraud conspiracy and tax fraud, The City reports. He posted a $250K bail and was released, according to the publication. Prosecutors charged Simonlacaj, who heads the development division at Ziel Feldman's HFZ Capital Group, as one of multiple employees who they allege accepted bribes and kickbacks from members of the crime family in exchange for inflating invoices and change orders at HFZ's billion-dollar condo development in Chelsea at 76 11th Ave. In court filings, prosecutors claim that Mark "Chippy" Kocaj, Simonlacaj's cousin, and other alleged members of the Gambino clan ran a carpentry firm called CWC Contracting, based in Mount Vernon in Westchester County. CWC was hired to work on several...
Stock headlines
Headlines 1. U.S. markets trade lower on manufacturing weakness 2. Trump launches new tariffs on steel from Brazil and Argentina 3. Cyber-shoppers spend record amounts on holiday deals 4. FAANG stocks still rule the roost 5. Remembering Enron