New York yacht sales finally set to rebound after Hurricane Sandy

New York yacht sales finally set to rebound after Hurricane Sandy

By Ed Zwirn

(Originally published on June 14, 2015 in the NY Post.)

New York’s local waterways may be clogged this boating season as local yacht sales cruise higher.

Stock portfolios and real estate values have been rising over the past few years, and sales of recreational boats of all sizes increased 7.3 percent in New York state in 2014, bucking a national trend of sinking sales, according to a National Marine Manufacturers Association report.

After years of floundering US sales as a result of the economic maelstrom that was 2007 to 2010, in which the industry saw a peak to trough decline of  60 percent decline nationwide for recreational boat sales, says Gerrick Johnson of BMO Capital Markets. Johnson adds that last year saw a rise of 8 percent in sales nationally.

A large part of the NY metro-area rebound, aside from the general economic recovery, is that local boat sellers are getting a boost as storm-ravaged property owners get around to replacing some of the 65,000 or so boats destroyed by Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Continue reading

Real estate boom is edging out city’s gas stations

Real estate boom is edging out city’s gas stations

By Ed Zwirn

Published in the New York Post on May 23, 2015. Click here to view the published version.

As the summer driving season begins, motorists looking to gas up anywhere in the city are finding they have fewer places to buy fuel.

The New York metro area lost just over 10 percent of its gas stations during the decade ended in 2013, the most recent year for which detailed US Census data is available. Continue reading