From the Practice
Property documentation for owners who pay attention.
Observations on New York City real estate, regulatory changes, and the documentation layer most owners never build.
REGULATORY
NY State raises capital improvement exemption to $200,000 — what Manhattan co-op owners need to know
Previously capped at $80,000, the exemption now covers significantly more of what owners have spent. The requirement for verified documentation has not changed.
April 2026
BUYERS
Before you make an offer: why pre-purchase documentation is the new due diligence
In a post-NAR settlement market, buyers who arrive with verified permit history and condition documentation have information the seller does not expect them to have.
March 2026
SELLERS
What happens to your custom work when you sell? The documentation gap no one discusses
The bespoke millwork. The hand-dyed drapery. The lighting specified over eighteen months. Without a record, none of it commands the price it deserves.
February 2026
MARKET
The post-NAR settlement market and the rise of the documented property
Off-market transactions now represent a meaningful share of Manhattan volume. In a sale that never reaches a public listing, provenance does the work a broker once did.
January 2026
ESTATE PLANNING
Estate planning and your Manhattan apartment: the interior documentation problem
$124 trillion transfers between generations over the next twenty years. The residential properties in that transfer are almost entirely undocumented at the interior level.
December 2025
MAKERS
BDDW closed their SoHo doors. What happened to their production capability — and where it went
The physical showroom model is collapsing for exactly the makers who belong in the index. Their craft did not disappear. It just became harder to find.
November 2025
INSURANCE
Contents insurance and the documentation problem: why claims get reduced or denied
The largest driver of contents insurance disputes is not fraud — it is the absence of documentation at the time of the original purchase or installation.
October 2025
LANDMARKS
Landmark designation in New York City: what it means for your capital improvement record
Once LPC review is required for alteration applications, the documentation of existing conditions becomes the baseline for everything that follows.
September 2025
PLATFORM
NYC Design & Culture launches — a new index for New York City's design and maker community
nycid.com launches as a searchable index of New York City's design firms, makers, buildings, and cultural institutions. The platform covers galleries, architects, furniture makers, and the events that connect them — with building search, firm profiles, maker discovery, and a daily events feed. Free to explore at nycid.com.
October 2025
PLATFORM
NYC Design & Culture News launches — daily editorial for New York's design community
news.nycid.com launches as a curated daily briefing covering architecture, interiors, makers, galleries, and cultural events across New York City. Updated daily from primary sources. A companion to the NYC Design & Culture platform.
November 2025
EXPLAINER
The BBL number: New York City's most important property identifier that most owners have never heard of
Borough, Block, and Lot. Every permit, every recorded document, every transaction in New York City traces back to this number. Your dossier is anchored to it.
August 2025
PROCESS
Why the best time to document your home is before you renovate — not after
The existing conditions are the most valuable part of the record. Once the walls open, the original provenance of what was there is gone. Document before you build.
July 2025