Rockrose offers a Buyback Guarantee to Long Island City condo buyers

Rockrose has no intention of selling more than 51% of this building, then they’ll rent out the other 49%. They’ll do anything to reach that 51% mark, so look for even better deals in the future.

Oh, and they will never let the condo board (when there is one) completely control the building! Can you believe that? They reserve the right to forever control all decisions *even after* the building is completed and/or sold out. So you’ll be living in an almost rental building with no gym, you paid at the height of the market with prices in free fall, with no parking and the sponsor won’t let you change anything unless they approve it!

Rockrose is just building a rental community. The View condo owners be last on their list of priorities and you’ll be a voiceless minority in your own building that you bought!!

Unbelievable.

#2, What are you basing this on? If they want to go rental there is nothing stopping them from doing that now. Why go through such an elaborate charade?

#4 Rockrose offering plan, it’s on the front cover, near the bottom, in big bold ALL CAPS.

Oh, no. The real estate geeks have highjacked the site for the second week going. Hey, liqcity, post a general interest item. I’m getting bored to tears.

You’re mis-understanding what I mean and that’s my fault.

I’ve read many offering plans too and what Rockrose has in theirs isn’t standard. I don’t have it in front of me, but when I do I’ll post it here.

Exactly #11, that was a huge red flag for me.

That corner is so tacky. Who owns it and why is everyone allowed to put up all those gross marketing banners? So cheesy. Makes the neighborhood look like a trade show.

i hate it too, I think that if you really wanted to, you could go after them for illegal advertising. I find it hard to believe that they have the permits (which yes, are required).

Also the MTA has a plan to expand the Vernon-Jackson subway stop there, but it would require them to buy out/take over that spot, which is unlikely to happen, if ever.

I need a $15 drink too… I think it’s time to get on that wagon.

Prudenti owns the parking lot that sits between Tournesol and Vernon Wine&Liquor. The owner of Butcher Deli is rumored to be building on the corner parking lot where the marketing banners are hanging. I dont know whether he owns that lot or not.

what a scam from Rockrose…. they are trying top delay slashing those infated prices, which they will have to do, sooner than later. Good luck trying to get money back from a corporate developer – if things go down you’ll be the last in line to try to recoop money wasted, behind banks, investors, etc. Your lawyer will tell you this after reviewing the contract. And as the NY times article listed, Rockrose won’t offer any assurances of giving money back, but has remained vague in tying this to the viability of their fiscal standing.

One bright spot in the economy’s collapse: less Eurotrash.

Powerhouse is at it again: They are not known for being forthright and in the beginning certainly not curious. Old habits die hard. I learned from a neighbor who is in contract to purchase that this week her bank turned down her mortgage application down because Powerhouse had only sold 30 PERCENT, when they have been telling everyone that they met the 50% threshold. I thought it was time for me to take another look at the progress, so I stopped by the new onsite sales office yesterday. It was closed. Sunday morning it was closed too. I found on their website that it is now only open Sun 12-3 and Tuesday 5-7. That seemed odd but I made time and came back at 12:30, only to be told that their Open House is BY APPT ONLY! Ha! And of course I was told with attitude! What was a lavish sales office in the building next store is now onsite in a one bedroom. Before I left I asked what percent sold they are and she said “just under 48%.” The whole thing is just odd…same as it was from the beginning. If they had my deposit I would be heavily medicated at the moment!

After living in LIC during the 2005 – 2007 period, and wondering if I should jump into one of those “only a million one” deals- I got a chance to bail out of the city and wound up in Scottsdale AZ where a foreclosure on 2 acres/3700 sq ft of NEW home/ was mine for the price of the DOWN PAYMENT I’ve have had to ante’ up at the Powerhouse or RockRose. For the first time in my life I have a house that’s PAID FOR and not making either mortgage or rental payments is a huge relief. Now we’re seriously looking for a little pied a tere’ in the city – which I can now buy for under $500k! (Granted I’m talking an alcove studio in a good location near the park, etc. – but nothing large enough for us to live in full time.) In fact, with some of the current “deals” that are being offered, what a one bedroom was going for at PowerHouse or RockRose can now buy you a 1 plus den in the CITY. The real McCoy – not the pale imitation that is LIC. Maybe where you could walk two or three blocks to WORK – not to the damned FREEZING subway station on a snowy morning and back again in the freezing rain later that night! Where if you’re going to get nailed for $400/mo for a parking space at least it’s in the City near your building – and not on a waiting list at CitiLights Garage for a year or more!

20 months ago I thought I’d NEVER be able to consider living in LIC, much less in Manhattan again and reconciled myself to the bucolic life in Scottsdale. But things changed and changed FAST!

Obviously I miss Manhattan. Hell, I was born there – so of course I miss it terribly. But now I may be able to have the best of both worlds – simply because I felt I was too tightly stretched to pay that maintenance, the parking, the utilities, and a 1.1 million dollar mortgage payment.

Just for the hell of it – wonder how long it might take Rock Rose to transfer all the assets out of the holding company that enters into these “guarantees” and then file a chapter 7 when the party is over and it’s time to pay those poor buyers some five years hence? Bigger companies have managed just precisely that kind of maneuver to get their tail out of a financial crack. Do you really think RR Development would think twice following that unethical but perfectly legal example as a way to ditch some substantial debt owed to several hundred would be buyers who were dumb enough to trust them based solely on their reputations alone? Given their reputation for being BRUTAL in business (remember when they got bad press for evicting men in the 80’s who were dying from AIDS before the cocktails came along in the early 90’s?) and other charming but perfectly legal and lawful but equally reprehensible not-giving-a-damn-about-their-tenants sorts of actions? Maybe you younger kids don’t remember, but I was there and read all about it in the local papers while RR execs muttered “no comment” when asked to explain their actions publicly! Maybe RR has gotten nicer in the current economy – but frankly I doubt it. Leopards don’t change their spots very often, in my experience.

INVESTIGATE before you invest your hard earned money. What if there are a couple of hundred buyers wanting to exercise their option to bail out in five years and the units are worth 20% of what those buyers paid for them today or tomorrow? Why do you think there was no surety or bond backing this “offer” anyway?

Good advice was once given to Cleopatra, ie: “Don’t take a viper to your bosom.” and in that same genre’ I’d proffer “Don’t expect Rock Rose to play fair if there’s a lot of money at risk and they can do ANYTHING ELSE AT ALL to save their cash.”

Older, Wiser, and OUT OF LIC FOR GOOD – THANK HEAVEN!