"There's heavy demand for properties that are expensive".
"I tend to go for properties that are cheap and that owner-occupiers wouldn't buy.
We look for properties that have a story, and this one in Brooklyn had a great story.
In multifamily space, for example, we're looking for properties that have been overleveraged and therefore financially starved of investment.
"They are priced like the rest of the market," he said, adding that buyers now expect to pay a little less for properties that far east.
"You're not going to get a huge discount, but for properties that have been sitting, they will at least listen to you now".
And on 10 April last year he said: "It isn't right that taxpayers foot the bill for properties that could potentially yield politicians huge capital gains".
Sandra Vivanco, a San Francisco architect, also sees a growth market for properties that allow for comfortable extended visits by family members.
For properties that carry a right-of-use permit, the seller and the buyer each pay 5 percent of the transfer tax.
Money went to mortgage loans for properties that never should have been built and that were "sold" to people who could not afford them.
In particular, she said, the market has improved for properties that cost under 500,000 euros ($633,000, at $1.26 to the euro).
