Samantha Sheeber on the Evolving Complexity of New York Condominium Development
As new development in New York City grows increasingly complex (legally, financially, and structurally), few attorneys are as deeply embedded in the condominium creation process as Samantha Sheeber, Managing Partner of Starr Associates LLP.
From ground-up luxury towers to intricate mixed-use projects and rental to condominium conversions, Sheeber operates at the intersection of regulatory scrutiny and development ambition. In a market shaped by heightened oversight from the Attorney General’s office, shifting financing conditions, and evolving housing policy, her role is less transactional and more strategic: quarterbacking projects from acquisition through sellout.
A Challenging, But Navigable, Landscape
The development environment today, Sheeber explains, is demanding but workable for those who understand the terrain. In recent years, review of offering plans by the Attorney General’s office has become significantly more granular. Disclosures around construction specifications, delivery timelines, budgets, and sponsor obligations now face heightened scrutiny. Coordination between agencies such as the Department of Finance and the Department of Buildings has also become more intricate.
That added oversight, however, is not merely bureaucratic friction; it reflects the increasing sophistication of the projects themselves. For sponsors, the offering plan can no longer be treated as a box to check. It is a foundational document that must align with construction schedules, loan agreements, budget projections, and eventual governance realities.
Stress-Testing Risk Earlier
In a cycle marked by volatile construction costs, financing constraints, and shifting market timing, legal strategy now begins much earlier in the development process.
“There’s much more emphasis on stress-testing project structures and building flexibility into projects and offering plans,” Sheeber notes.
That includes contingency planning, amendment flexibility, and aligning closing deadlines with construction loan covenants. Because construction delays in New York are often unavoidable,
sponsors and counsel must anticipate the downstream impact on first-year condominium budgets, sales velocity, and unit closings. Rather than reacting to problems midstream, developers are increasingly structuring risk mitigation into the project from day one
The Conversion Conundrum
Few regulatory shifts have reshaped the landscape as dramatically as the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (HSTPA).
The law effectively eliminated traditional “eviction” conversion plans and heightened offering plan effectiveness thresholds, making occupied rental to condominium conversions significantly more difficult to execute.
While intended to protect tenants and preserve rental housing, she argues that the legislation has had unintended consequences. Many landlords, she notes, now struggle to cover debt service, taxes, and capital improvements, leading to financial distress and in some cases foreclosure. Vacant conversions remain the most viable strategy today.
Although creative structuring within the HSTPA framework remains possible, meaningful reform would likely require coordination between legislators and the Attorney General’s office.
Mixed-Use Complexity and Perpetual Documents
Today’s developments are no longer simple residential towers. Many include retail, club amenities, office components, garage units, and layered ownership structures. These complexities extend well beyond marketing materials; they live permanently within governing documents such as declarations, bylaws, and rules and regulations.
“The documents must clearly delineate the units, the common elements, shared and exclusive systems, cost allocations, access rights, and governance rights among all the different user groups,” Sheeber says.
Drafting these frameworks requires anticipating how various uses will coexist operationally, not just theoretically, long after sponsor control transitions.
The Quarterback Role
Sheeber describes her firm’s approach as quarterbacking the project from inception through sellout.
Her firm essentially tells each developer client: “You go and build your building, and we will do everything that needs to be done to get your offering plan accepted, get your sales contracts out and executed promptly, create the condominium properly, and close sales efficiently.”
That process begins with a kickoff meeting among all consultants to establish responsibilities and timelines. Weekly status meetings ensure deliverables stay aligned with construction milestones, sales launches, and loan covenants.
Being involved from acquisition and structuring through post-closing governance allows her team to anticipate issues before they surface, aligning architects, budget experts, sales teams, lenders, and regulatory agencies along the way.
Regulatory Trends to Watch
Looking ahead, Sheeber is closely monitoring the implications of the City of Yes initiative, which expands opportunities for repositioning assets and exploring alternative development strategies.
She is also watching the evolving office-to-residential conversion landscape and heightened compliance requirements related to sponsor disclosures, tenant protections, and building emissions.
At the macro level, one reality remains constant: New York’s regulatory environment continues to grow more complex. But Sheeber remains confident in the city’s resilience.
“We have lived through the tragedy of all kinds (9/11, the financial crisis, the COVID pandemic, and other issues), and one thing for decades has always proven true—this city will endure and will always come out on top.”