20 Years, 4 Co-ops, & 10002

Today, I’m jazzed to begin sharing a piece of research that I’ll be releasing over the next several posts .

My research is a study that combines and synthesizes data from property listings and transactions for four cooperatives on the Lower East Side .

But first, some color .

One of the reasons I started More For LES is personal. As a Lower East Side resident , I want to understand the value of my own family’s investment in our cooperative—and what the future prospects of that investment actually look like .

Before I began publishing this Substack, I conducted a thorough analysis of roughly ten years of publicly available transactions in my own co-op . That work was illuminating . It raised questions . It pushed me to reach out to different people — neighbors, professionals, board members, longtime residents — to solicit their perspectives on the neighborhood, the housing market, and how and whether they found themselves well-informed .

That chapter is behind me, as More For LES is ramped, rocking, ready for a rollicking 2026 .

Before the new year’s festivities —since it’s the holiday season —how about a meaningful parting gift for 2025?

Over the past few months, I’ve been working on a 20-year longitudinal study of four Lower East Side cooperatives: Seward Park Housing Cooperative, East River Housing Cooperative, Hillman Housing, and Amalgamated Dwellings . Putting a capstone on the year by finally sharing this work feels both timely and deeply satisfying .

You can download the complete report here

That said, the paper runs nearly 30 pages—and let’s be honest: who the heck has time to read a long-form report these days?

Instead, over the coming days, I’ll be unpacking the findings through a dedicated series right here . I’ll include images , additional commentary , and a few refinements—some of which my beloved wife has strongly suggested I make .

As I typically do, I’ll also share the methodology, caveats, and considerations along the way—so we’re clear about what this research can and cannot tell us , and where its likely shortcomings lie .

Today’s post is simply a preview of what’s to come. More soon .