The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

Mark your calendars: These are NYC’s top real estate events next week

Posted: 24 May 2019 02:00 PM PDT

Next week brings another group of real estate events! On May 29, ULI New York is holding an event on Population Trends and How They Impact The Way We Live at Wells Fargo, 150 East 42nd Street from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Attend and hear a discussion on how population and demographic shifts affect real estate development. Speakers include Chris Jones of the Regional Planning Association and Onay Payne of Clarion Partners. On May […]

An inside look at the Hamptons’ new hotspots this summer

Posted: 24 May 2019 01:00 PM PDT

When weekenders descend on the Hamptons at the end of May, they will no doubt notice lots of new additions to the landscape of restaurants, hotels and retail. But for the real estate world, there’s a lot brewing behind the scenes that suggests the market is not in great shape. Some pockets are seeing a wave of commercial activity, like Montauk — the favorite party spot of Instagram influencers, with a number of new pop-up […]

Delshah’s distressed debt strategy hits a road bump as court dismisses two foreclosure suits

Posted: 24 May 2019 12:30 PM PDT

You win some, you lose some. Michael Shah’s Delshah Capital, which made a series of distressed-debt plays in the summer of 2017, saw two of them fall through this week when the New York County Supreme Court dismissed a pair of foreclosure lawsuits against Jack Terzi’s JTRE Holdings. Delshah acquired mortgage notes on two JTRE retail condos, at 31 East 28th Street and 27 West 72nd Street in Manhattan, at face value for a total […]

Across the US, new home sales keep falling

Posted: 24 May 2019 12:00 PM PDT

Sales of new homes nationwide dropped in April by their largest monthly percentage this year, with the results coming amid rising inventory and prices. Sales for those homes dropped 6.9 percent last month to an annualized pace of 673,000, according to a Wall Street Journal report on the U.S. Commerce Department figures. Sales declined in all regions of the country except the Northeast. Existing home sales nationwide, which make up the bulk of transactions, also […]

Brazil’s Safra family now owns all of two Madison Avenue buildings — for $95M

Posted: 24 May 2019 11:35 AM PDT

The Safra family has taken on full ownership of two mixed-used properties on Madison Avenue for a combined price of roughly $95.3 million from entities tied to Ralph Sitt’s Status Capital. Through two limited liability companies, the family paid about $75.7 million to own 711 Madison Avenue, according to property records filed Thursday with the city’s Department of Finance. Luxury fashion retailer Roberto Cavalli once took up the ground floor at the five-story 711 Madison, […]

$58M penthouse at 111 West 57th goes into contract

Posted: 24 May 2019 10:45 AM PDT

Two high-profile legal battles didn’t dissuade a buyer from scooping up a penthouse apartment at 111 West 57th Street, which will be the second tallest building by roof height in Manhattan. The penthouse will have an unobstructed view of Central Park and bronze-framed windows that stretch from floor to ceiling. The penthouse apartment is under contract to sell for “close to” its asking price of $58 million, the developers of 111 West 57th Street told […]

Jacob Chetrit’s UES penthouse is leaking dirty water into his downstairs neighbor’s home: lawsuit

Posted: 24 May 2019 09:45 AM PDT

Things are getting heated between Jacob Chetrit and his downstairs neighbor. That’s because, according to a new lawsuit, Chetrit’s HVAC system is constantly leaking into his neighbor’s apartment. A lawsuit filed by the board of managers at 300 East 77th Street, a 31-unit condominium building known as the Seville, alleges that Chetrit’s penthouse is the source of “continuous leaks” into the unit below. According to the lawsuit, the water is damaging the home of the […]

Kenneth R. Harney, syndicated real estate columnist for Washington Post, dies

Posted: 24 May 2019 09:00 AM PDT

Kenneth R. Harney, the author for four decades of the syndicated real estate column “The Nation’s Housing,” which explored issues faced by homeowners and home buyers, died May 23 at his home in Chevy Chase, Md. He was 75. The cause was acute myeloid leukemia, said his wife, Andrea “Andy” Harney. Distributed weekly to 90 newspapers around the country by The Washington Post Writers Group, Harney’s column was focused on unglamorous but vital issues concerning […]

NAR moves to nix antitrust lawsuit over broker commissions

Posted: 24 May 2019 08:43 AM PDT

Defendants have filed a motion to dismiss a March 6 complaint alleging that Realogy, HomeServices of America, Keller Williams and RE/MAX violated antitrust law by requiring a “blanket, non-negotiable offer of buyer broker compensation” when listing a property on a multiple listing service. The complaint, filed by Christopher Moehrl, a home seller from Minnesota, alleges that the “Buyer Broker Commission Rule” has inflated costs for sellers. The National Association of Realtors, a co-defendant in the […]

Topshop the latest casualty in the war on brick and mortar retail

Posted: 24 May 2019 07:30 AM PDT

Fast-fashion lovers despair: Arcadia Group, the London-based retailer and operator of the Topshop and Topman brands, filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy in the U.S. on Wednesday. The company cited an “increasing switch from in-store to online shopping and an aggressive discounting environment as retailers compete for customers,” the Wall Street Journal reported. Arcadia plans to restructure and concentrate on digital growth, adjust rents to sustainable levels, and abandon stores that aren’t profitable. Meanwhile, the company […]

Thor Equities in hot water at 545 Madison

Posted: 24 May 2019 06:07 AM PDT

When it rains, it pours for Joseph Sitt’s Thor Equities. A $30 million CMBS loan from Barclay’s backed by Thor’s 545 Madison Avenue was sent to special servicing due to “severe cash flow issues,” Commercial Observer reported, citing data from Trepp. Thor used the CMS loan to finance the purchase of the leasehold on the Madison Avenue office tower from BlackRock Realty and LCOR for $53 million in December 2013. But now, Thor has struggled […]

HAP Investments secures $94M construction loan for Tribeca condo project

Posted: 24 May 2019 05:00 AM PDT

HAP Investments’ first project in Tribeca is moving forward with more than $107 million in financing. The $94 million construction loan for the 41-unit condominium was provided by G4 Capital Partners, the same private lender that provided HAP with a $32 million loan to acquire the site back in February 2018. The three-year loan was paired with a $13.5 million mezzanine loan from New York City developer and lender Quinlan Development Group. HAP’s co-founder and […]

The North Fork’s no-nonsense market

Posted: 24 May 2019 04:30 AM PDT

It’s a good sign for the market when a listing kicks off a bidding war like the one that recently took place for a four-bedroom waterfront home near Orient Point. The end result was a closing price that was $400,000 above ask. Corcoran Group agent Sheri Winter Parker won the property at 1 Mulford Court for her clients — ultimately closing for $2.7 million after a three-day battle that sent the price 17 percent above […]

MAP: These are the projects permitted within the last year in NYC

Posted: 24 May 2019 04:00 AM PDT

Want to keep up with projects being constructed in New York City? Check out The Real Deal’s interactive construction map, which tracks projects that have received an initial permit between April 1, 2018 and March 31, 2019. These projects can be new building, ground-up construction, or renovations.