The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

Whether you’re an action movie junkie or rom-com lover, there’s a little something for everyone in this deal. Ann Brashares, the author of the bestselling book series “Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants,” and her husband have sold their Upper East Side townhouse to movie producer — and accountant — Jeffrey Weiner for $11 million, public records show. Weiner’s most famous film credits include the Bourne film franchise starring Matt Damon, and he also runs an

Developers who had major projects planned for Inwood are backing the city’s effort to appeal a shocking decision late last year that overturned the neighborhood’s rezoning. Maddd Equities and Taconic Partners are filing an amicus brief with the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court supporting the city’s effort to reinstate the Inwood rezoning. New York Supreme Court Justice Verna Saunders had overturned the rezoning in December, ruling that the city had not done

Mortgage rates have fallen to record lows, but growing fears of the coronavirus may keep homebuyers on the sidelines this spring. Rates continued to drop this week after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates Tuesday in an emergency move, according to the Wall Street Journal. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 3.29 percent from 3.45 percent last week, according to Freddie Mac. Early last month, when the coronavirus was still largely confined to China, mortgage

To arbitrate or not arbitrate, that is the question. For eight months, Realogy and Compass have been trading barbs in a wide-ranging suit over illicit business practices and predatory poaching. But whether or not the two brokerage giants enter arbitration is the latest battleground in their legal war. Compass in November asked the court for a stay of legal proceedings and to instead require the companies to settle matters out of court, a Real Estate

Spencer Rascoff, the co-founder and former CEO of Zillow, has put his Brentwood Park estate on the market for $24 million, according to Redfin. The asking price is $7 million over the “Zestimate,” or Zillow’s appraisal of what the home is worth.  Property records show that Rascoff paid $19.7 million for the property in 2016. The listing states that the 12,700-square-foot home – remodeled by architects Ken Ungar and Steve Giannetti – is located on

It was the year of the buyer — with some of the priciest New York City sales counting as buy-side deals for major players like Corcoran, Compass and Douglas Elliman. Among them were the 54 deals that closed at Vornado’s 220 Central Park South in 2019 for a total of $1.6 billion, ranging from a $238 million spread to a $55 million condo. But it’s still a sell-side game for the biggest brokerages as many

The coronavirus outbreak wreaking havoc on the stock market and hotel industry is having an impact on the office market as well. Several major office landlords are stepping up efforts to keep their buildings clean and sanitary, and a number of commercial real estate conferences have been postponed as reported cases of COVID-19 in the United States continues to rise. New York City’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene is advising property owners and managers

It was a trip to Europe at age 9 that sparked Henry N. Cobb’s interest in architecture. It was the perfect age, he recalled, because “you are mature enough to take a lot in, but not yet preoccupied with yourself, the way you become very shortly thereafter.” On Monday, after a decorated career spanning 70 years, the architect died at the age of 93, the New York Times reported. Born in Boston in 1926, Cobb

Robert Durst’s long-awaited murder trial is underway in Los Angeles and prosecutors intend to call to call the New York real estate scion’s younger brother, Douglas, chairman of Durst Organization, to the witness stand. Another brother, Tommy Durst, is also expected to testify in a trial that could last several months. L.A. County prosecutors on Wednesday began opening arguments in the bizarre murder case. Robert Durst, 76, is accused of fatally shooting his one-time best

Brookfield Property Partners and Blackstone Group are reportedly in talks about a possible sale of One Liberty Plaza, a 2.3 million-square-foot office tower in the Financial District. The firms are hoping to get about $1.6 billion to $1.7 billion for the tower, according to Bloomberg, which cited sources familiar with the discussions. Brookfield put the tower at 165 Broadway up for sale in October 2017, asking $1.6 billion. Months earlier, it refinanced the tower with an

Tenants at Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village are suing to block Blackstone, the world’s largest commercial landlord, from deregulating thousands of apartments at the massive complexes after a regulatory agreement expires this year. The lawsuit against Blackstone, New York City and the state seeks to prevent units from being deregulated and subject to rent increases starting in July. A spokesperson for the state’s regulator of rent-stabilized housing, Homes and Community Renewal, declined to comment

This should be a happy time for tenants: Sweeping rent-law changes last June capped the cost of rental application fees, and a recent state ruling scrapped some broker fees entirely. But while the latter issue plays out in court, some tenants say uncertainty over the rules — and the pressure to snag an apartment — is being used against them. After the state issued a guidance February stating that tenants would no longer have to

Trust mortgage lenders to see opportunity in a global epidemic. A drop in interest rates following the coronavirus outbreak is hastening a hiring spree across the mortgage industry, with some of the nation’s biggest lenders anticipating a bumper year of refinancings and new home loans. Monday was the busiest day for mortgage applications in the 35-year history of Quicken Loans, CEO Jay Farner told Bloomberg. The frenzy for loans is setting off a war for

Sometimes you can lose and still win. Douglas Elliman’s Manhattan sales dropped more than 23 percent last year from an eye-popping 2018 total of nearly $9 billion, but it still retained its No. 1 spot on The Real Deal’s tally of closed sales for 2019. Elliman also managed to edge out its rival the Corcoran Group in TRD’s new three-borough ranking, which tallies sales for Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens — but only barely. The firm

UPDATED, Thursday, March 6, 2020, 3:17 pm: Vanbarton Group has secured a $240 million refinancing from Blackstone for its mixed-use Hollingsworth building at 980 Sixth Avenue. The loan, dated Feb. 27, comprises a senior loan note totaling $212 million, a building-loan note of about $15.5 million and a project-loan note of about $12.4 million, according to public records. Mezzanine debt is not recorded in public documents, meaning the total may be higher. Blackstone declined to