The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

Naftali Group plans another Upper East Side condo

Posted: 12 May 2020 03:05 PM PDT

Another new development condo is coming to the Upper East Side. Naftali Group filed preliminary plans last week to build a new 13-story building at 1165 Madison Avenue, a development site on the corner of East 86th Street. The nearly 62,700-square-foot building will have 12 residential apartments with about 3,750 square feet of retail space on the ground floor, permits show. Miki Naftali, CEO of his eponymous development firm, said the building would be a

Judge backs Airbnb host over city: “Leave the poor guy alone”

Posted: 12 May 2020 02:20 PM PDT

A judge has sided with a small-time Airbnb host against the city in a case that could narrow the de Blasio administration’s crackdown on short-term rentals. In a decision handed down Friday, Justice Arthur Engoron ruled in favor of Stanley Karol, a Brooklynite who was fined for a series of code violations including using his home for illegal occupancy. Karol, who lives at the property and sometimes rents out the basement unit, had claimed the

Mall free fall: Macerich collects just 26% of April rent payments

Posted: 12 May 2020 01:59 PM PDT

We know it is a bad time to own malls, but retail landlord Macerich’s Tuesday earnings call highlighted how dire matters are. Tom O’Hern, CEO of the Santa Monica retail real estate investment trust, reported that the company “collected about 26 percent of rent” from tenants at the 47 shopping centers Macerich owns throughout the country, malls replete with brands like H&M and Pottery Barn that have been shut down throughout the coronavirus pandemic. This

Twitter, big tenant in Midtown South, says employees can permanently work from home

Posted: 12 May 2020 01:42 PM PDT

The neon sign declaring “#LoveWhereYouWork” in Twitters’ various offices is about to take on a new meaning. CEO Jack Dorsey told employees in an email Tuesday that some of them would be able to permanently work from home, even after the coronavirus crisis is over. “If our employees are in a role and situation that enables them to work from home and they want to continue to do so forever, we will make that happen,”

Shetler Studios closes curtains on massive Midtown rehearsal space

Posted: 12 May 2020 12:26 PM PDT

A long-running Broadway rehearsal space has just taken its final bow. Shetler Studios & Theatres — which attracted the likes of the late producer Harold Prince, songwriter Benj Pasek and composer Lin-Manuel Miranda — has handed over the keys to its landlord Zar Property. The rehearsal space occupied the 20,000-square-foot duplex penthouse at 250 West 54th Street, between Broadway and Eighth Avenue. The base of the building was previously home to the infamous Studio 54.

WATCH: Sandeep Mathrani says WeWork paid 80% of its rent

Posted: 12 May 2020 12:07 PM PDT

As WeWork makes headlines for rental woes, disputes with members and co-founder Adam Neumann’s SoftBank feud, Sandeep Mathrani sought to assuage concerns in his first TV appearance since becoming CEO. The office-space giant paid rent at 80 percent of its locations in April and May and collected rent from 70 percent of its members, Mathrani said on CNBC’s Squawk Box Tuesday morning. WeWork had about 830 locations at the end of the first quarter, he

Simon says malls will reopen but some states say otherwise

Posted: 12 May 2020 11:52 AM PDT

Simon Property Group’s plan to reopen several dozen malls across the U.S. has not gone as smoothly as expected. While more than three dozen states have partially reopened to business — or will be soon — some cities within those states remain under quarantine. Simon has postponed the opening of at least seven malls in New York State — which has been hit harder by the coronavirus than anywhere else in the country — and

Co-founder sues Redfin for alleged serial thievery

Posted: 12 May 2020 11:30 AM PDT

A co-founder who left Redfin in 2006 is suing his former company for copying virtual home tour technology he later developed for his new company, Surefield. David Eraker filed two suits alleging intellectual property theft regarding two incidents. One alleges that Redfin and venture capital backer Madrona Venture Group address the 3D tour tech. The other alleges Redfin and Madrona effectively stole map-based search tech he developed while at Redfin, according to Geekwire. In one

Hear from billionaire Charles Cohen on today’s TRD Talk

Posted: 12 May 2020 11:09 AM PDT

Live at 5 p.m. this afternoon, tune in to hear the latest on commercial markets from Bruce Mosler, Cushman & Wakefield’s chairman of global brokerage, and Charles Cohen, president and CEO of Cohen Brothers Realty. The pair of commercial bigwigs will discuss the latest trends and biggest hurdles in today’s market with The Real Deal’s publisher, Amir Korangy. With hotels and restaurants struggling and office space in transition during the crisis, traditional commercial real estate

TPG Real Estate Finance sells off $1B worth of CRE debt

Posted: 12 May 2020 10:15 AM PDT

Nonbank mortgage lender TPG Real Estate Finance Trust has sold off nearly $1 billion worth of commercial real estate debt to fight off margin calls, as it faces a coronavirus-fueled cash crisis. TPG RE Finance made the disclosure at its first quarter earnings call Tuesday, saying liquidity constraints raise substantial doubt about its ability to continue “as a going concern.” The announcement also follows a lawsuit New York real estate developer Somera Road filed against

For top LA resi agents, it’s strictly posi vibes

Posted: 12 May 2020 08:15 AM PDT

Aaron Kirman is meditating and infusing himself with positive energy. Sally Forster Jones is brushing her hair and putting on lipstick for thrice weekly Zoom meetings with her team of 30. For these top Los Angeles residential real estate agents who appeared Monday on TRD Talks Live, The Real Deal’s ongoing series of web conversations with real estate industry leaders, the coronavirus has meant lifestyle changes but, they hope, no long-term business disruptions. Panel host

Jaquelin Taylor Robertson, architect for the city and celebrity, dies

Posted: 12 May 2020 07:35 AM PDT

Architect Jaquelin Taylor Robertson, a devotee of classical architecture who spearheaded new mixed-use zoning regulations in Midtown Manhattan, created private residences for the rich and famous and was invited to design a new city in Iran there before the revolution scuttled plans, died on Saturday at his home in East Hampton. He was 87. His wife, Anya Robertson, said the cause was Alzheimer’s disease, according to the New York Times. Born in an aristocratic Virginia

Ashkenazy looks to push hotel into bankruptcy

Posted: 12 May 2020 06:45 AM PDT

In an “extremely unusual” situation brought about by the economic fallout of coronavirus, Ashkenazy Acquisition has found itself in the position of forcing a borrower into bankruptcy to protect its collateral. The investment firm filed an involuntary Chapter 11 petition in late April to force the 190-room Surrey Hotel at 20 East 76th Street into bankruptcy, Commercial Observer reported. The move came after the hotel owner, Denihan Hospitality Group, missed its ground lease payment for

“Czech sphinx” makes big bet on Macy’s

Posted: 12 May 2020 06:00 AM PDT

Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky has acquired a 5-percent stake in Macy’s, with plans to work with management to turn around the struggling retailer as it prepares to reopen its stores. Kretinsky, who has a net worth of about $3.4 billion and recovered from a coronavirus infection in March, is known as “Czech sphinx” for his inscrutable demeanor. He first built his fortune in the energy business, and his Energetický a průmyslový holding is now one

Retail rent collection plunges to 58% in April

Posted: 12 May 2020 05:00 AM PDT

If retail landlords opened a Tenant Hall of Shame right now, they might begin by inducting Supercuts, Barnes & Noble, Red Robin, General Nutrition Centers, Gap, H&M, Foot Locker and Men’s Warehouse. Those big names were among the 21 percent of the 135 major chains paying no rent or a small fraction of it in April, according to a new report. Overall, national retail chains paid 58 percent of billed rent last month, down from

TRD Insights: MBA finds 8% of home loans in forbearance

Posted: 12 May 2020 04:30 AM PDT

The share of home loans in forbearance grew again last week, according to figures released Monday by the Mortgage Bankers association. Mortgages in forbearance made up 7.9 percent of servicers’ portfolios for the week. That was up from 7.5 percent the week ending April 26 and 7 percent for the week before that. The figure was rarely higher than 1 percent before the coronavirus pandemic. The forbearance share for the first week of March, for

Northwind Group launches $220M debt fund focused on NYC

Posted: 12 May 2020 04:00 AM PDT

Ran Eliasaf’s Northwind Group is launching a big debt fund targeting special situation loans in the New York City area. The $220 million fund will make loans for acquisitions and construction, as well as bridge and condo-inventory loans, Northwind managing partner Ran Eliasaf told The Real Deal. The fund will also provide rescue capital to sponsors and finance distressed assets, non-performing loans and other special situations. “We’re going to focus on the middle market, around