The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

Biggest week of pandemic for Brooklyn’s luxury market

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 03:30 PM PDT

Brooklyn’s luxury market has hit a new high since the pandemic closed down the city in March. Ten high-end properties went into contract last week asking a combined $30.2 million, according to Compass’ report tracking properties asking $2 million or more. That’s the highest dollar figure since the week of March 9, before in-person showings were banned and the city was abruptly shut. The median asking price for those contracts was $2.8 million with an

Colliers taps JLL’s Peter Nicoletti to lead capital markets

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 03:06 PM PDT

JLL’s Peter Nicoletti is jumping to Colliers International, after the firm’s top investment-sales threesome retired this spring. The 30-year industry veteran will assume the role of managing director and head of New York City Capital Markets at Colliers, which has been looking to bolster presence in the five boroughs. In his new role, Nicoletti will lead an investment sales team and oversee debt and equity placement. During a 13-year stint at JLL, Nicoletti helped build

Tsk, tsk: Cuomo threatens to close bars, restaurants after state issues 130+ violations

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 01:12 PM PDT

New York City’s bars and restaurants have been up to no good, according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo. The State Liquor Authority issued 132 violations — mostly in New York City — for a lack of compliance with Covid-19 guidance between Friday and Sunday. The news led Cuomo to issue another warning about the potential of re-closures. “I want the establishments to know that we will continue to diligently enforce the law,” the governor said at

Best week since March for Manhattan luxury market

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 12:45 PM PDT

In a city that feels somewhat abandoned, the luxury home market has provided signs of life. Last week in Manhattan, 15 properties asking $4 million or more went into contract — the most since mid March. “We had a good week,” said Donna Olshan, who documents the deals in a weekly report. “And not only that, the properties were diverse: different locations, different types of properties.” “But,” she added, “when you really drill down into

Nearly 3,000 small businesses in NYC closed due to Covid

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 12:15 PM PDT

Mom-and-pop shops selling egg creams, vinyl records — and even firearms — lend New York City some of its irreplaceable history and charm. But now, small, multi-generational businesses that withstood natural disasters and multiple economic downturns have fallen victim to the novel coronavirus. Nearly 3,000 small businesses have permanently closed in the last four months, according to the New York Times. Covid shutdowns sapped revenue, tourism and cash cushions, making rent an overwhelming burden. Among

Vornado’s 220 CPS sees $100M deal at staggering $12,000 a foot

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 11:05 AM PDT

The sale of a sprawling penthouse at the top of 220 Central Park South closed last Thursday at $99.9 million. The 8,200-square-foot unit is spread across two floors at the top of Vornado Realty Trust’s lavish residential tower. The sale price pencils out to $12,164 per square foot. The buyer is a limited partnership, 76CPS LP, registered late last year in Delaware. The unknown purchaser went into contract for the unit in May 2017, according

Ventas slashes rents 45% on senior housing operator

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 11:00 AM PDT

Senior housing and medical office REIT Ventas has renegotiated leases for a firm that operates 121 of its senior living facilities across the country. Ventas CEO Debra Cafaro said the agreement with Brookdale Senior Living addresses the financial toll the coronavirus pandemic has taken on those communities. Under the agreement, Brookdale’s annual combined rent dropped to $100 million from $182 million a year, according to company filings. But the deal does not come cheap for

Jumbos now cost more than traditional mortgages

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 10:30 AM PDT

Interest rates on so-called jumbo mortgages are above the historically low rates for smaller traditional mortgages for the first time in five years. It’s a sign that lenders now see smaller loans as safer since the federal government stepped in to hold up the mortgage market amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Wall Street Journal. Home loans are considered “jumbo mortgages” if they’re too big to be sold to federal government-backed Fannie Mae and

Pol, biz groups: Suspend rent tax, extend outdoor dining

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 10:10 AM PDT

New York City’s reopening and federal aid will not be enough to save many small businesses, so a City Council member and two business groups have proposed a plan to do more. Continued outdoor restaurant seating, rent relief for small businesses, and suspension of commercial rent tax are among the ideas Keith Powers is advancing for Manhattan in a report released today. It has the support of the NYC Hospitality Alliance and the Manhattan Chamber

Where is everybody? City workers still home

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 08:00 AM PDT

Echo, echo, echo… Although New York office buildings have been allowed to reopen, not even 1 in 10 workers have returned. The world’s largest commercial real estate servicer, CBRE, told the Wall Street Journal that only 9 percent of workers had returned to Midtown and 8 percent to Downtown. William Rudin, whose Rudin Management Company oversees 16 office towers and 10 million square feet of Class A space, told the Journal that “people are being

Authentic Brands, Sycamore eye buy of Ann Taylor parent company

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 07:30 AM PDT

Authentic Brands wants to make another big investment in the retail apocalypse. The company, along with frequent partners Simon Property Group and Brookfield, is eyeing the purchase of Ascena Group, according to Bloomberg. The parent company of Ann Taylor, Loft, and Lane Bryant filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last week. Private equity firm Sycamore Partners is also looking to bid on the struggling company. In its filing, the terms of which remain fluid, Ascena said

Mack-Cali shakeup: MaryAnne Gilmartin named interim CEO

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 07:05 AM PDT

MaryAnne Gilmartin has replaced Michael DeMarco as CEO of Mack-Cali Realty, just seven months after announcing she would start her own firm. The Jersey City-based real estate investment trust said the change was effective immediately, according to Seeking Alpha. Gilmartin has been on the board of directors for the REIT since June 2019. She was one of four directors appointed by Bow Street, an activist investor that embarked on a campaign to overhaul the company

Fixing real estate’s persuasion equation in a changing political landscape

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 06:00 AM PDT

This story was originally published in December 2019. In a small Venezuelan restaurant on a bustling street in Jersey City, a group of people on a stage held placards and homemade signs with a simple message: Vote no! The men and women — fighting to repeal a new ordinance restricting short-term rentals — were the public faces of Keep Our Homes, a campaign with legitimate grassroots elements but also nearly $5 million in funding from

Bad to worse: Manhattan nabes where home sales fell most

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 05:00 AM PDT

Coronavirus has cost Manhattan’s residential market billions. Sales of condos and co-ops last quarter declined by $2.4 billion from the first quarter, according to an analysis by The Real Deal of data from OLR. The drop from a year ago was over 70 percent, or $6.3 billion. Of the $2.56 billion in sales that closed in the borough while the city was in Covid lockdown, the vast majority of transactions were under $1.5 million. Deals

“Change is happening”: Inside real estate tech’s race to diversify their boards

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 04:30 AM PDT

As president of Ten-X Commercial from January 2019 to April 2020, Maureen Waters participated in an important quarterly ritual. Every three months, she helped to convene a meeting of the company’s board — an all-male group that included two of the auction website’s founders and three representatives of its private equity owners. But even as president, she had no voting power. “At one point, we talked about outside advisors,” recalled Waters, who said the limited

Raising Covid cash: How proptech firms struck deals in lockdown

Posted: 27 Jul 2020 04:00 AM PDT

It’s one thing to raise money during a pandemic. But what about raising money during a pandemic while simultaneously battling a fever, aches and chills? “It was horrible,” said Jarred Kessler, CEO of EasyKnock, who came down with Covid-19 while raising a $20 million Series B this spring. Summoning all of his strength and conviction, Kessler said he pressed on with negotiations and investors’ due diligence in late March without letting on that he was