The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

Italian firm duped expats into fake investments: lawsuit

Posted: 28 Aug 2020 01:05 PM PDT

A firm used a web of limited liability companies to lure Italian expats into forking over cash for real estate investments it never made, a lawsuit alleges. The firm, Platinvm Property Group New York, promised double-digit returns in 18 months, according to a lawsuit filed in New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan. Despite that classic red flag, and a five-page investor pitch light on details, Elena Romagnoli committed $500,000, a portion of which she

Empower your employees with a TRD corporate subscription

Posted: 28 Aug 2020 12:30 PM PDT

“For every person who is in the real estate industry, The Real Deal is a must-read. If not, they are at a disadvantage.” So said Don Peebles, a self-made real estate entrepreneur and founder of the Peebles Corporation. We agree with him. Admittedly, we may be a bit biased. Now we want to give you the opportunity to empower your company with the real-time real estate knowledge that Peebles and his team rely on. With

Repair costs, pandemic, and supply delays mean plywood coverings linger on Main Street

Posted: 28 Aug 2020 11:50 AM PDT

Months after civil unrest prompted retailers in cities across the U.S. to board up their shops, there’s still plenty of plywood hanging. The reasons vary, according to the Wall Street Journal. Some business owners say there’s still plywood up on their shops because glass shipments are delayed, sales are slow and fear of more unrest remains. Just over a quarter of 88 business improvement districts surveyed by the business-services company Block By Block still had

De Blasio donor Jona Rechnitz was victim of LA diamond heist: FBI

Posted: 28 Aug 2020 09:45 AM PDT

In the months after being sentenced to prison for his role in an NYPD corruption scandal, cooperating witness Jona Rechnitz, a former donor of Mayor Bill De Blasio, has been entangled in numerous lawsuits involving his diamond business in Los Angeles. While several of Rechnitz’s former business partners are accusing the one-time New York real estate player of stealing millions of dollars worth of jewelry, a new court filing indicates that Rechnitz himself was the

Stephen Ross dishes on Trump, NYC mayoral race

Posted: 28 Aug 2020 09:00 AM PDT

Stephen Ross, the billionaire developer of Hudson Yards and Miami Dolphins owner, has some things to get off his chest. In a rare interview, the Related Companies chairman told the New York Times he’s not impressed by the leading candidates in New York City’s 2021 mayoral race, but is eager for Mayor Bill de Blasio to leave. He also said he would have thought “differently” about hosting a fundraiser for President Donald Trump last summer

Thor Equities sues to evict Stefano Ricci from Miami Design District

Posted: 28 Aug 2020 08:30 AM PDT

Thor Equities is seeking to evict luxury fashion retailer Stefano Ricci from its store in Miami’s Design District. The New York-based real estate firm alleges the luxury retailer owes more than $133,000 in rent at 118-120 Northeast 39th Street, according to a lawsuit filed in Miami-Dade County Circuit Court last week. Stefano Ricci’s lawyers fired back, filing a summons against Thor Equities for $11.6 million in New York Supreme Court on Aug. 25. The Italian

Fed signals low rates are here to stay

Posted: 28 Aug 2020 07:45 AM PDT

The Federal Reserve has shifted its strategy for setting interest rates, allowing inflation to rise higher than previous targets. The change codifies what the Federal Reserve has been practicing for the past 18 months, and signals that interest rates will remain low, the Wall Street Journal reported. As the Federal Reserve allows inflation to rise above 2 percent, the target set in 2012, the move could bolster commercial real estate asset prices. Lower rates can

HFZ extends XI sales gallery lease, ending lawsuit

Posted: 28 Aug 2020 07:00 AM PDT

Ziel Feldman and his firm, HFZ Capital, settled a dispute involving the sales gallery for its XI condominium project Thursday. Greenway Mews Realty, the owner of 25-27 Little West 12th Street, in which the sales gallery is located, filed the lawsuit Monday against HFZ for not vacating the property or paying rent after the three-year lease expired in June. With the lawsuit, the landlord sought to take back the space and collect $1.1 million to

Report shows how much commercial real estate has fallen

Posted: 28 Aug 2020 06:30 AM PDT

The economic toll on commercial real estate shows no signs of abating as the health crisis lingers. Indexes for office, retail and lodging properties were all lower in July than they were a year ago, according to analytics firm Real Capital Analytics, Bloomberg reported. Deals were also down, with transaction volume across all sectors plunging 69 percent to $14 billion. Hotel prices declined 4.4 percent from the beginning of 2020 through July, while retail fell

House divided: Plaza residents, hotel battle over union labor

Posted: 28 Aug 2020 05:45 AM PDT

UPDATED Aug. 28, 2020, 2:45 pm: An internal dispute over union labor at the Plaza has gone public. In a lawsuit filed last week, One Central Park South’s residential board, which represents the Plaza condominiums, alleged that the hotel has stalled and obstructed a nonunion contractor from initiating repairs to a 15th-floor balcony. The board has asked a court to permit the use of nonunion labor, claiming the repairs constitute a public safety emergency. In

Buyer drops $40M on 220 Central Park South condo

Posted: 28 Aug 2020 05:00 AM PDT

As Manhattan’s luxury market limps through summer, Vornado Realty Trust’s steady stream of closings at 220 Central Park South is continuing unabated. An anonymous buyer paid $40.7 million for a unit at the tower at the end of July, property records show. A second unit sold to an anonymous buyer for $30.5 million on Aug. 14. Both properties went into contract more than a year ago, meaning the prices say more about past markets than

Is gentrification a blessing or a curse? New Yorkers discuss

Posted: 28 Aug 2020 04:30 AM PDT

College-educated yuppies fanning out to low-income communities in a search for affordable housing has become a major point of tension in New York City. But as investment follows, it has raised a question: Is gentrification a blessing or a curse? The answer is, it depends. The nuances were explored on Wednesday’s TRD Talk by Bronx Community Board 6 district manager John Sanchez and the Manhattan Institute’s Kay Hymowitz. Sanchez said efforts to improve neighborhoods seem

On the menu: Restaurants in crisis

Posted: 28 Aug 2020 04:00 AM PDT

Restaurants across the country are still in a near state of emergency months into the pandemic, trying to operate, pay rent and stay afloat while abiding by local and state Covid restrictions. So it’s not surprising that eateries at two of the hardest-hit cities, San Francisco and New York, have been decimated. Both cities prohibit indoor dining; in California that’s a statewide ban. Restaurant revenue data from a single day, Wednesday, Aug. 19, across 12