The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

Council member calls 40% affordable project “slap in the face”

Posted: 10 May 2022 02:00 PM PDT

One developer’s concession is another City Council member’s “bread crumbs.” Developers trying to save One45, a proposed 915-unit project in Harlem, added 150 income-restricted units to their plan Tuesday, bringing the portion of affordable units to 40 percent. That is more than nearly every project in the city’s Mandatory Inclusionary Housing program, which mandates up to 30 percent affordability. But local Council member Kristin Richardson Jordan was not impressed. In fact, she was outraged. Jordan

New York+? Studio properties rise in the region

Posted: 10 May 2022 12:00 PM PDT

The streaming wars appear to be slowing down, but not the race for studio space in New York. Soundstage square footage in New York and New Jersey has increased 14 percent since the start of last year, according to CBRE data reported by the Wall Street Journal. More is on the way, as nine studios have started or proposed construction on nearly 1 million square feet of sound stages. The two states combine for almost

Buyer found for Richard Gere’s $28M Westchester estate

Posted: 10 May 2022 11:15 AM PDT

“It must be difficult to let go of something so beautiful.” The memorable line from the 1990 romantic comedy “Pretty Woman” could also apply to its frontman’s sale of his 49-acre estate in Pound Ridge. Richard Gere recently signed a contract with a buyer for the huge Westchester County property, Mansion Global reported. The buyer and the sale price haven’t been disclosed, but Gere was looking for a pretty penny when he listed it last

Robin Birley to open dining club on Upper East Side

Posted: 10 May 2022 10:30 AM PDT

Famed British club manager Robin Birley is making his next move in New York City: a dining club on the Upper East Side. Birley signed a lease for a two-story, 12,000-square foot space at 828 Madison Avenue, the New York Post reported. The building, owned by the Reuben Brothers, formerly housed the Westbury Hotel. The financial terms were not disclosed for the 20-year lease, which has an option for the club to tack on another

“WeCrashed” offers few heroes but plenty of reflections for real estate

Posted: 10 May 2022 09:15 AM PDT

A V-neck? For a meeting? With an investor? Oh, Adam Neumann. You sweet summer child. Whether comedy or drama, some of the best television centered around the workplace takes a deeper look at the spirit of the times. Behind the three-martini lunches, “Mad Men” showed us ugly truths about American society in the 1960s. “Silicon Valley” satirized tech bro culture of the 2010s. Even “The Office,” whose comedy often relied on the inherent contradictions of

Prologis offers $24B for Duke Realty in industrial megadeal

Posted: 10 May 2022 08:30 AM PDT

Prologis has proposed to buy Duke Realty for $24 billion in an all-stock deal that would add about 160 million square feet to its industrial real estate portfolio. The San Francisco-based logistics specialist offered to buy the REIT for $61.68 per Duke Realty share, Prologis announced on Tuesday. Yesterday, Duke Realty’s share price closed at $47.71. Shares of Duke Realty have jumped about 12 percent since then. With the deal, Prologis would acquire more than

Cain International lands Hudson Hotel for redevelopment

Posted: 10 May 2022 08:00 AM PDT

The Hudson Hotel is trading hands, setting the shuttered property on a new course. Cain International is acquiring the property at 356 West 58th Street, the Commercial Observer reported. The acquisition cost is unclear, but Parkview Financial and Montgomery Street Partners combined to lend $207 million to Cain International for the purchase and redevelopment. The 866-key hotel has been closed since the onset of the pandemic, but Cain has big plans for the 385,000-square-foot property.

Lumber prices drop to new 2022 low in continued slide

Posted: 10 May 2022 07:00 AM PDT

Lumber prices slipped deeper into a slumber this week. The price of lumber dropped as low as $780 per thousand board feet on Monday, the lowest point for the commodity in 2022, Insider reported. Prices dropped as much as 6 percent on the day and 13 percent in the past week. Year-to-date, lumber prices are down 30 percent. The market is on a continued slide from last month, when it hit a then low for

Brown Harris Stevens dives into TikTok

Posted: 10 May 2022 05:45 AM PDT

Apartment tours, real estate tips and tricks and brunch recommendations are coming to Brown Harris Stevens’ newly hatched TikTok channel. The brokerage last month launched @brownharrisstevens on the popular social media platform as part of its “Mastery of the Craft” marketing campaign. “We want to present that knowledge that helps our agents get to that highest of levels and achievement, and present information to the audience at large,” said Matthew Leone, its chief marketing officer.

Chinese developer Hongkun faces foreclosure on luxury NJ condo

Posted: 10 May 2022 05:00 AM PDT

A luxury condo project overlooking the Hudson is headed to auction in the latest example of a Chinese developer facing distress in the U.S. amid tighter oversight back home. Lender Parkview Financial has initiated a UCC foreclosure sale for the equity interests in a 282-unit development in Weehawken, New Jersey, planned by the American affiliate of Beijing-based Hongkun Group. Hongkun USA bought the site for about $75 million in 2019, securing some of its financing

Expansion teams: Residential brokerages take on new frontiers

Posted: 10 May 2022 04:30 AM PDT

In February, Douglas Elliman signaled its arrival in Vero Beach, a small Florida city about 75 miles up the coast from Palm Beach, by scooping up Daley and Company, a local brokerage that it said had closed more than $232 million in sales since 2020. Founder Sally Daley said that her firm has always made an effort to target buyers from the city’s feeder markets, including Connecticut, Michigan and Canada, but operating as an independent

Edward Minskoff lists Park Avenue co-op

Posted: 10 May 2022 04:00 AM PDT

Edward Minskoff admires one of his developments so much that he plans to move there, putting his Lenox Hill co-op in the rearview mirror. The Edward J. Minskoff Equities chairman listed his unit at 730 Park Avenue for $17.7 million, the Wall Street Journal reported. Minskoff said he purchased the unit in the 1980s for $210,000. Listing pictures for the unit in the pre-war building show a large array of art from the avid collector,

Co-living firm Common barraged by complaints: report

Posted: 09 May 2022 03:00 PM PDT

Tenants have something in common at Common Living’s communal spaces: nightmarish experiences, according to a published report. More than a dozen tenants went on the record to describe their experiences at Common buildings across the country, the Daily Beast reported. Alleged issues include unaddressed vomit, fighting roommates, poor communication, lengthy maintenance delays and lax security. “It’s been probably one of the worst experiences living somewhere I’ve ever had in my 38 years on this planet,”

Goldman Sachs halts work in SPAC market

Posted: 09 May 2022 02:59 PM PDT

Goldman Sachs Group is withdrawing from the SPAC market over new guidelines from regulators, an ominous sign for real estate companies looking to go public through a so-called SPAC, or special purpose acquisition vehicle. The investment bank, among the largest underwriters of SPACs, has been informing SPAC sponsors that it will be ending its involvement, according to Bloomberg, citing people close to the matter. Goldman Sachs will also halt issuance of new SPACs, the publication

Investors in huge LIC project buy out Durst for $97M

Posted: 09 May 2022 02:09 PM PDT

The Durst Organization is out of a planned 112 million square-foot development along the Long Island City waterfront, clearing the way for the huge project to move ahead. A group of investors including Mayor Rudy Guiliani’s former confidante Bruce Teitelbaum and MaryAnne Gilmartin’s MAG Partners bought out Douglas Durst from the “Lake Vernon” site near the Anable Basin in Queens, The Real Deal has learned. Durst Organization spokesperson Jordan Barowitz confirmed the transaction, saying the

$18M townhouse tops Brooklyn luxury market

Posted: 09 May 2022 01:16 PM PDT

A 160-year-old townhouse in Brooklyn Heights led Brooklyn contract signings last week. The 5,000-square-foot house at 77 Columbia Heights went into contract asking $17.777 million, and if it closes near that price, it would be the most expensive sale this year in Brooklyn, according to Compass’ weekly report of homes asking $2 million or more. The stately five-bedroom, three-bathroom brick house commands a corner lot overlooking the East River. On the other side, a landscaped

Two condos tie for Manhattan’s priciest contracts in luxury price slump

Posted: 09 May 2022 12:00 PM PDT

Manhattan’s signed luxury contracts last week reached a peak of activity for the year, with a slump in prices. A whopping 43 contracts were signed last week priced at $4 million and above, but no deal surpassed $10 million, according to a report covering contracts signed between May 2 and 8 by Olshan Realty. That’s the first time this has happened since September 2020. Still, some came close. The top priciest contract was a tie

Beechwood plans 385 townhomes on North Shore

Posted: 09 May 2022 11:15 AM PDT

The Beechwood Organization is proposing to build 385 townhomes and villas on Long Island’s North Shore. The Jericho-based developer applied for a zoning change for its Suffolk County development, Newsday reported. The site is in Huntington on the northeast corner of Jericho Turnpike and Manor Road. Beechwood wants to create a 55-and-older community on the 55-acre parcel, including a clubhouse, swimming pool and tennis court. It would be called Country Pointe Elwood, in line with

Design supplies marketplace Material Bank worth $1.9B after fundraise

Posted: 09 May 2022 10:45 AM PDT

Architects and designers hit a wall — literally — when it’s time to put finishing touches on a project. They must search and sample thousands of tile, paint and carpet options from hundreds of manufacturers. It’s fragmented, expensive and time-consuming. Investors just poured $175 million into a startup seeking to streamline that process. Material Bank claims to have created the first comprehensive, centralized marketplace for such materials — an Amazon of sorts for designers and

Office space up for sublease back on the rise

Posted: 09 May 2022 09:00 AM PDT

The office sublease surge showed signs of abating late last year as companies juggled hybrid work plans and signed for space, but the rise in nationwide availability was back on in the first quarter of 2021. Sublease available rose 3.6 percent to 159 million square feet across the country, according to CBRE data reported by the Wall Street Journal. The availability is significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels and only 3 million square feet shy of

Pile of dimes: Korean investor poised to purchase Williamsburg rental

Posted: 09 May 2022 08:00 AM PDT

A multifamily building in Williamsburg is set to trade for a lot of dimes. Korean investment firm NH Investment & Securities signed a contract to purchase the Dime for $157.5 million, people familiar with the deal told the Commercial Observer. The sale would only include the multifamily portion of the 340,000-square-foot building, not the retail component. Tavros Capital Partners and Charney Companies put the apartment building on the market at the beginning of the year,

Saved by the court, 200 Amsterdam locks in record price

Posted: 09 May 2022 07:15 AM PDT

After surviving a judge’s order that they be knocked down, the top floors of 200 Amsterdam Avenue are riding high. A penthouse taking up the full 45th floor has set a record for the Lincoln Square neighborhood, selling for $4,909 per square foot — $19.5 million for 3,937 square feet. The three-bedroom unit at the SJP Properties condominium offers views of Central Park, the Manhattan skyline and the Hudson River from various vantage points, including

Fortis’ Olympia Dumbo on track to be Brooklyn’s most expensive building

Posted: 09 May 2022 06:30 AM PDT

Pound for pound, Fortis Property Group’s 76-unit condo project in Dumbo is shaping up to be Brooklyn’s most expensive real estate. Since January, 18 units at 30 Front Street, dubbed Olympia Dumbo, have gone into contract with an average asking price of $2,458 per square foot, about $400 more than condos in the borough’s second-priciest building, Quay Tower in Brooklyn Heights, according to data from Marketproof. A freight elevator scaled the sail-shaped, 33-story building’s precast

Developers snatch up Yonkers shopping center for $220M

Posted: 09 May 2022 05:45 AM PDT

UPDATED, May 6, 2022, 8 p.m.: Nuveen Real Estate, Taconic Partners and North American Properties acquired a shopping center in Yonkers for $220 million, one of the largest retail acquisitions to close in the past year. Ridge Hill is a 74-acre property the partners plan to rebrand and transform the into an outdoor lifestyle center serving the tri-state area. The renovations are slated to include adjustments to Ridge Hill’s public spaces, street design and parking

Michelle Griffith jumps from Compass to Douglas Elliman

Posted: 09 May 2022 05:00 AM PDT

Michelle Griffith, a top-producing residential broker, has joined Douglas Elliman from Compass. Specializing in luxury resales and new development properties, Griffith has booked more than $900 million in sales to date, with $143 million worth of sales in 2021 alone. “I’ve seen what Douglas Elliman has done for agents at my level, and they truly have all of the key pieces to take a very active, busy, successful broker and really turn them into a

Where have all the sellers gone?

Posted: 09 May 2022 04:30 AM PDT

Untethered from the daily commute, homebuyers fanned out across the country during the pandemic, seizing their newfound freedom to explore markets far away from city centers. Harbor Custom Development was ready for them. “It just pushed everyone to us,” said Sterling Griffin, CEO of the publicly traded homebuilder. “I can’t imagine any better set of circumstances.” Since forming in 2014, Harbor has focused on suburban markets primarily in areas without a personal income tax. That