The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

Corcoran expands into Chicago with franchise affiliate

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 03:30 PM PST

Corcoran Group continues its franchise brand expansion throughout the U.S. with its entrance into the Chicago market. The New York-based residential brokerage said the franchise affiliate will be called Corcoran Urban Real Estate of Chicago. It will continue to be led by Urban Real Estate founder and managing partner Matt Farrell and senior partner Michael Emery. The firm, which did $85 million in sales last year, has 25 agents. It will maintain its headquarters in

Real estate stocks rally after market correction

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 02:30 PM PST

Real estate stocks bounced back Wednesday after a rocky stretch triggered by the coronavirus outbreak. The stock market as a whole rebounded Wednesday as the S&P 500 closed 4.2 percent higher a day after Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden won 10 of the 14 primaries on Super Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up more than 1,170 points. Public real estate investment trusts also ended on a higher note. Nareit’s All REIT Index closed

Madison makes $157M loan on Santa Monica rental projects

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 02:00 PM PST

Investment and development firm WS Communities has scored $157 million in financing for the development of 849 rental units in Santa Monica, The Real Deal has learned. Madison Realty Capital is providing a bridge loan for the construction of 10 new apartment buildings in the housing-strapped city. The projects will have a combined 35,000 square feet of retail space. The developments fall under a new agreement with Santa Monica to boost affordable housing. They include

Munich RE picks up Midtown skyscraper for $900M

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 01:50 PM PST

A German insurance company closed on a 1960s-era high-rise from Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund for a lofty price. Munich RE purchased the Midtown skyscraper at 330 Madison Avenue for $900 million. The 40-story building between East 42nd and East 43rd streets, a block west of Grand Central Terminal, went into contract in November. CBRE’s Darcy Stacom and Bill Shanahan brokered the transaction on the seller’s side. CBRE did not return a request for comment.

Rental chaos raises tensions between tenants and landlords

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 01:00 PM PST

Jo Sheeley, a 23-year-old graduate student, started hunting for a rental apartment before news of the broker fee ban changed the equation. Sheeley and her partner initially found a place in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, in early February, they said. Then other realities set in. “It was listed as having a broker’s fee, which, at the time, we didn’t have a second thought about,” Sheeley said. “We knew it was something we might have to pay.” Once

Airbnb-backed Lyric lays off 20% of staff

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 12:45 PM PST

Lyric, the Airbnb-backed hospitality startup that caters to business travelers, has laid off nearly 20 percent of its staff, The Real Deal has learned. The San Francisco-based company, which partners with multifamily landlords to offer apartments to business travelers, laid off at least 25 of its 120 staffers on February 5 amid a “downsizing and restructuring” whereby it also plans to close nearly 200 units nationwide, sources said. Founded in 2014, Lyric operated nearly 600

Major hotel chains named in sex trafficking lawsuits

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 12:30 PM PST

Some of the biggest hotel companies in the world are named in dozens of lawsuits of ignoring clear signs of human trafficking. More than 40 federal suits claim that hotel companies an franchises profitted from sex-trafficking operations, and were either aware of it or should have been, according to the Wall Street Journal. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc., Marriott International Inc. , Wyndham Hotels and Resorts Inc. are among the companies named in the lawsuits. In

Carhart Mansion duplex returns to market after four years

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 12:00 PM PST

A prominent Carnegie Hill duplex is back on the market — and with another price chop. The 17-room unit starts on the parlor level of the landmarked Mrs. Armory S. Carhart Mansion. Its owner, cardboard magnate Dennis Mehiel, is asking $28.4 million almost four years after abandoning a previous attempt to unload it. Mehiel and his wife Karen first put the 10,350-square-foot pad up for sale in 2008. In 2014 they sought $34.9 million —

Chetrit family plans colossal resi project in Washington Heights

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 11:30 AM PST

The Chetrit family is buying a Washington Heights development site with plans to construct one of the tallest residential buildings in the neighborhood. Brothers Eli and Isaac Chetrit, along with their frequent development partner Jacob Aini, are in contract to buy 622-628 West 153rd Street for $30 million, according to sources familiar with the deal. The partners intend to build a 28-story, 135,000-square-foot luxury residential project on the site, and hope to start construction in

Thank you, Ken Griffin? Alexander Team cleans up at The Ellies

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 11:00 AM PST

UPDATED, March 4, 5:51 p.m.: Big deals mean big rewards at Douglas Elliman — or at least major bragging rights. A year after Citadel founder Ken Griffin’s record-breaking $238 million purchase at 220 Central Park South, Elliman brokers Oren and Tal Alexander got to bask in some of that glory. The brothers, who represented the hedge fund magnate on the transaction, received the inaugural National Ellies Award Tuesday night, going to the highest-grossing brokers company

Pol seeks to punish landlords with “warehousing fee” for vacancies

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 10:10 AM PST

A Manhattan politician wants to penalize landlords for “warehousing” rent-stabilized apartments and use the proceeds to address the city’s persistent homelessness problem. A bill proposed by Assembly member Linda Rosenthal, who represents the Upper West Side and Hell’s Kitchen, would levy fees on landlords for keeping units off the market — a practice that arose after last year’s changes to New York’s rent law. After three months of vacancy, landlords would have to pay a

Michael Shvo secures $210M loan for 530 Broadway buy

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 09:54 AM PST

A development group led by Michael Shvo has secured a $210 million loan to finance the acquisition of 530 Broadway. The debt is being provided by LoanCore Capital to help finance the $386 million purchase, people familiar with the deal told The Real Deal. Shvo’s group — including Turkish firm BLG Capital and Deutsche Finance America — went into contract to buy the property from Jeff Sutton’s Wharton Properties and Joe Sitt’s Thor Equities in

Coronavirus impact hits airport retailers

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 09:15 AM PST

Airport retailers are the latest sector to be hit by the coronavirus outbreak. Amid a decline in travel — particularly to and from China, where the outbreak started — foot traffic at airports has similarly dropped off, leading to a slump in sales at major airports, the Wall Street Journal reported. At John F. Kennedy airport’s Terminal 1, from where China Eastern Airlines, Air China, Korean Air and Japan Airlines fly out, sales at retailers

Michael Stern is moving forward with massive Miami tower project

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 08:30 AM PST

New York developer Michael Stern is moving forward with plans to build a $500 million mixed-use tower west of Brickell Avenue, which will include 1,000 residential units. The Miami City Commission cleared the way for Stern’s JDS Development Group to work with the city on developing the massive site. The 1.5-acre project calls for a 752-foot-tall tower. Part of the agreement with the city includes JDS building a fire station on the ground floor. Stern

Barneys’ first ever store on sale for $50M

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 07:45 AM PST

It’s the final sale at Barneys’ birthplace. The embattled retailer’s owner has put its downtown Manhattan property at 101 Seventh Avenue — where it launched its business in 1923 — on the market. The firm is reportedly seeking $50 million for the 51,942-square-foot retail condominium, the New York Post reported. JLL is marketing the site. Barneys filed for bankruptcy in August, then was acquired for $270 million by Authentic Brands Group and B. Riley in

Irishwomen win Pritzker Prize, architecture’s top honor

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 07:00 AM PST

When it comes to the most acclaimed international prizes, Ireland is a small country that punches well above its weight. On Tuesday, Dublin’s Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara added to that luster when they were awarded the 2020 Pritzker Prize, generally regarded as architecture’s Nobel. Farrell and McNamara — who have been partners in Grafton Architects since 1978 — are the first Irish architects so honored. “Architecture could be described as one of the most

SoftBank-backed Oyo slashes staff, eyes profitability

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 06:30 AM PST

Oyo Hotels, a SoftBank-backed firm valued at $10 billion, is cutting 5,000 jobs as it restructures to focus on profitability. The India-based startup, which provides a mobile app that allows guests to book hotels while charging the hotel owners a fee, said its workforce would decrease 17 percent to 25,000 employees, Bloomberg reported. The layoffs are in addition to more than 1,000 cuts made last month at its India operation. The company reportedly said the

Condo sales launch at Waldorf Astoria in crowded luxury market

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 06:00 AM PST

History, exclusivity and timeless glamour. These are the selling points developers behind the reimagined Waldorf Astoria are hoping will set them apart in an overstocked market as they launch sales Wednesday for the building’s residential condos. The launch, marked with a new website, offers a rare look inside the building, which has been closed for renovations since 2017. The residential towers — sitting on top of the renovated hotel — feature 375 condos and 50,000

A divided suburbia: Race, class, and the endless struggle for affordable housing

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 05:30 AM PST

Last November, a 40-year fight over an affordable housing development in Long Island — a legal battle that had gone all the way to the Supreme Court — finally came to a vote. Despite locals arguing for decades that it would cause traffic and crowd schools, Suffolk County legislators allocated $2.4 million to the 146-unit project in East Northport, a hamlet in the town of Huntington. For many proponents, the issue boiled down to a

Big retail leases continue to drop, despite Trader Joe’s deal

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 05:00 AM PST

The leasing of large retail spaces in New York City is still slowing, based on the 10 largest leases made public last month. Trader Joe’s secured the top spot, with mainstays such as gyms and restaurants filling out the rest of the list. The 10 biggest February retail leases made public totaled 114,000 square feet, down 14 percent from January’s total and 39 percent from the 10 largest in February 2019. 1) Trader Joe’s |

Rental firms grieve over broker fees

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 04:30 AM PST

A judge may have given broker fees a stay of execution, but firms are still reeling from the near-death experience of their business model. Last month’s surprise guidance from state regulators banning most tenant-paid broker commissions has already sparked panic across the industry. Now several rental brokerages are struggling to make heads or tails of the potential impacts, and looking for their best options in a worst-case scenario. For many firms already grappling with last

Life after Macklowe: New sponsor cuts prices at condo tower

Posted: 04 Mar 2020 04:00 AM PST

Price cuts are in and developer Harry Macklowe is out at 200 East 59th Street, a troubled condo project making a fresh start. Closings at the completed, CetraRuddy-designed Midtown tower started in late January, a month after Macklowe, 83, sold his stake to his capital partner, Singapore-based Alpha Investment Partners, for an undisclosed amount. Centurion Real Estate Partners, a development firm with a history of taking over challenged projects, was then brought in as the