The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

Amazon takes over Bronx warehouse once home to rival Jet.com

Posted: 09 Jun 2020 01:10 PM PDT

Amazon has leased a 200,000-square-foot warehouse in the Bronx that was previously used by its rival Jet.com. The e-commerce giant has inked a deal for all the space at 1055 Bronx River Avenue along the Bruckner Expressway in Soundview, according to Business Insider. It plans to use the space as a new delivery station. Prologis purchased the building in 2016 for about $30 million. Jet.com previously leased the building, but the company, which is owned

Landlords sue Big Retail as missed rent payments pile up

Posted: 09 Jun 2020 12:30 PM PDT

Before the coronavirus, retailers like H&M and Urban Outfitters were the kinds of companies that landlords targeted. Owners laid out pricey incentive packages and heavily courted these “credit-worthy” tenants — the kind with hefty balance sheets and a history of always paying rent. Now, as a number of those formerly blue-chip businesses have continued to withhold their monthly payments even after stay-at-home orders lifted, a growing number of landlords have been taking them to court.

Corcoran agent loses job over “racist and fear-based” marketing

Posted: 09 Jun 2020 11:45 AM PDT

A Corcoran Group agent in South Florida sent out an email blast in the hopes of attracting New York buyers, but the way he did it has cost him his job. Joseph Swedroe’s email, with the subject line “Looking for Change?” shows a New York Police Department van engulfed in flames, juxtaposed with images of boating and sandy beaches below, and asks recipients whether they want to live in “chaos or comfort,” alluding to the

Nearly 80% of renters have made payments in June: report

Posted: 09 Jun 2020 11:20 AM PDT

Rent collections continue to appear stronger than initially expected despite financial stress brought on by the coronavirus. Roughly 80 percent of residential tenants paid at least some rent during the first week of June. That’s a slight increase from rent collections during the same period last month, according to the National Multifamily Housing Council, which tracks 11.5 million market-rate rental apartments. The survey excludes subsidized units, single-family rentals, privatized military housing and student housing. That

How Blackstone plans to keep its upper hand in the downturn

Posted: 09 Jun 2020 10:20 AM PDT

Seated in the New York State Capitol’s Red Room, Gov. Andrew Cuomo introduced the team that would restart the state’s economy. He knew them well. “In some ways it’s like putting the band back together,” Cuomo said in late March, introducing Bill Mulrow, a senior executive at the Blackstone Group, and Steve Cohen, executive vice president at Ron Perelman’s holding company MacAndrews & Forbes. “But it’s also the most competent group of professionals you could

Retailers take stock of insurance coverage after looting

Posted: 09 Jun 2020 08:16 AM PDT

Looting and vandalism in cities across the country, which arose alongside peaceful protests for racial justice, have posed another setback for retailers already struggling with the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. But damages from civil unrest may prove more manageable than the unprecedented public health crisis in one respect: insurance coverage. While the question of whether coronavirus-related losses should be covered by business interruption insurance remains hotly disputed, the physical damage and loss caused by

Small investors swarm crowdfunding real estate deals

Posted: 09 Jun 2020 07:30 AM PDT

It’s not just large investment funds that are seeking out buying opportunities during the coronavirus crisis. Thousands of individual investors are looking to get in on the action through crowdfunding platforms as well. While the amount of crowdfunded real estate deals on offer has declined substantially in recent months, demand is strong for those investment opportunities that remain, the Wall Street Journal reported. Distressed deals have already emerged in the market, with price cuts as

“Very gradual return”: Wall Street tenants, landlords lay out reopening plans

Posted: 09 Jun 2020 07:00 AM PDT

When Wall Street employees return to work, there will be a very different office awaiting them. New York City’s reopening kicked off on Monday, and offices are set to be allowed to operate at 50 percent capacity in a matter of weeks. Financial workers will be returning to a new normal, with body temperature scans and socially distanced elevators, the New York Times reports. “There’s a high degree of anxiety, as you can imagine,” RXR

Men’s Wearhouse parent company considering bankruptcy

Posted: 09 Jun 2020 06:03 AM PDT

Men’s Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank may soon join the growing list of retailers that have declared bankruptcy in recent months. Tailored Brands, the retailers’ Houston-based parent company, has been reaching out to interested parties in an effort to restructure more than $1 billion in debt, according to Bloomberg. The plans are still in the early stages and the company may also seek alternative forms of financing, sources told the publication. The retailer announced last

Mellon Foundation buys longtime home of Sesame Street composer

Posted: 09 Jun 2020 04:30 AM PDT

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has purchased the Lenox Hill townhouse of longtime composer, lyricist, and humorist Christopher Cerf for $7.8 million. Headquartered on the same block, the Mellon Foundation awards grants to institutions that promote the arts, humanities, higher education, and cultural heritage. It reported more than $6 billion in assets in its latest public tax filing. “This will allow them to complete a courtyard they’ve been trying to build for several years,” said

City planning through a pandemic

Posted: 09 Jun 2020 04:00 AM PDT

Floor by floor, construction workers are dismantling JPMorgan’s 52-story office tower at 270 Park Avenue. And while their work represents the largest intentional demolition in New York City’s history, it has come to signify much more than that. City officials have hailed the replacement of the more than 60-year-old tower with a new glass and steel headquarters for the banking giant as the culmination of years-long planning. And preservationists have condemned it as the wasteful