The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

HFZ loses control of 4 Manhattan condo projects

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 05:44 PM PST

HFZ Capital Group has lost control of four Manhattan condo conversion projects as the developer fights for survival amid a blizzard of legal and financial problems. Los Angeles-based CIM Group, one of HFZ’s lenders, last month foreclosed on the junior mezzanine positions tied to four properties: 88 and 90 Lexington Avenue; The Astor at 235 West 75th Street; and Fifty Third and Eighth at 301 West 53rd Street. Property records filed with the city Thursday

Soho Grand owner walking away from struggling hotel

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 02:15 PM PST

Another New York City hotel owner is checking out. Billionaire Leonard Stern’s Hartz Mountain Industries wants to hand the keys over to its lenders on its Soho Grand and Roxy Hotels in Lower Manhattan, according to notes on the hotels’ securitized loan. Hartz Mountain “no longer wants to fund the losses” at the properties, and has requested to transfer the hotels to the special servicer on the $110 million loan via a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure,

Gowanus rezoning inches ahead

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 01:45 PM PST

The fate of the Gowanus rezoning remained up in the air Thursday as a judge heard arguments but did not rule on whether public hearings via Zoom are sufficient. But rezoning opponents face an uphill battle in convincing Judge Katherine Levine that only in-person gatherings will do. At the lawsuit’s previous hearing, the judge said, “Guess what? Our operating virtually isn’t as good as doing it in-person. That’s life. … That’s Covid.” The lawsuit notes

CBS buys Hell’s Kitchen property from Extell for $27M

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 12:40 PM PST

CBS Broadcasting, an entity owned by ViacomCBS, has expanded its already massive campus in Hell’s Kitchen. The broadcaster bought a site at 500 West 57th Street from Extell Development for $26.75 million, according to property records filed with the city. The lot on the southwest corner of West 57th Street extends CBS’s 1 million-square-foot campus on the block between 10th and 11th Avenues. A ViacomCBS spokesperson confirmed the company bought the site, and said it

Dylan’s Candy Bar sued over unpaid rent

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 11:45 AM PST

The relationship between Dylan’s Candy Bar and its New York landlord appears to have gone from sweet to sour. Olmstead Properties, the owner of the retailer’s corporate office at 315 East 62nd Street, sued the candy company this week over claims it owes almost $200,000 in unpaid rent. According to the complaint, Dylan’s entered into a seven-year lease at the building in 2002, and extended that agreement three times between 2008 and 2017. But last

Trump’s 40 Wall Street sees revenue fall 11%

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 11:00 AM PST

One of former President Donald Trump’s most historically successful assets — the skyscraper at 40 Wall Street — had a rough year. Revenue at the building hit $27.7 million in the nine months through Sept. 30, according to Bloomberg News, citing loan data for the property. Looking at the annualized data, that would be the equivalent of an 11 percent drop year-over-year. And its debt service coverage ratio has declined, going from 1.67 times in

Obama Presidential Center project clears federal review

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 09:15 AM PST

More than four years after plans were unveiled to build the Obama Presidential Center in Jackson Park, a federal review of the project has been completed, paving the way for a groundbreaking later this year. The years-long environmental review found the $500 million construction and surrounding road repairs would not have a significant impact on the area, the Chicago Tribune reported, citing city officials and the Obama Foundation. A groundbreaking could happen in August, and

Carnegie Management sued for damaging non-paying tenants’ credit

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 09:00 AM PST

Tenants are seeking class-action status in a lawsuit alleging that Carnegie Management engaged in unfair and deceptive business practices at four of its Brooklyn buildings. Five tenants at 345 Eldert Street allege that in retaliation for their organizing and not paying rent, Carnegie reported the unpaid debts and fees to debt collectors and credit bureaus. The case, filed Wednesday, argues that tenants at 342 Eldert Street, 586 Hart Street, 248 McKibbin Street and 15 Judge

CoreLogic finds buyer in $6B deal

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 08:11 AM PST

The competition to buy CoreLogic is over. Private equity firms Stone Point Capital and Insight Partners agreed to buy the real estate data firm for $6 billion, the companies said Thursday. The firms beat out CoStar and Warburg Pincus, which were also in the running. The end was something of a plot twist in the monthslong sale process, given CoStar and Warburg made a higher, all-stock bid, the Wall Street Journal reported. The sale price,

Hedge fund manager pleads guilty to fraud in Neiman Marcus bankruptcy

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 07:35 AM PST

Dan Kamensky, the founder of hedge fund Marble Ridge Capital, has pleaded guilty to bankruptcy fraud related to Neiman Marcus, according to the Department of Justice. Kamensky was involved in a scheme to pressure a rival bidder to abandon its higher bid for assets included in Neiman’s bankruptcy proceedings so that Marble Ridge could obtain those assets for a lower price. He was arrested in September. “Daniel Kamensky abused his position as a committee member

Signed contracts spike in Manhattan and Brooklyn in January

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 06:45 AM PST

New signed contracts rose across all home types — condos, co-ops and one- to three-family homes — in January, but co-ops especially saw a big spike. New signed contracts for co-ops in Manhattan jumped 167 percent year-over-year, according to the latest report by Douglas Elliman. The number of transactions hit 518, skyrocketing above the 194 recorded in January 2020 — before the pandemic hit. This is the second annual increase in deals since the first

Bank of America puts $10B toward affordable homeownership

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 06:00 AM PST

Bank of America is adding $10 billion to its affordable homeownership program over the next four years, Bloomberg News reported. The bank’s program, aimed at low- to moderate-income homebuyers, gives participants a leg up by providing as much as $10,000 to put toward down payments. The program also provides $7,500 grants that can be used for closing costs. This commitment expands upon the bank’s initial 2019 commitment of $5 billion. That funding has facilitated 21,000

One year into pandemic, Fifth Avenue blighted by empty stores

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 05:30 AM PST

A social media campaign marketing an empty Fifth Avenue store with the hashtag #FifthAveStrong — meant to be a shot in the arm for the ailing stretch of high-street retail — was used in just one Instagram post that, since September, has garnered 32 likes. That number — 32 — also happens to be how many vacant storefronts are dotting 17 blocks of some of the most expensive retail real estate in the world, roughly

Suburban home inventory is depleted, but demand rages

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 05:00 AM PST

For Jim McCarten, January is typically the slowest month — a chance to take a breath before diving into the year ahead. Not this year. “Nonexistent,” McCarten, a New Jersey agent with Triplemint, said of the usual downtime. A year into the pandemic, New Yorkers are continuing to flood into the tri-state area, looking to move into larger residences or scoop up second homes, as remote work continues indefinitely. The pandemic has been a savior

Global real estate investment bounced back in Q4

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 04:00 AM PST

Global commercial real estate investment ended 2020 on a strong note, with deal volume rising 84 percent in the final three months of the year following a drastic slowdown early in the pandemic. CRE deals worldwide totaled $290 billion in the fourth quarter of 2020, compared to the all-time high of $364 billion in the same quarter of 2019, according to a new report from CBRE. For the full year, global CRE deal volume was