The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

Ariana Grande buys 3rd LA-area property in a year

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 02:30 PM PDT

Ariana Grande has added a third property to her growing Los Angeles real estate portfolio. The pop star just bought a teardown in the Bird Streets for $8.9 million in an off-market deal, according to Dirt.com. The property, on three quarters of an acre, is close to the Thrasher Avenue mansion she bought for $13.7 million last summer. The most recent purchase was an off-market deal. The property is three contiguous parcels on a hillside

City Council expands retrofit financing program

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 01:55 PM PDT

The City Council on Thursday passed a bill that will expand a financing program aimed at helping property owners pay for building retrofits — but the program remains unavailable for now. The bill tweaks language in a 2019 law to make new buildings eligible for a program that could help their owners comply with Local Law 97, which caps carbon emissions. The program, known as commercial property assessed clean energy (C-PACE), has not yet been

Sale of Underground Railroad site to city caps off “financial disaster”

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 01:27 PM PDT

The de Blasio administration has purchased an abolitionist’s home in Downtown Brooklyn that recently received landmark status — ending a controversial developer’s plans for the site. On Monday, Mayor Bill de Blasio’s wife Chirlane McCray announced the city purchased 227 Duffield Street for $3.2 million. The circa-1850 building is believed to have ties to the Underground Railroad, and while plans for the site are unclear, McCray stated that the purchase ensures the property “will be

“Simpsons” actor lists Westchester home for $3.25M of D’oh

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 12:34 PM PDT

¡Ay, caramba! Hank Azaria, who’s known for voicing characters in “The Simpsons,” is selling his Westchester home. The actor and comedian, known for his roles as Moe Szyslak, Chief Wiggum and formerly Apu, has listed his Bedford Corners house at 148 Meeting House Road for $3.25 million. Nestled on four private acres, the property features a large farmhouse, a swimming pool and a one-bedroom, one-bathroom guest apartment located above the heated three-car garage. Built in

Editor’s note: The boom ahead

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 12:00 PM PDT

Gone is the bombast of the Trump years, with its tweetstorms and incendiary press conferences. While this new era is quieter when it comes to rhetoric, it is just as tumultuous, and the changes we are seeing are perhaps even more monumental. The federal government is putting money in people’s pockets even faster than it’s pumping vaccines into their arms, with the $1.9 trillion relief plan dishing out stimulus checks, providing housing assistance and boosting

Plans for 23-story Upper West Side project are back on

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 11:15 AM PDT

Plans to build a 23-story building on Manhattan’s Upper West Side are back on after stalling in 2019. Fetner Properties re-filed plans for the development at 270 West 96th Street, which will have 171 apartments and space for a community facility, Crain’s reported. Fetner will begin construction on the 235-foot-tall, 150,000-square-foot building during the fourth quarter of the year, according to the publication. It may take about 28 months to complete the project. The last

Investor group with Sapir Org ties makes $2.4B bid for Columbia Property Trust

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 10:40 AM PDT

An under-the-radar team led by executives with ties to Alex Sapir and activist investor Michael Ashner is behind the $2.4 billion bid to take Columbia Property Trust private. Arkhouse Partners on Thursday announced it had made an unsolicited offer of $19.50 per share for the REIT through a partnership with the Sapir Organization and 8F Investment Partners. “We believe our proposal gives the company’s stockholders — many of whom have already suffered through years of

“Abhorrent” but “not surprising”: Rental industry reacts to Section 8 fiasco

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 09:51 AM PDT

Last spring a woman called Brooklyn brokerage 3Location3 about a Clinton Hill studio for rent. When she asked if she could pay the $1,403 rent with her Section 8 voucher, the answer was unequivocal: “No.” The caller explained that she was in a shelter with her daughter and urgently needed housing. Still, the agent was unmoved. “It’s the owner. She won’t take any programs. She doesn’t take them in any of her buildings,” the agent

Bars, restaurants stuck with curfew as others get green light

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 09:08 AM PDT

The curfew for some businesses just got an expiration date, but it won’t apply to bars and restaurants. Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Wednesday that the 11 p.m. curfew for certain recreational businesses will end April 5, Syracuse Media reported. The change covers casinos, pool halls, movie theaters, bowling alleys, gyms and fitness centers. Notably absent from the list are bars and restaurants, where the early closing time will remain. Cuomo plans to review the curfew

Et tu, Ford? Automaker lets 30K workers stay home post-pandemic

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 08:32 AM PDT

Ford Motor Co. will let some of its employees park it at home post-pandemic. The automaker revealed its “flexible hybrid model” Wednesday. It is allowing more than 30,000 employees to keep working from home even when it’s safe to return to offices, Bloomberg News reported. The system, which is set to debut in July in North America, will apply to most salaried staff and not factory workers, the publication reported. Employees can come into the

Island Capital’s Andrew Farkas launches $250M SPAC

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 07:47 AM PDT

Billionaire real estate investor and yacht enthusiast Andrew Farkas is sailing into the SPAC race. Farkas, the founder of merchant bank Island Capital, aims to raise $250 million for a proptech-focused blank-check firm. ICG Hypersonic Acquisition Corp. will be run by Farkas and executives from Island Capital, according to a regulatory filing. The SPAC’s board includes some of the biggest names in real estate and tech, including Jeff Blau, CEO of Related Companies; William P.

Spencer Rascoff’s SPAC strikes $3B deal with Offerpad

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 07:23 AM PDT

Zillow co-founder Spencer Rascoff is betting big on iBuying — a move that pits him against the real estate giant he helped to build. Rascoff’s blank-check firm Supernova Partners Acquisition Company has struck a deal to take iBuying startup Offerpad public in a $3 billion deal, the companies said Thursday. The deal is expected to generate $650 million in cash for the six-year-old instant home-buyer, which competes with both Zillow and industry leader Opendoor, which

Stores seeking bargains as NYC retail eyes rebound

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 06:31 AM PDT

Word on the street is that retail is gearing up for a comeback. Real estate brokers say they’re seeing signs of revival on commercial strips, with entrepreneurs looking for deals as rents drop and vaccination rates rise, The City reported. Leasing activity is heating up for vacant storefronts that could fill up with restaurants and shops related to health, pets and home delivery. Owners of home decor shops, which have boomed during the pandemic as

Data center demand — and rent — surge in secondary markets

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 05:15 AM PDT

As new technologies, streaming and remote work drive demand for data centers across the country, smaller markets with relatively limited supply are attracting more attention. Data center space in secondary markets rented at a rate of $134 per kilowatt per month in the second half of 2020, a significant premium from the average primary market rent of $121, according to a recent report from CBRE. While data center leasing activity slowed down somewhat due to

TRD’s March issue is live for subscribers!

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 04:30 AM PDT

The Real Deal’s March issue is live for digital subscribers and soon to hit doorsteps across the country. The real estate industry has spent a year adapting to the “new normal,” looking for silver linings and glimmers of hope. Now, spring is here and so are vaccines, converging into a long-awaited light at the end of the tunnel. In this month’s magazine we explore post-pandemic aspects of the industry, including: The highly anticipated TRD brokerage

10 biggest new project filings in NYC

Posted: 18 Mar 2021 04:00 AM PDT

Multifamily developments made up the bulk of the largest new building filings last month, although the biggest application submitted to the Department of Buildings was for an educational facility in Inwood. The 10 largest new building filings included three projects each in Manhattan, Queens and the Bronx, and just one in Brooklyn. Five of those new projects are multifamily developments, and there’s one hotel application that also includes 25 residential units. Three of the projects