The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

Swiss banker’s sentence slashed in alleged $1B Venezuelan money laundering scheme

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 03:00 PM PDT

A Swiss banker’s sentence was cut for his role in an alleged $1 billion international money laundering scheme that illegally funneled money into South Florida real estate. Matthias Krull was a key figure in a sophisticated scheme in which Venezuelan officials and wealthy elite siphoned money out of the country’s state oil company, PDVSA, and into assets in Europe and the United States, according to federal prosecutors. Some of the money allegedly went to buy

Council member wants to take up office-to-resi conversions debate

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 01:55 PM PDT

With various state-level proposals on the table, a City Council member wants to take the issue of office-to-housing conversions back to City Hall. Brooklyn Council member Justin Brannan plans to introduce a bill on Thursday that would create a task force to study the feasibility of converting vacant office space into affordable housing. Real estate groups, along with state officials, have voiced support for such an idea, but have disagreed over the best way of

L&L’s David Levinson finds buyer for his $50M UES home

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 12:15 PM PDT

David Levinson has found a buyer for his Upper East Side townhouse. The chairman and CEO of big commercial real estate firm L&L holding had been shopping his 16,350-square-foot home at 11 East 69th Street off-market for some time before finding a buyer willing to spend at least $50 million for it, the New York Post reported. Levinson bought the six-story house with his wife Simone for $9.5 million in 2004. The couple sank about

Malibu 92065: Pandemic propels LA’s hottest housing market

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 11:30 AM PDT

When Jack Pritchett scored the listing for a 2,300-square-foot home in Malibu, he thought he had a decent property on his hands. A mile north of the Pacific Coast Highway, the four-bedroom sits on 2 acres, with views of the ocean, mountains and canyons. Priced at $1.9 million, the Las Flores Canyon Road home would probably draw a handful of offers, the co-owner of Pritchett-Rapf Realtors thought. But what happened next surprised him, and Pritchett

Lawsuit to eject former HFZ principal Nir Meir from Hamptons home discontinued

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 10:51 AM PDT

A lawsuit that sought to eject former HFZ Capital Group principal Nir Meir from a Hamptons home was discontinued on Monday. An entity tied to Monroe Capital, one of HFZ’s lenders, filed the lawsuit in New York State Supreme Court in December, just weeks after Meir left the embattled real estate firm. The complaint alleged that the Monroe entity held the title to the home at 40 Meadow Lane, but Meir was living there without

Big-name landlords bid for Kaufman Astoria Studios

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 10:20 AM PDT

Some of the biggest production studio landlords are making a play for Kaufman Astoria Studios. Los Angeles-based Hudson Pacific Properties and a joint venture of Hackman Capital Partners and Square Mile Capital are among the investors that have submitted bids for the production studio’s Queens campus, sources told The Real Deal. The company is weighing bids that value the property at about $600 million, Real Estate Alert reported Tuesday. Silverstein Properties, which is planning a

Developers see green in turning golf courses into warehouses

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 09:30 AM PDT

It’s a hole-in-one for warehouse developers. Builders have been turning golf courses into warehouse locations as the industrial space boom continues, according to Bloomberg Businessweek. In May, for example, Onondaga County in New York announced that Amazon would build a $350 million distribution center over 111 acres of land formerly occupied by the Liverpool Public Golf and Country Club. The facility will exceed 3.8 million square feet. Similarly, the United Parcel Service plans to build

Restaurants question survival, despite $29B in federal relief

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 08:45 AM PDT

Despite some bailout money from Washington, New York City restaurants are foundering. Forty-six percent say that they will not survive without financial aid, such as rent support, and ongoing policies, like an eviction moratorium, according to a survey of 401 restaurants and bars by the New York City Hospitality Alliance. Most failed to turn a profit in 2020, and 75 percent of respondents saw sales decline by more than half. In January, half of the

Mortgage applications slow but no end in sight to buying boom

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 08:00 AM PDT

Mortgage applications decreased last week, but that doesn’t mean the rush to buy homes is slowing down. An index tracking those applications decreased 2.5 percent, seasonally adjusted, from the prior week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Buyers are increasingly confronted with historically low inventory, which is pushing prices up, according to the MBA. Still, the purchase index increased for the fourth consecutive week and was up 26 percent from last year’s pace. “As both

Federal bill would give $1.5B to pro-housing localities

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 07:15 AM PDT

To combat the affordable housing crisis, three U.S. senators are set to introduce the Housing Supply and Affordability Act. The bipartisan bill would provide $1.5 billion for federal grants to local governments that commit to increase their supply of local housing, to be distributed over the next five years, according to Bloomberg CityLab. “All Americans deserve access to an affordable home, but unfortunately the nationwide housing shortage has created an affordability crisis for far too

Manhattan’s luxury market continues 7-week contract streak

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 06:31 AM PDT

Luxury contracts made gains again last week. The week saw 41 deals inked, up from 38 the week before, according to Olshan Realty’s weekly report on contracts signed for Manhattan residential properties asking $4 million or more. It marked the seventh consecutive week in which more than 30 deals went into contract, the longest such run since the report began in 2006. The strong demand from buyers has been a consistent trend since the start

From bad to worse: Rent relief program still failing to reach New Yorkers

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 06:10 AM PDT

New York City’s rent relief program is reaching few of the 800,000 to 1.2 million households that collectively owe more than $2 billion in rent. New York has paid out just $7 million out of $60 million available for struggling tenants, Gothamist reported. And though the second round was meant to be more accessible, only about 1,000 households qualified for aid out of 87,000 applications. Between the two rounds of funding, $47 million has been

Spencer Rascoff’s Pacaso is worth $1B

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 05:51 AM PDT

Five months after launching, second-home startup Pacaso is a unicorn. The company, started by Zillow co-founder Spencer Rascoff and other former Zillow executives, said it raised $75 million at a $1 billion valuation — becoming the fastest U.S. company to achieve unicorn status. “Pacaso is lightning in a bottle,” said CEO Austin Allison. “Second homes have always been a dream for people.” Greycroft and Global Founders Capital led the round, which brings Pacaso’s total funding

Rock-bottom prices: 11 malls whose valuations have tanked

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 05:00 AM PDT

The pandemic has wreaked havoc across the retail industry, but few have been hit harder than second-tier malls. And it’s no surprise the largest mall operators have taken the biggest hits. Simon Property Group and Brookfield Property Partners controlled 5 of the 11 malls whose valuations have fallen the most, according to Trepp, which tracks commercial mortgage-backed securities. Trepp compiled the list by comparing mall values in the second half of 2020 to their values

Charter school expansions pick up amid pandemic

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 04:30 AM PDT

On March 1, Central Queens Academy Charter School posted a celebratory message on its Facebook page: “After years of searching, we have finally found a permanent home for our school that is worthy of our incredible scholars and families.” The academy, which was operating out of two facilities in Queens, had been searching for a new, united home for more than five years. After viewing more than 40 sites and enlisting the help of the

Storage-sharing startup Neighbor snags $53M in Series B

Posted: 24 Mar 2021 03:00 AM PDT

Neighbor.com CEO Joseph Woodbury. A company looking to become the Airbnb for storage has raised $53 million in a Series B funding round. Neighbor.com, founded in 2017, allows users to rent out storage space in their properties. The Utah-based startup will use the funding to expand its network of hosts and renters, the company announced Wednesday. Fifth Wall, a venture capital firm that has backed startups such as Opendoor, Doma and Industrious, led the round.

Voters agree on building housing, not on mayoral candidates

Posted: 23 Mar 2021 09:00 PM PDT

Voters are sure they want more housing in New York City. As for which mayoral candidate should lead that effort, they are clueless. A new phone poll shows 76 percent of 800 likely Democratic primary voters consider it very or extremely important to increase the supply of housing. But half are not ready to pick a nominee in the June 22 contest, which will all but determine the winner of November’s election. For what it’s