The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

The Hamptons hotel that conquered Covid

Posted: 15 Mar 2022 02:30 PM PDT

As hotels nationwide seek a path back to prosperity, one Hamptons resort has emerged as a beacon. Gurney’s, a recently renovated luxury hotel in Montauk, was situated almost perfectly to thrive in the pandemic, according to a new report from Morningstar DBRS. It’s a “drive-to” resort, within reach of Covid-cautious travelers who were afraid to fly but still wanted a taste of the beach. The 149-key Gurney’s is one of only two proper, full-service resorts

Knock it off: Homebuying startup ditches IPO plans

Posted: 15 Mar 2022 01:56 PM PDT

Diminished investor interest knocked a homebuying startup down a peg, scrambling plans to go public and setting off a massive round of layoffs. Knock, a proptech startup that helps people buy new homes before selling their old ones, is laying off about half of its staff, Bloomberg reported. The company has also canceled plans to go public, raising more funds via the private route instead. Chief executive Sean Black in a blog post detailed how

Blackstone buys 49% stake in One Manhattan West at $2.9B valuation

Posted: 15 Mar 2022 10:30 AM PDT

Brookfield has a new partner at one of the most prominent new office developments in New York City. Blackstone Real Estate has acquired a 49 percent stake in One Manhattan West from Brookfield and the Qatar Investment Authority, the firms said Monday. The deal values the 67-story office tower at $2.85 billion. Brookfield had reportedly been soliciting interest in a stake sale in the 2.1 million-square-foot building at 401 Ninth Avenue since mid-December. Cushman &

Another pittance: NY gets $119M for rent relief

Posted: 15 Mar 2022 09:47 AM PDT

New York’s rent relief fund is no longer a dry pot. But a fresh allotment of federal dollars won’t cover the growing need of renters and landlords. The U.S. Treasury Department said Tuesday it would allocate $119 million for the state’s emergency rent relief program, Crain’s reported. That’s just 7 percent of the $1.6 billion Gov. Kathy Hochul requested from the federal government in January. Landlord groups had estimated that the state needed at least

All-cash offers king in bidding wars

Posted: 15 Mar 2022 09:03 AM PDT

The best way to win a bidding war in today’s market? Have cash on hand — and plenty of it. Homebuyers were four times as likely last year to win a bidding war by making an all-cash offer, according to a report from Redfin. The brokerage said an all-cash offer improved a competitive offer’s success by a staggering 334 percent, far and away the most successful bidding war strategy. For those who don’t have a

IBM to anchor SL Green’s One Madison Avenue

Posted: 15 Mar 2022 08:15 AM PDT

SL Green Realty has landed a new anchor tenant at its One Madison Avenue. IBM signed a 16-year lease for 328,000 square feet at the yet-to-be-completed office property in the Flatiron District. The deal covers portions of floors two and seven, entire floors eight through 10 and a portion of the ground floor, where the company will have an exclusive lobby entrance. IBM, which will consolidate employees from 10 other city offices, was represented by

IWG, Instant Group creating flex office space giant

Posted: 15 Mar 2022 07:15 AM PDT

A flex office operator is poised to seize on rising interest in alternative office arrangements with a deal establishing the dominant player in the online listing marketplace. IWG is investing about $350 million into the venture with office listing service Instant Group. The Wall Street Journal reported the two companies are aiming to create the world’s largest online marketplace for flexible office space. The new venture will allow tenants to find and book spaces, including

Watch: How Josh Schuster’s Silverback is weathering the storm

Posted: 15 Mar 2022 06:30 AM PDT

July 16, 2021 was a difficult day for Josh Schuster. The upstart developer, who appeared on The Real Deal’s “Rising Stars” list in 2015 and was the subject of a Wall Street Journal profile a year later, was suddenly the subject of a new level of press scrutiny. TRD published an investigation into Schuster, who had come under fire in a number of lawsuits claiming misappropriation of funds and whose firm, Silverback Development, had lost

“There will be no return”: Tower won’t give back air rights

Posted: 15 Mar 2022 05:45 AM PDT

Squatters’ rights inhabit that part of New York lore that includes finding treasures left on the curb and Bill Murray crashing parties. It’s about the improbable dream coming true. The tale of 950 Third Avenue is giving hope to the believers. The owners of the Midtown office building are refusing to return a roughly 78,000-square-foot block of air rights leased for a modest price 55 years ago. The lease is up in three years. But

“Good cause” crowd attacks homeownership plan

Posted: 15 Mar 2022 05:00 AM PDT

It’s New York real estate’s Catch-22: Ignore poor neighborhoods and be blamed for disinvestment, or invest in them and be labeled a predator. In the latest illustration, Glacier Equities is pursuing co-op conversions where tenants can buy their apartments at a discount. That is a path to eviction avoidance, not to mention a nest egg. But activists pushing “good cause eviction” have turned it into a cautionary tale. Last month, they staged a rally slamming

Future City: Better.com’s troubles worsen

Posted: 15 Mar 2022 04:00 AM PDT

For better or worse Digital mortgage lender Better.com cut roughly 3000 employees, or about a third of its staff, citing lower demand for its services in a rising interest rate environment. The layoffs came just a few months after CEO Vishal Garg fired 900 staff over a Zoom call — an event that prompted an internal review and Garg’s subsequent leave of absence. It may also have impacted the company’s ability to attract new clients.

“We’re losing them”: East Hampton residents bemoan housing crisis

Posted: 14 Mar 2022 05:30 PM PDT

East Hampton town officials heard an earful from local residents during a recent series of public hearings about the area’s worsening affordable housing crisis. The East Hampton Town Board hearings were held this month to discuss an affordable housing overlay zoning designation and a town code change to allow more affordable housing in overlay districts, the East Hampton Star reported. Residents at the meetings expressed dismay over the minimal affordable housing available in the area.

Manhattan hedge fund manager was buyer of $105M Hamptons estate

Posted: 14 Mar 2022 03:00 PM PDT

An Australian hedge funder once nicknamed the Wizard of Oz has been revealed as the buyer of one of the most expensive Hamptons estates ever sold, a Southampton property formerly belonging to Henry Ford II. Greg Coffey was behind the $105 million purchase, the Wall Street Journal reported. The 50-year-old Coffey made his money as a trader at GLG and co-chief investment officer at Moore Capital Management. He runs Kirkoswald Asset Management out of New

Midwood buying West Village apartment building for $100M

Posted: 14 Mar 2022 02:52 PM PDT

John Usdan’s Midwood Investment & Development is lined up to strike a rare deal. Midwood is in contract to buy the 160-unit building at 56 Seventh Avenue from investment giant BlackRock for around $100 million, The Real Deal has learned. Big buildings don’t often change hands in the highly desirable West Village. The Seventh Avenue property, known as Candela Tower, has roughly 7,000 square feet of retail leased to tenants like Birch Coffee and Elm

Lawmakers propose rent relief but omit 421a

Posted: 14 Mar 2022 01:34 PM PDT

Albany is a land of mixed blessings. Real estate was reminded of that as lawmakers laid out budget priorities that included more rent aid and housing vouchers but no 421a tax break or density increase for residential development. The Senate and Assembly over the weekend called for at least $1 billion to replenish the state’s Emergency Rental Assistance Program. Senate Democrats want the money to cover rental arrears when tenants have refused to apply for

All Year reaches deal with Rubin Schron for massive Brooklyn portfolio

Posted: 14 Mar 2022 12:41 PM PDT

UPDATED, 9:35 p.m., March 14: Troubled landlord All Year Holdings has reached a deal to restructure its debt and sell its sprawling Brooklyn apartment portfolio to health care executive Avi Philipson’s Graph Group and Rubin Schron’s Cammeby’s International Group. Graph — an investment firm — and Cammeby’s are set to take control of over 100 assets from the bankrupt Brooklyn landlord, which mostly consist of small apartment buildings in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Williamsburg and Bushwick. If approved,

Brooklyn’s luxury market runs hot for second straight week

Posted: 14 Mar 2022 11:00 AM PDT

UPDATED, March 15, 2022, 11:30 a.m.: Townhouses were all the rage in Brooklyn’s luxury market last week, when a Brooklyn Heights home went down as the priciest listing to go under contract. The five-story townhouse at 16 Remsen Street was asking $10.9 million, according to Compass’ weekly report on sales of homes asking $2 million or above. The 6,500-square-foot house across the street from Brooklyn Bridge Park comes with a roof deck offering views of

Peconic Jitney poised to sail again

Posted: 14 Mar 2022 10:20 AM PDT

Those looking to travel between the South Fork and North Fork this summer may have a faster option on the way. The Hampton Jitney has proposed reviving the Peconic Jitney for a five-year contract, the East Hampton Star reported. The passenger-only ferry service would carry people between the Long Wharf in Sag Harbor and Greenport’s Mitchell Park, saving drivers a trip to Riverhead or multiple costly ferry rides. The Sag Harbor Village Board last week

Chaskiel Strulovitch’s Brooklyn bankruptcy saga nears end with auction

Posted: 14 Mar 2022 09:30 AM PDT

Brooklyn landlord Chaskiel Strulovitch’s grueling three-year bankruptcy battle with lender Maverick Real Estate Partners is nearing its finale. After putting 31 of his Brooklyn apartment buildings into Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2019 to fight off a foreclosure attempt from Maverick, Strulovitch managed to save most of the properties earlier this year with costly rescue financing from Marvin Azark’s Maguire Capital, a New York-based lender. Now Maguire, not Maverick, is set to take control of the

15 Central Park West notches another turn atop Manhattan’s luxury contracts

Posted: 14 Mar 2022 09:00 AM PDT

The top spot among last week’s Manhattan luxury contracts was claimed by a familiar address. Unit 27A in 15 Central Park West was the priciest contract signed between March 7 and 13, according to Olshan Realty’s weekly report. This is the fourth time this year that a unit at 15 Central Park West has claimed the report’s first or second spot. The seller is asking $25 million after paying $24.5 million for the condo in

NYC’s banner life sciences growth set for regulation, market challenges

Posted: 14 Mar 2022 08:04 AM PDT

New York City’s life sciences industry has reached a boom in recent months, but the sector is facing growing threats to its success. A change in tax laws and the volatility of the market could harm the industry’s record growth, Crain’s reported. The city’s life science sector is propped up by 10 incubator programs spurred by the city’s $1 billion investment in the LifeSci NYC initiative, but upcoming tax laws and market uncertainty could threaten

Tennis star’s Chelsea penthouse hits market for $10M

Posted: 14 Mar 2022 06:45 AM PDT

Canadian tennis star Milos Raonic is hoping to serve an ace with the sale of his penthouse co-op in West Chelsea. The unit at 470 West 24th Street is on the market for nearly $10 million, Dirt reported. The 2,700-square-foot co-op is part of the neighborhood’s London Terrace apartment complex, known for celebrity tenants and a tense battle over a swimming pool. Raonic picked up the unit in 2019 for $7.55 million, an apparent steal

Kmart closure reduces store count to near zero

Posted: 14 Mar 2022 05:45 AM PDT

And then there were three. When a Kmart Middlesex County, New Jersey, closes April 17, it will leave only one in the state and just three in the entire country, NJ.com reported. The closure at 1550 St. Georges Avenue in Avenel follows last year’s shuttering of a Kmart in Kearny, according to the publication. New Jersey’s lone remaining Kmart will be in Bergen County’s Westwood. The once mighty retailer’s other U.S. locations are in Miami

Denied by board 20 years ago, mogul finally owns Dakota co-op

Posted: 14 Mar 2022 05:00 AM PDT

Two decades after his rejection by the famed building’s board, cardboard magnate and prolific political donor Dennis Mehiel has been granted entry into the exclusive club of co-op owners at the Dakota. Mehiel and his wife, Karen, bought an apartment at the 140-year-old Upper West Side building for $10.8 million from Ruth Porat, chief financial officer of Google parent Alphabet, and her husband, attorney Anthony Paduano, records show. Mehiel said he’s wanted to live in

Facing foreclosure at star-crossed building, Churchill cites Caymans connection

Posted: 14 Mar 2022 04:00 AM PDT

Finding tenants for 263 West 34th Street has been difficult, to say the least. Convenience store chain 7-11 wanted the ground floor retail space, but discussions fell through after the firm’s representative was mugged in front of the building. Pharmaceutical giant Merck backed out of a six-floor lease after reading about stabbings near the front door. Workers for one of the two companies that did rent space, Kolb Radiology, were attacked outside the property as

Dubai welcomes Russian oligarchs as world turns its back

Posted: 13 Mar 2022 12:00 PM PDT

Russian oligarchs, global pariahs after Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, are getting a warm welcome in Dubai, undercutting worldwide sanctions. “Sanctions are only as strong as the weakest link,” Adam M. Smith, a lawyer and former adviser to the U.S. Treasury Department office that administers such measures, told the New York Times. “Any financial center that is willing to do business when others are not could provide a leak in the dike and undermine the

In 2020, Wells Fargo rejected nearly half its Black applicants for a mortgage refinance

Posted: 13 Mar 2022 10:00 AM PDT

One of the country’s biggest mortgage providers turned down nearly half of the refinance applications sent in by Black homeowners while approving almost three-quarters of those sent in by white applicants in 2020. According to a Bloomberg News analysis, Wells Fargo fell well below industry averages when it came to lowering interest rates through a home refinance to African-Americans, who were approved 71 percent of the time by all other lenders. Wells Fargo’s 47 percent

National work-at-home experiment finds many unwilling to return to offices

Posted: 13 Mar 2022 09:00 AM PDT

As bosses call employees back to the office, two years into the world’s largest experiment in at-home work, two thirds of the 50 million Americans who were affected would rather not return. They cited sweatpants, time with kids and pets, more hours to read and run and space to hide the angst of a crummy day or year, according to the New York Times, which fielded responses from more than 700 readers and interviewed more

Action star, Putin friend Steven Seagal sells California ranch for $7M

Posted: 13 Mar 2022 06:00 AM PDT

Action star Steven Seagal, a Buddhist, martial arts enthusiast and Russian citizen, unloaded his 5,000-acre ranch in remote northern California for $7 million, five years after President Vladimir Putin granted him a passport. Seagal’s property is operated as a nature preserve and cattle ranch known as Lava Lakes Nature Preserve, just south of Montague and offers views of Mount Shasta, Dirt.com reported. It’s in Siskiyou County. The ranch, described in the listing as a “hidden