Buildings For Sale
In one of the largest land deals in years, Sheldon Solow has reached an agreement with a consortium led by JDS Development Group to sell a parcel of land overlooking the East River for roughly $200 million. The full-block piece of land is zoned for residential use, and there are intentions to build a 37-story tower and a 47-story tower on the site, with a total of more than 830 units. The deal is being financed primarily by a $125 million loan from UBS. The parcel being sold is the smaller of two plots totaling nine acres that Solow bought in 2005 from Con Edison for $630 million.Hidrock Realty is selling an office building at 240 West 35th Street and expects to pull in upwards of $75 million for the 162,044-square-foot property. Hidrock paid $58 million for the property in 2008, a 200 foot, 18-story building constructed in 1925. The firm infused $6 million into a capital improvement program that included renovations to the lobby, new elevators and updated HVAC systems. An affiliate of Meritage Properties reportedly provided $14 million in joint venture equity at the time of the purchase.
Nearly 100,000 square feet of retail space has hit the market in a new mixed-use residential conversion project in Williamsburg. The 92,000-square-foot space claims to offer the largest available floor plates and the largest contiguous retail area available in Williamsburg. The asking price is $50 per square foot.
City investor and philanthropist Eugene Grant has agreed to sell his controlling 50.1 percent stake in the Meatpacking District's former freight facility, known as St. John's Center, to an investor group that owns the other 49.9 percent, in a deal that was rushed forward due to concerns over the fiscal cliff. The deal with Fortress Investment Group, Atlas Capital Group and Westbrook Partners is worth approximately $250 million.
New York Buildings sold
Atlas Capital Group has paid $62.4 million for a 185,000-square-foot office building home to several theater and design firms, public and apparently plans to reposition the property to appeal to more traditional office tenants. The acquisition of the building, located at 311 West 43rd Street between Eighth and Ninth avenues, helped close an eventful year for the real estate investment firm.The Related Companies has put the Monterey, an Upper East Side rental property located at 175 East 96th Street between Lexington and Third avenues, up for sale. Related is looking for bids between $250 million and $300 million. The building’s 522 units could get approximately $575,000 each. Rents span from $3,125 to $3,795.
Corigin Real Estate Group has purchased a seven-story Upper East Side office building formerly inhabited by the City University of New York for $61.75 million. The property is located at 535 East 80th Street between York and East End avenues. Corigin, which has built or renovated at least five student housing facilities in New York, purchased the building from the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York. CUNY has occupied the 70,502-square-foot office building since 1958.
Extell Development has purchased a mixed-use building and adjacent development rights on two plots on the Upper East Side, at Third Avenue between East 94th and East 95th streets.
The mega-developer, of One57 and 995 Fifth Avenue fame, bought the commercial building at 1683 Third Avenue for $3.2 million. That day, the same entity paid $7.7 million for the property’s development rights, including air rights, as well as the development and air rights for an adjacent parcel at 1681 Third Avenue.
A Lower Manhattan office building has sold to an Italian real estate development firm for $53 million. Bizzi & Partners, a Milan-based developer, nabbed the 12-story building at 350 Broadway, situated between Leonard and Franklin streets in another last minute trade before the end of 2012.
Sony will sell its New York City headquarters at 550 Madison Avenue to the Chetrit Group for $1.1 billion. The electronics giant will remain in the building that bears its name for about three more years, and will generate around $770 million in cash with the sale, when debt and transaction costs are accounted for. The Chetrit Group owns a number of trophy properties in New York City and beyond, including the historic Hotel Chelsea.
Hidrock Realty, which has been asserting itself in the Manhattan hotel market, has paid $28.5 million for a parking lot in the Garment District. The seller of the property, an 8,690-square-foot parking lot at 59 West 36th Street, was identified as David Bell, principal at Houston,Texas-based Bell Slesinger. Current zoning allows the buyer to build up to 86,900 square feet at the site. Hidrock also purchased an adjacent, 2,123-square-foot lot at 62 West 37th Street for $5.9 million.
Hotel developer Sam Chang has sold a five-story, 22,600-square-foot mixed-use building in the Financial District for $19 million. Located at 98 Greenwich Street between Rector and Carlisle streets, the site sits behind a Holiday Inn property that Chang may be developing at 99 Washington Street. The Holiday Inn, slated to be 50 stories tall, will be the hotel chain’s tallest property.
• Real estate private equity firm Rockpoint has closed on a deal to purchase an 80 percent stake in 1440 Broadway for $282.4 million. The company officially completed the transaction with seller Prudential Real Estate.
Asset management firm TIAA-CREF has paid $60 million to Related Companies for a landmarked commercial building on the Upper East Side. Built in 1905, the 60,000-square foot building located at 1511 Third Avenue between 85th and 86th Streets was designed by German-born architect Robert Maynicke and was originally the site of the Yorkville Bank. It is fully leased to long-term tenants, the Gap and an Equinox gym. Those leases expire in 2021 and 2020 respectively.
Dermot Property Associates has sold a 14-building portfolio made up of 861 apartments and 41 retail spaces. The properties, which are located in Manhattan, the Bronx and Queens, traded for $190.5 million. The Parkoff Organization purchased 10 of the buildings for $158 million.
L&L Holding has purchased 114 Fifth Avenue and a 99-year leasehold in a $165 million joint venture with private equity firm Lubert-Adler. The transaction required creation of a new ground lease and modification of an existing loan. The 800,000-square-foot office tower at 200 Fifth Avenue was low on tenants and heavily distressed following the collapse of Lehman Brothers, which had a $480 million stake in the building. L&L restructured the debt and made capital improvements to the building with Lehman Brothers Holdings and together were eventually able to sell the building for approximately $700 million.
Raber Enterprises has paid $33.5 million for three adjacent commercial lots in Midtown West, and is likely to develop a hotel on the site. The deal for 320 West 36th Street, an 8,145 square-foot lot, 321 West 35th Street, a 3,521 square-foot-lot, and 325 West 35th Street, a 1,760 square-foot lot, closed on Dec. 18. The site would be developed for commercial use.
