The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

Michael Cohen now under investigation for tax fraud: report

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 03:00 PM PDT

As other probes into potential wrongdoing by Michael Cohen continue, federal authorities are now looking into whether President Trump’s former attorney committed tax fraud. Prosecutors are looking into whether Cohen underreported income from his taxi medallion business in federal tax returns, the Wall Street Journal reported. Prosecutors are also examining his relationship with Sterling National Bank, which provided Cohen with financing for his taxi businesses. The news comes just a few months after Cohen’s longtime […]

Hamptons Cheat Sheet: Price for empty Georgica Pond-front plot once owned by David Geffen slashed to $19.9M … & more

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 02:00 PM PDT

Price for empty Georgica Pond-front plot once owned by David Geffen slashed to $19.9M A 1.64-acre property on the shores of Georgica Pond had its price cut for the first time since it hit the market, dropping by $3.6 million from its original ask of $23.5 million, Curbed reported. The property had been part of a 5.5-acre compound that media mogul David Geffen bought from Courtney Sale Ross for $52 million in 2014. Developers bought […]

Payback time: AG opens fund for tenants to recoup $8M from Steve Croman

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 01:30 PM PDT

Steve Croman’s former tenants can start applying for restitution as part of an $8 million settlement agreement reached last year. In December, Croman agreed to pay a record $8 million to tenants he harassed. Attorney General Barbara Underwood announced on Tuesday that current and former tenants could start applying for a cut of the restitution, Crain’s reported. To be eligible, tenants must have lived in a Croman-owned, rent-regulated apartment between July 1, 2011, and Dec. […]

Resi scorecard: Manhattan condo inventory decreased for the first time in six months

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 01:00 PM PDT

NEW DEVELOPMENT CONDO REPORT Manhattan Inventory decreased for the first time in sixth months as the number of new units filed dropped sharply Developers filed two plans with a total of 11 units Three plans were approved for sale in June with 39 units and a total projected sellout of $216 million Manhattan new development condo supply Supply Brooklyn new development condo supply Source: TRData analysis of NYS AG and NYC Dept. of Finance […]

Jared Kushner ordered Observer staff to remove posts about Neil Rubler, Adam Silver: report

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 12:30 PM PDT

When he was running the New York Observer, Jared Kushner in 2012 personally ordered articles critical of his friends removed from the newspaper’s website, according to a new report. One of the articles was a 2010 story about regarding a settlement between then-New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo and Vantage Properties over allegations that the company had illegally pushed out rent stabilized tenants, BuzzFeed News reported. Kushner also ordered a staffer to remove an […]

Here’s what the $10M-$20M NYC investment sales market looked like last week

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 12:00 PM PDT

In the world of mid-market New York City investment sales last week, Vida Shoes bought a landmarked Upper West Side townhouse and GFI sold a mixed-use building in Ocean Parkway. 1.) The Spanish Broadcasting System, which operates New York radio stations Mega 97.9FM and Amor 93.1, sold a landmarked townhouse at the “Banker’s Row” section of the Upper West Side for $14 million. The property, at 26 West 56th Street, is a five-story office building […]

Related cut deal with carpenters union amid heated battle at Hudson Yards

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 11:30 AM PDT

As unions continue to protest at 50 Hudson Yards over the use of nonunion labor, Related Companies has expanded its efforts to go open shop at its megaproject. The developer announced Tuesday that it cut a deal with the city’s largest construction union — the New York District Council of Carpenters — to increase the number of trades working on 50 Hudson Yards and the rest of the upcoming western portion of the project. Union […]

Feds look to seize Porsche Tower condo unit tied to $1B money laundering case

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 11:00 AM PDT

Federal officials are seeking to seize a condo unit at Porsche Design Tower in Sunny Isles Beach that they allege is tied to a $1 billion Venezuelan money laundering scheme. Prosecutors allege the scheme laundered money out of Venezuela’s state-run oil company, PDVSA, and into fraudulent investments and Miami real estate. One deal allegedly involved was the $5.3 million purchase of unit 2205 at Porsche Design, a 132-unit, 60-story luxury condo tower built by Dezer […]

Delshah can’t reach financing deal with Moinian for Brooklyn luxury project

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 10:30 AM PDT

Negotiations between the Moinian Group and Michael Shah’s Delshah Capital for a $95 million loan package on a Brooklyn project ended with no deal, according to documents filed with the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. The deal would have provided senior and mezzanine financing for a 20-story residential development at 22 Chapel Street in Downtown Brooklyn, a partnership between Shah and John Carson’s OTL Enterprises. Under the terms of the deal, Moinian would have provided $61 […]

Riverside Developers downsizes plans for Bed-Stuy rental project

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 10:00 AM PDT

Riverside Developers USA downsized plans for a Bedford-Stuyvesant housing complex two years after the local community board rejected its proposal to rezone the site. The firm is looking to build a seven-story residential property at 376-378 Flushing Avenue, according to documents filed with the Department of Buildings on Tuesday. The proposed 111,000-square-foot structure would contain 78 apartment units, with amenities such as a recreation room, a laundry room and a parking garage. The previous proposal […]

Slate, Meadow Partners land $125M refi of 183-unit rental in Downtown Brooklyn

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 09:30 AM PDT

Mack Real Estate Credit Strategies has provided 1 Flatbush Avenue with a $125 million refinancing. The new loan on Meadow Partners and Slate Property Group’s 19-story residential project closed last week, according to Commercial Observer. It replaces about $110 million in prior debt on the property, which was split between an $80 million senior loan from Wells Fargo and a $30 million mezzanine loan from Winter Properties. The development is nearing completion and will span 170,000 […]

White & Case expands to nearly 500K sf at Rockefeller’s 1221 Sixth

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 08:45 AM PDT

Law firm White & Case is expanding at Rockefeller Group’s 1221 Sixth Avenue by 49,000 square feet, bringing its footprint at the former McGraw Hill building to just shy of half a million square feet. The law firm inked a deal to take another full floor at Rockefeller’s 2.2 million-square-foot tower after first signing a lease to move there four years ago, the landlord announced. White & Case signed a lease in 2014 to take […]

Douglaston lands $380M refi for Williamsburg rental tower

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 08:32 AM PDT

Douglaston Development refinanced its Williamsburg rental tower 2 North 6th Street with a $380 million loan from Natixis Capital, property records show. The new financing package includes a $103.3 million gap mortgage and replaces a $276.7 million construction loan from Capital One, according to documents from the city’s Department of Finance. The 40-story, 554-unit tower topped out in late 2016, and TCOs were issued in the third quarter of 2017. It is part of Douglaston’s […]

Here are the week’s top luxury sales

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 08:03 AM PDT

Each week, The Real Deal and CityRealty look back at Manhattan’s priciest apartment sales.

Douglas Elliman’s profit shrinks amid new dev slowdown

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 07:34 AM PDT

Douglas Elliman is still struggling with the new development slump. In the second quarter, the brokerage’s revenues rose to $205.6 million, compared with $198.7 million a year earlier. But net income was $5.9 million, falling from $16.1 million last year, according to Vector Group, which owns Elliman and New Valley, a real estate investment vehicle. “One area is the lack of really much revenue on the new development side,” CEO Howard Lorber said on the […]

Owners who cap rent rises will see lower finance costs under new Freddie Mac plan

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 07:00 AM PDT

Freddie Mac is launching a new program to help keep rents down. The initiative will offer owners who cap rent increases for the duration of their loans lower-cost financing, according to the Wall Street Journal. It works similar to rent control but is a voluntary program. Freddie Mac plans to announce the program on Tuesday and launch it immediately. The firm will provide mezzanine debt to owners at below market cost, which could be appealing […]

SoftBank considers largest IPO ever at $30B

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 06:30 AM PDT

SoftBank is planning an initial public offering for its Japanese wireless business that could be worth about $30 billion, which would make it the largest IPO ever. The company is talking to advisers about selling a third of the business in the IPO, but discussions are still preliminary, and the company’s final valuation will depend on feedback from investors, according to Bloomberg. So far, the biggest market debut has been from Alibaba Group, which came out […]

The top 10 biggest real estate projects coming to NYC

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 06:00 AM PDT

Manhattan dominated the list of New York City’s top 10 largest real estate projects in July. The borough took four of the top 10 spots, including the number one spot thanks to Marx Development Group’s roughly 213,000-square-foot hotel and retail project at 450 11th Avenue in Hudson Yards. The development will be 43 stories tall and contain 531 residential units. Queens had three projects on the list, while Brooklyn had two and the Bronx had […]

Controversial project at 80 Flatbush gets approval from City Planning Commission

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 05:30 AM PDT

The City Planning Commission has given the green light to Alloy Development’s massive project at 80 Flatbush in Downtown Brooklyn. The commission unanimously approved the plans, and the City Council will vote on it later this summer, according to Commercial Observer. Alloy and the New York City Educational Construction Fund have partnered on the development, which would span five buildings and 1.3 million square feet, bringing 922 apartments, a cultural center and two schools to […]

For some young buyers, stock options are the ticket to entering the NYC market

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 05:00 AM PDT

Many millennials are finally becoming homeowners — thanks to lenders who are adapting to a more sophisticated pool of buyers. The use of stock options and other assets has helped borrowers boost their income levels to qualify for pricey apartments in the city, according to agents and lenders. The shift has highlighted changes in how compensation packages are structured — and how that’s delayed some buyers’ purchases. “When you deal with New York City, you’re […]

How the Plaza was won: A look at Subrata Roy’s path to selling the landmark hotel

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 04:30 AM PDT

At any given time, there are more than 10,000 inmates at Tihar Prisons, near New Delhi, living in space meant for 5,000. Some men and women choose to work in factories there, earning money by making paper or shoes. And in 2014, the ascotted billionaire Subrata Roy — charged with investor fraud to the tune of $6 billion — also worked during his imprisonment at Tihar. There Roy took on three secretaries in a prison […]

The top 10 NYC office leases in July

Posted: 07 Aug 2018 04:00 AM PDT

July’s top office leases had more square footage than June’s. The top 10 office lease deals totaled 2.5 million square feet, greater than June’s 1.7 million square feet. 1) 1199 National Benefit and Pension Funds, 330 West 42nd Street, Midtown West – 455,461 square feet The fund inked a lease for 455,461 square feet of office space at 330 West 42nd Street. CBRE represented the landlord, Tishman Speyer. 2) Evercore, 55 East 52nd Street, Plaza […]