The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

Rent Guidelines Board approves rent increases on apartments, freeze on hotels

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 05:43 PM PDT

Moments before the Rent Guidelines Board’s final vote Tuesday evening on rent increases, two camps prepared for the tense hearing. Joe Strasburg, president of the Rent Stabilization Association, smoked a cigar with RGB owner member Scott Walsh and RSA Chairman Aaron Sirulnick, while around the corner of Cooper Union, boisterous tenants shouted “rent freeze! In a final vote, the RGB recommended a 1.5 percent increase for one-year leases and 2.5 percent hike for two-year leases […]

Facebook close to finalizing Hudson Yards office deal: report

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 03:01 PM PDT

Facebook is reportedly in talks to lease a 1 million-square-foot office space at 50 Hudson Yards. The office developers of the commercial tower, the Related Companies and Oxford Properties Group, are considering pushing aside a deal with law firm Debevoise & Plimpton for 450,000 square feet, according to Crain’s. The transaction would establish the emerging neighborhood as a center for the city’s technology sector. Amazon in 2017 signed a 15-year lease at Brookfield Property Partner’s […]

Tenants score another win: Lower Manhattan apartments should’ve been rent regulated, court rules

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 02:53 PM PDT

The state’s Court of Appeals on Tuesday ruled in favor of tenants at two Lower Manhattan buildings, finding that their apartments should have been rent stabilized. The issue resolves questions over the state legislature’s intent when the 421g tax program was created. The court reversed an appellate court’s decision, finding that because Clipper Equity and an entity tied to Kibel Companies respectively received 421g tax breaks at 50 Murray Street and 90 West Street, they’d […]

Home price growth sinks to lowest level since 2012

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 02:00 PM PDT

The housing market continued to show signs of a major slowdown, and through April, it had recorded 13 consecutive months of slowing home-price gains. Property values in 20 major U.S. cities increased 2.5 percent from a year ago, according to data from S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller, Bloomberg reported. That’s down from 2.6 percent in March, and reflects the slowest pace since 2012. Most cities showed year-over-year gains, however. In Las Vegas, for example, home prices grew […]

Developers break ground on massive NJ logistics center

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 01:30 PM PDT

In the same month that the Blackstone Group made a nearly $19 billion bet on the future of U.S. industrial real estate, a group of developers and brokers gathered on June 21 in northern New Jersey for a ground breaking ceremony on a 350-acre site that will become a state-of-the-art logistics park. Vertical construction on the 4.1 million-square-foot Linden Logistics Center in Union County began last week, NJBIZ first reported. When completed, the development will […]

Virtual brokerage eXp hit with trademark suit on heels of NY launch

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 01:27 PM PDT

Less than a month after launching in New York City, virtual brokerage eXp Realty is in hot water with a local competitor claiming trademark infringement. In a lawsuit filed Tuesday, EXP Realty Advisors, a boutique commercial real estate firm in Midtown, accused the newcomer of “false advertising” and “cybersquatting,” after it allegedly registered domain names and social media accounts that are confusingly similar to its own. According to the suit, EXP Realty Advisors has been […]

Historic Central Park townhouse sells 44% below ask

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 01:00 PM PDT

Last year, a 19th-century townhouse that sits on the edge of Central Park hit the market asking $29 million. But the reality of the city’s sluggish luxury residential market hit back. The Queen Anne mansion at 248 Central Park West sold for $16.25 million, or about $1,662 per square foot, according to a property record filed Tuesday. Seller Matthew Geller, founder and managing director of health-care investment firm Geller Biopharm, declined to comment. He paid […]

Silverback Development lands $90M construction loan for Gramercy condo

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 12:15 PM PDT

Josh Schuster’s Silverback Development lined up a $90 million construction loan for its Gramercy Park condominium development. Och-Ziff Capital Management Group and Michael Dell’s MSD Partners teamed up to provide the financing for the 13-story project at 359 Second Avenue, the developer told The Real Deal. Schuster said that the development will aim to keep apartments priced below $3 million and noted it sits across the street from a city playground, meaning its access to […]

Lennar Q2 earnings beat estimates, but stock falls due to effect of tariffs

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 11:45 AM PDT

Lennar Corp. saw its stock drop on Tuesday after it released second quarter earnings and said that tariffs on Chinese goods are costing the company an average of about $500 per home. Still, the Miami-based homebuilder’s quarterly earnings beat analysts’ expectations. The company’s profit, revenue and home deliveries rose thanks to lower mortgage rates and strong incentives offered to homebuyers. Lennar reported second quarter net income rose to $421.5 million, or $1.30 per share, up […]

Stellar Management’s double-wide, incomplete townhouse just sold for $25M

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 11:30 AM PDT

An unusually wide townhouse in Lenox Hill just sold for $25.3 million, and this one is a bit of a handyman’s special. The unfinished home was initially listed in March for $29.5 million and the sale closed on June 20, according to a source. The seller, Manhattan landlord Stellar Management, bought the more than 12,000-square-foot townhouse at 134 East 74th Street in 2008 from artist Ellen Questel for $12 million. The house has seven bedrooms, […]

With rezoning looming, RFR asks over $200M for Gowanus assemblage

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 10:45 AM PDT

As the Gowanus rezoning gains momentum, Aby Rosen’s RFR Holding is looking to cash out on a three-parcel assemblage in the area for more than $200 million. The company bought the 140,000-square-foot parcel at 175-225 Third Street from SL Green Realty and Kushner Companies for $115 million last April, property records show. SL Green, LIVWRK and Kushner acquired the polluted parking lot from developer Herbert Chaves for $72.5 million in 2014, in a deal brokered […]

Simon Baron gets $240M refi for what’s billed as country’s largest co-living project

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 10:15 AM PDT

Simon Baron Development has landed a $240 million refinancing for its massive co-living project at 29-22 Northern Boulevard in Long Island City. The lenders were Société Générale and Deutsche Pfandbriefbank, and the loan also includes a new $40 million mortgage, according to property records. Eastdil Secured arranged the financing for Simon Baron, and HKS Real Estate acted as an advisor to the company. Simon Baron president Matt Baron said in a statement that the size […]

Jennifer Lopez, Alex Rodriguez roughly break even on 432 Park unit they bought last year

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 09:15 AM PDT

Little more than a year after moving into Macklowe Properties’ 432 Park Avenue, newly engaged Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez are moving on. The celebrity couple sold their 4,000-square-foot apartment to BBH Ventures LLC for $15.75 million, the New York Post reported, citing property records. The outlet reported last week that the unit, on the 36th floor of the 96-story tower, had gone into contract. Adam Modlin of the Modlin Group had the listing. The […]

Alphabet’s smart-city ambitions for Toronto waterfront face pushback

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 08:30 AM PDT

In 2017, Google sister company Sidewalk Labs won a bid to build a sustainable neighborhood on a 12-acre parcel of Toronto’s waterfront known as Quayside. On Monday, the company — led by former deputy mayor Dan Doctoroff — revealed its first detailed plans for the area and far more. In addition to the Phase 1 Quayside development, the proposal includes the creation of a 190-acre “River District” in the city — a move that appears […]

Stanford proposes $3.4B investment in new housing. It still may not be enough.

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 07:45 AM PDT

After suing its local county board over affordable housing requirements in December, Stanford University has emerged with a new proposal to mitigate the impact of its expansion on the nation’s most expensive housing market. But officials say they aren’t satisfied. The university’s latest offer includes a $3.4 billion investment in housing and another $1.1 billion in transportation improvements, the Wall Street Journal reported. Stanford plans to construct up to 2.275 million square feet of new […]

Last chance for landlords? RGB to vote on possible rent hikes

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 07:00 AM PDT

Now that New York legislators have overhauled state rent laws, all eyes are turning to the city board that controls one of the few ways left to permanently increase rents on regulated apartments. The Rent Guidelines Board will vote on Tuesday on whether and how to increase allowable rent hikes on rent stabilized apartments. During a preliminary vote in May, the RGB recommended a .5 to 2.75 percent increase for one-year leases and a 1.5 […]

Corcoran’s Pam Liebman warns employees about “far-left” Queens DA candidate

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 06:15 AM PDT

Democratic voters in Queens head to the polls today for the first competitive district attorney primary in decades, and the real estate industry is watching closely. In particular, Democratic Socialist candidate Tiffany Cabán’s bid to become Queens DA has many in the industry worried, and Corcoran Group CEO Pamela Liebman sent an email to employees warning of the impact a “far-left” candidate could have on the firm’s business, Crain’s reported, citing a copy of the […]

Landlord groups RSA, CHIP plan federal lawsuit over new rent law

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 05:35 AM PDT

Soon after making it through both houses of state legislature, the new rent laws signed by Gov. Cuomo this month may have to go through a federal court house as well. Two landlord groups, the Rent Stabilization Association and the Community Housing Improvement Program, are planning to file a lawsuit against the regulations for rent stabilized housing by the middle of July, the New York Post reported, citing sources. The groups have asked law firm […]

Social media means “you don’t have to sell yourself,” but LA’s resi brokers say it doesn’t always mean a sale

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 05:00 AM PDT

Coldwell Banker’s Joyce Rey started managing an Instagram account with her staff four years ago and says it has helped her sell high-end listings. Douglas Elliman’s Ivan Estrada said he’s active on social media but uses the platforms to build his brand and create relationships. Estrada said he has never gotten a call from someone who saw a property on Instagram then wanted to buy it. As the traditional brokerage model undergoes seismic changes […]

Watch: Chany Rosen’s expediting rollercoaster

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 04:30 AM PDT

Chany Rosen is always on the run. Perhaps that’s why at just 28 she’s already made a name for herself in New York City’s cutthroat property business. The expeditor gave up a teaching career to help landlords and other clients find their way through the city’s often byzantine Department of Buildings. Rosen’s 15-person team at Brooklyn-based Cavalry Associates, which she formed with her brother, Yoel Bochner, handle everything from code violations to zoning issues. As […]

Buyer of $28M unit at 520 Park Ave races to save nearly $1M on taxes

Posted: 25 Jun 2019 04:00 AM PDT

An anonymous buyer has closed on a full-floor pad at Zeckendorf Development’s 520 Park Avenue for just over $28 million, according to public records. And he or she wasted no time in getting the deal over the finish line. The contract for Unit 33 was signed on April 12, which means the four-bedroom condo sale fell within a narrow three-month window where the buyer and seller could avoid the new taxes if they closed before […]