The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

Joseph Griffin Joins David Lichtenstein, Jim Whelan and More at Future City 2020

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 03:30 PM PST

The Real Deal‘s Future City 2020 continues to attract the best and brightest luminaries across the real estate industry. Today Joseph Griffin, Head of Real Estate at Marathon Asset Management and Hu Gang, President of Greenland USA, confirmed they will join real estate executives including David Lichtenstein, Jules Trump, Jim Whelan, Edgardo Defortuna, Sharif El Gamal and more to meet with the founders of the most talked-about tech in the industry. See the full line-up here.

Zillow revenue doubled to $2.7B on iBuying bet – but losses ballooned

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 02:05 PM PST

UPDATED, Feb. 19, 2020, 6:04 p.m.: After betting heavily on iBuying, Zillow Group’s revenue more than doubled in 2019 to $2.7 billion, the company said Wednesday. Just 20 months after buying its first home, the Seattle-based listings giant said revenue from its Homes segment topped $1.365 billion in 2019, compared to just $52.4 million in 2018. During an earnings call on Wednesday, Zillow co-founder and CEO Rich Barton called 2019 “tumultuously remarkable” as the company

CrowdStreet hits $1B milestone, crowdfunding firm claims

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 01:55 PM PST

CrowdStreet said it has raised over $1 billion for commercial real estate deals through its online crowdfunding platform. The milestone comes as the crowdfunding industry continues to mature, with some startups falling away and others facing troubles with underperforming assets. Crowdstreet offers several tools to allow people to invest in commercial real estate, an industry that historically requires deep pockets to get into. CrowdStreet’s online marketplace launched in 2014, and the Oregon-based firms says it

32BJ office security workers begin contract talks with landlords

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 12:20 PM PST

The union that represents security officers in office and other buildings kicked off contract negotiations with landlords today. 32BJ SEIU began bargaining for a new four-year contract for the 14,000 security officers it represents in the city, the organization announced Wednesday. The union is negotiating with the Realty Advisory Board on Labor Relations and a group that represents 16 security contractors. The union members work in office buildings, government facilities, museums, libraries, stadiums and areas

ELO to buy Chetrit family Diamond District building for $115M

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 11:30 AM PST

The ELO Organization is in contract to purchase Eli and Isaac Chetrit’s Diamond District building at 15 West 47th Street for $115 million, according to sources familiar with the deal. The property is 18 stories and spans 120,790 square feet, according to city records. The Chetrits and their partner the Sioni Group bought it in 2012 for $62.5 million and had been looking to sell it since at least 2017. Avi Ben-Ishay brokered the off-market

Jersey City mixed-use project lands $120M in financing

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 10:45 AM PST

Developer Art Johnson has landed $120 million in financing for a mixed-use project his firm is building in Jersey City. The financing for 400 Claremont Avenue is split between an $84 million construction loan and $36 million in equity, according to Johnson and Progress Capital founding partner Kathy Anderson, who arranged the deal. The loan comes from Emanuel Stern’s Tall Pines Capital, while the equity was purchased by private investors. “We think it’s a terrific

Bleecker Street building sells for $36M

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 10:15 AM PST

Joel Wertzberger’s Joyland Group has sold a mixed-use building in Greenwich Village for $36 million. Joyland sold the eight-story building at 159-161 Bleecker Street to Michael and Cynthia Schlegel’s EcoRise Development, brokers on the sale told The Real Deal. The roughly 30,000-square-foot building includes four office units and 20 market-rate rental apartments. Joyland purchased the building in 2014 for $20 million, property records show. Meridian Investment Sales’ Lipa Lieberman, Abie Kassin, Brian Gladstone and David

Amherst Holdings to buy single-family landlord for $2.3B

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 09:30 AM PST

In an effort to expand its already large portfolio, Amherst Holdings is acquiring heavily indebted single-family landlord Front Yard Residential Corp. in a $2.3 billion deal. The acquisition will bring the total number of homes in the New York-based investment firm’s portfolio to over 36,000 rental homes. Amherst plans to integrate Main Street Renewal Brand, which will help integrate property management operations. “Scale in this industry is very important,” president of Amherst Residential, Drew Flahive,

At 220 CPS, 91% of condos are sold amid “very soft” market: Vornado

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 09:27 AM PST

It’s not often Vornado Realty Trust gives an update on 220 Central Park South. But when your building is 91 percent sold, why not brag a little? The real estate investment trust said Wednesday that it has sold 65 units at 220 CPS to date for total net proceeds of $1.8 billion. After a string of deals in late 2019, the project is nearly sold out “in the face of a very soft luxury condo

Ruling to chop top off UWS tower affects buildings across city: lawyer

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 08:43 AM PST

A state judge’s decision to revoke a building permit for an Upper West Side condo tower could affect more than 20 buildings across the city, lawyers for the project claim. The stunning ruling last week sided with community groups who argued the city should not have let developers SJP Properties and Mitsui Fudosan America use a gerrymandered 39-sided zoning lot for the 668-foot tower at 200 Amsterdam Avenue. The developers may now be forced to

Bed Bath & Beyond to invest $1B in store upgrades and buybacks

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 08:15 AM PST

Bed Bath & Beyond will spend $1 billion on upgrading its stores and lease buybacks in an attempt to turn around the business after an underwhelming holiday season. The company announced Tuesday it will spend $400 million on store remodelling and supply chain upgrades, according to CNBC. It has allocated a further $600 million to for share repurchases and debt reduction. New CEO Mark Tritton, who joined the company in November, told CNBC that the

China’s home-price growth slows as coronavirus seizes economy

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 07:30 AM PST

Home prices in China are the latest economic metric to take a hit as the country battles to contain the coronavirus outbreak. China’s National Bureau of Statistics reported the average price of new homes in 70 Chinese cities increased 6.45 percent from January 2019, the slowest rate of growth since July 2018, the Wall Street Journal reported. But home-price growth is expected to slow further as the full effects of the coronavirus on the economy

Red Hook home of Tesla showroom up for sale

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 06:45 AM PST

While Tesla’s hotly anticipated new cybertruck probably won’t be ready for purchase until next year, the Red Hook building that’s home to the car maker’s Brooklyn showroom is fresh on the sales floor for 2020. Investors LIVWRK and FM Capital are looking to sell the former marine repair shop at 160 Van Brunt Street they converted into space for tenants like Elon Musk’s car company and others, brokers told The Real Deal. The sellers are

New city rule requires luxury rental buildings to house homeless families

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 06:15 AM PST

Homeless families will be able to apply for housing in luxury buildings thanks to a new city rule. Developers who are unable to fill affordable units in their luxury buildings through the housing lottery will be required to provide those apartments to shelter residents, Bloomberg reported. The rule applies to developers who received tax breaks in exchange for setting aside affordable units. About 200 vacant units were eligible as of Friday, Bloomberg reported, citing data

Famed journalist and singer unload their New York City homes

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 05:30 AM PST

From a West Village townhouse to a full-floor apartment on Park Avenue, here are three of the city’s recent notable luxury sales. Source: A TRD analysis of New York City Department of Finance property records from Jan. 28 to Feb. 14. TV Journalist Linda Ellerbee, known for her work on shows including NBC News Overnight and Nick News with Linda Ellerbee, parted with a three-story townhouse at 17 St. Luke’s Place in the West Village

Why all the kids suddenly want to become industrial brokers

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 05:00 AM PST

Jeremy Liebler spent four years working in sales and marketing at Ford Motor Company before he made the switch to real estate. He could have looked for work as a junior staffer on a top-agent team, where someday he might appear on an episode of “Million Dollar Listing: New York.” Or he could have put in the grueling hours needed to one day broker a trophy office tower deal in Manhattan, a la Darcy Stacom

The Closing: Michael Gianaris

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 04:30 AM PST

State Sen. Michael Gianaris has been an elected official in New York for the past 20 years and became one of the most pivotal figures in state politics last year when he played a key role in derailing Amazon’s plan to build half of its second headquarters in Long Island City. The city is still dealing with the aftermath of the Seattle-based company’s abrupt departure last Valentine’s Day — which happened in the face of

Two takeaways for real estate from Albany’s power weekend

Posted: 19 Feb 2020 04:00 AM PST

Each winter, hundreds of lawmakers and politicos descend on Albany for a weekend of dealmaking and festivities. Nearly all the state’s top politicians took part in the New York State Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Legislative Caucus’ annual retreat this past weekend. Two takeaways for real estate: Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie does not want to be seen as even a potential ally of the industry, and anti-eviction legislation is far from likely to pass