The Real Deal - New York Real Estate News

New York City’s biggest townhouse sale this year wasn’t Jeffrey Epstein’s former Upper East Side mansion. It was an office building turned single-family home two blocks away. Real-estate investor David Levinson, chairman and CEO of L&L Holding, has closed on the sale of his Upper East Side row house at 11 East 69th Street for $53.5 million, according to newly released property records. The contract signing was reported in March, pegged at “over $50 million”

The CEO of modular homebuilding giant Clayton Homes has gone upscale. Kevin Clayton — also son of the co-founder — paid $11.5 million for a condo unit at Extell Development’s Central Park Tower on Billionaires’ Row. Clayton and his wife Michelle bought the 2,500-square-foot unit at the world’s tallest residential tower at 217 57th Street. Property records show the couple got a 15 percent discount from the last listed price. Closings at the 159-unit, 1,550-foot

Raysa Rodriguez recounts a harrowing escape from her unit at the collapsed Surfside condominium, and lays out mounting warning signs in a newly filed lawsuit. Among them: a concrete chunk that had fallen from the garage ceiling and a “wide crack” above her parking space. In her suit, which seeks class action status, Rodriguez also cites flooding in the underground garage dating back at least a decade that was reported by a former maintenance manager.

A former HFZ Capital executive faces four months in prison for his connection to an alleged construction bribery scheme. In January, John Simonlacaj, HFZ’s former managing director of development, copped to submitting a false tax return related to renovation work at his home. He had accepted $100,000 worth of free labor and materials from CWC Contracting, a carpentry subcontractor — allegedly controlled by the Gambino crime family — that worked on the XI, HFZ’s $2

As lawsuits mount against the Champlain Towers South condominium association, the building’s and unit owners’ insurers will play key roles in footing the bill for any payouts arising from legal claims, according to local property insurance experts. Since the deadliest building catastrophe in South Florida history last Thursday, three residents have filed lawsuits against the condo association for negligence and failing to keep the 136-unit condo building at 8777 Collins Avenue in a safe condition.

Westchester County now requires cooperative boards to provide a reason when they deny an applicant’s purchase of a unit, according to Real Estate In Depth. The Westchester County Board of Legislators voted 15 to 2 Monday to pass an amendment to its Co-Op Disclosure Law and County Executive George Latimer signed it into law that night. It takes effect immediately. The amendment requires boards to provide a notice of rejection to the Westchester County Human

Rubicon Point Partners has high hopes for a pair of distressed, remote-friendly office markets. The real estate investment firm has closed its new Rubicon First Ascent fund to acquire office space throughout San Francisco and Seattle, riding on confidence that office workers will soon reoccupy their spaces. The $232 million fund will target up to $770 million in office building acquisitions across the Bay Area as well as Puget Sound in Washington, Rubicon announced on

In Connecticut, real estate attorney Ori Spiegel hadn’t heard much from landlords as the end of his state’s eviction ban approached. He expects that to change, starting today. “There are many who I’ve asked to call me back on June 30,” Spiegel said. “The governor has often waited until the last minute to extend the moratorium, so I don’t really have information for them until that point.” Barring any 11th-hour interventions, Connecticut, Kentucky, North Carolina

Manhattan’s competitive luxury market hasn’t quite reached dystopian battle royale proportions, but amid increased activity and shrinking discounts, this “Hunger Games” actress walked away with an impressive score. Patina Miller, who played Commander Paylor in “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay,” and her venture capitalist husband, David Mars, purchased a two-family townhouse on the Upper West Side for $10.5 million, records show — $5 million less than what the property last traded for in 2018. The 9,800-square-foot

The growing Zeta Charter Schools has signed a long-term lease to occupy a planned 124,000-square-foot building at the northern tip of Manhattan. The new Zeta Inwood is expected to open in time for the 2023-24 school year at 400 West 219th Street, a half-acre lot along Ninth Avenue on which Bolivar Development will construct an eight-story building. The architect of record is GF55 Architects. Transwestern partners Lindsay Ornstein and Stephen Powers and Senior Vice President

Bespoke Living locked down a $160 million inventory loan for its nearly completed West Harlem condominium project. The developer refinanced its 170-unit condo development at 300 West 122nd Street with a $160.4 million loan from Madison Realty Capital. The lender had provided $138 million in acquisition and construction financing for the 13-story building, which is 80 percent complete with more than half of the units sold. Bespoke Living managing partner Rachel Medalie said Madison “showed

Digital mortgage company Tomo entered the Dallas, Houston and Seattle markets today, aiming to help homebuyers compete with larger investors. Greg Schwartz and Carey Armstrong, former Zillow executives, are the co-founders. The firm will originate Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans. Tomo’s emergence comes at a time when institutional investors have flooded the single-family housing market, edging out smaller buyers. The company would not disclose loan amounts it provides. The Federal Housing Finance Agency said

The Manhattan district attorney’s office is planning to charge the Trump Organization and its chief financial officer with tax crimes on Thursday, according to a report. The Trump Organization and Allen Weisselberg, the company’s longtime CFO, are expected to face charges related to tax evasion on fringe benefits, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing sources familiar with the matter. An indictment would mark the first criminal charges against the former president’s real estate company and

Looking to lure back tenants who shifted to remote work during the pandemic, large commercial landlords are adding creative new perks to their spaces, the New York Times reported. Some amenities now seem indispensable in the post-pandemic world: ventilation systems, large elevators to accommodate social distancing, Zoom-friendly conference rooms and modular seating to allow for flexible work schedules. Others are ordering their new offices shaken, not stirred. At their building on West 26th Street, RXR

Shares of mall owner Washington Prime were trading at about $5 before it filed this month for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which will leave its common stockholders with an estimated 83 cents per share. What will be left of the cratering company? Enough to draw interest from a number of potential bidders, including New York-based RPT Realty, according to Bloomberg News. Citing sources familiar with ongoing discussions, the publication reported that RPT, which owns about 50

The CDC-imposed federal eviction moratorium will live on — at least for another month. In a 5-to-4 ruling late Tuesday, the Supreme Court rejected an emergency request to vacate the ban, which President Joe Biden extended last week for a fourth and likely final time. It is set to expire July 31. Opponents of the ban, including the Alabama Association of Realtors, among other groups, had challenged the CDC’s statutory authority to prevent landlords from

Eight months after selling his Southampton estate, venture capitalist Chris Burch is back in the Hamptons. The billionaire investor and fashion mogul paid $29 million for a 12,000 square-foot home at 258 Horsemill Lane in Water Mill, according to the New York Post. Located on seven acres with an apple orchard and rose garden, the mansion has five bedrooms, 6.5 bathrooms, a guest cottage and a heated pool flanked by rows of Sycamore trees. There’s

The following is a preview of one of the hundreds of data sets that will be available on TRD Pro, a one-stop real estate terminal with all the data and market information you need in one place. Arriving summer 2021. New York City’s real estate agents are on the move, bouncing between brokerages as the economy continues its recovery. The Real Deal compared Department of State agent licensing data to see how many New York