PE firm bets on curtain wall maker behind One Vanderbilt, Central Park Tower

Despite the ongoing uncertainty surrounding office space demand, a Connecticut-based private equity firm is betting on a company that specializes in cladding massive commercial towers. Atlas Holdings announced Wednesday that it acquired Italy-based Permasteelisa Group from Tokyo-based Lixil Group. Permasteelisa, which designs, manufactures and installs building curtain walls, has worked with some of New York City’s biggest developers — most recently completing the glazed aluminum exterior of SL Green Realty’s One Vanderbilt. The company is

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/pe-firm-bets-on-curtain-wall-maker-behind-one-vanderbilt-central-park-tower/

Rent law challenge dismissed; battle could head to higher court

A judge ruled that the government has the power to make laws that hurt real estate values, in a decision that dismissed challenges to last year’s rent reforms and paves the way for the fight to head to a higher court. In a decision filed Wednesday in New York’s Eastern District Court, Judge Eric Komitee wrote that legal precedence supports the government’s right to pass rent regulations — even if those regulations lead to a

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/rent-law-challenge-dismissed-battle-could-head-to-higher-court/

Oceanwide Center sale in San Francisco delayed 3 more months

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: Chinese developer Oceanwide Holdings has pushed back the deadline for the sale of its flagship San Francisco mixed-use project by three months, citing coronavirus-related delays. Due diligence for the sale of Oceanwide Center was to be completed by today, Sept. 30, under the developer’s prior agreement with buyer Hony Capital. But the parties have consented to postpone that deadline to Dec. 31, Oceanwide disclosed Tuesday on the

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/oceanwide-center-sale-in-san-francisco-delayed-3-more-months/

JPMorgan wants to invest $700M building rentals in Sun Belt states

Wall Street landlords aren’t going anywhere — except maybe down South. The asset management arm of JPMorgan Chase wants to raise a $700 million fund focused on developing single-family and multifamily rental properties in Sun Belt cities, Bloomberg reported, citing an investor presentation. The financial giant is in talks with investors who may be overexposed to investments in gateway markets such as New York City and San Francisco. The fund would target developments in Atlanta;

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/jpmorgan-wants-to-invest-700m-building-rentals-in-sun-belt-states/

Real estate crowdfunding guru Grant Cardone misled investors, lawsuit charges

Real estate crowdfunding guru Grant Cardone is facing allegations that he’s misled thousands of investors across the country by falsely promising them annual returns of at least 15 percent and other incentives that never materialized. Fresh off their acquisition of a waterfront Fort Lauderdale apartment complex, Cardone and his Aventura, Florida-based firm Cardone Capital were accused of violating federal securities laws in a suit filed in federal court in Los Angeles earlier this month. The

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/lawsuit-seeking-class-action-status-accuses-grant-cardone-of-misleading-investors/

Biden and Harris’ income tax filings shine light on their real estate holdings

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris lost the ability to deduct tens of thousands of dollars in real estate taxes from their federal income taxes last year as a result of President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax code overhaul. The Democratic presidential nominee and his running mate released their personal income taxes Tuesday evening, just ahead of the first debate between Biden and Trump, who has refused to release his taxes. On Sunday, the New York Times

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/biden-and-harris-income-tax-filings-shine-light-on-their-real-estate-holdings/

ACLU accuses Missouri courts of violating federal eviction ban

The American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of Kansas City, Missouri, tenants, alleging that courts in that state violated the federal eviction ban. The lawsuit, filed Wednesday morning in the U.S. District Court of Missouri’s Western Division, alleges that courts in Jackson County have ignored the Centers for Disease Control’s directive that bans taking actions to remove eligible tenants from their homes. Kansas City landlords have continued to file evictions for

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/aclu-accuses-missouri-courts-of-violating-federal-eviction-ban/

Mallspats: Unibail-Rodamco sues LA County over retail closures

Well, that escalated fast. Two weeks after sending a letter urging Los Angeles County to reopen its indoor malls, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield filed a federal lawsuit on Monday over the months-long shutdown. In a 46-page lawsuit that features 13 named plaintiffs and seeks class action status, the French-based mall operator called the county “perverse” in keeping malls closed “without offering a single valid, science, or health-based reason for their actions.” “The county and its officials have overtly

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/mallspats-unibail-rodamco-sues-la-county-over-retail-closures/

EDC’s $58M in Times Square rent mostly sunk into ferries

The Economic Development Corporation used to send the city coffers tens of millions of dollars in rent revenue from its Times Square real estate holdings. Now EDC spends almost all of it to operate the NYC Ferry system, The City reported. The city’s West 42nd Street properties brought in nearly $58 million in rent last year, slightly more than the $53 million a year EDC shells out to prop up ferry operations. That excludes the

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/edcs-58m-in-times-square-rent-mostly-sunk-into-ferries/

Landlords eye taking cut of retailers’ online sales as rent

Landlords are familiar with percentage rent — taking a portion of retail tenants’ in-store sales — but now, some are thinking of bringing online sales into the mix. As shopping habits shift towards the digital, some property owners think demanding a portion of online sales is not only fair but might be necessary. However, with little precedent set, it may be difficult, according to the Wall Street Journal. The increased interest comes as Covid causes

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/landlords-eye-taking-cut-of-retailers-online-sales-as-rent/

Bloomberg construction director pleads guilty to tax fraud

Bribes are taxable income, as a former Bloomberg construction director was reminded when he pleaded guilty to tax fraud yesterday. Anthony Guzzone, who worked as director of global construction at Bloomberg from 2010 to 2017, took part in a scheme to receive bribes from subcontractors in exchange for promising them construction contracts and subcontracts on Bloomberg projects, Crain’s reported. On Tuesday he admitted to evading taxes on more than $1.45 million in bribes. “Bribery and

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/bloomberg-construction-director-pleads-guilty-to-tax-fraud/

Prodigy Network’s AKA Wall Street hotel closes permanently

AKA Wall Street, an extended-stay hotel once marketed by crowdfunding platform Prodigy Network as a promising investment opportunity, has closed its doors for good. The hotel at 84 William Street shut on Aug. 24, according to a notice filed this week with the Department of Labor. A total of 31 employees are affected. The closure marks another step in the slow unraveling of Prodigy, which has been marred by months of financial problems and lawsuits

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/prodigy-networks-aka-wall-street-hotel-closes-permanently/

Sotheby’s gets $483M loan for its UES headquarters

Sotheby’s auction house is getting new financing on its home. Barclays just closed on a $483 million, five-year, floating-rate loan for Sotheby’s headquarters, 1334 York Avenue on the Upper East Side, according to Commercial Observer. The 10-story 506,000-square-foot building has housed Sotheby’s since 1980. The financing retires previous debt on the asset, including a $252 million BNP Paribas loan from October 2019. The building has seen some redevelopment since, including a February 2019 $55 million

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/sothebys-gets-483-million-loan-for-its-ues-headquarters/

Here’s what tenants are paying at Florida’s largest mall

Aventura Mall has stood out as a success story in a mall landscape battered by competition from e-commerce and shifting consumer preferences. The 37-year-old mall — the largest in Florida — was recently ranked as the second most-visited shopping center in the country with more than 28 million annual visitors, including a notable concentration of foreign shoppers from South America, Mexico and Europe. The pandemic has complicated things, of course. The mall shut down during

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/heres-what-tenants-are-paying-at-aventura-mall/

Co-living startup Common names former housing czar Alicia Glen to board

Fresh off a $50 million funding round, co-living startup Common has named former New York City housing czar Alicia Glen to its board of directors. The move comes as the company, an early evangelist of shared housing for millennials, looks to increase its footprint in affordable and workforce housing. “It’s probably the fastest-growing segment of Common today,” said CEO Brad Hargreaves. Given the frequency of Common’s work with local governments, he said the company was

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/co-living-startup-common-names-former-housing-czar-alicia-glen-to-board/

“25% is a starting point”: Indoor dining returns to NYC today

IGC Hospitality, which runs the Refinery Rooftop in Midtown and Bungalow Rockaway in Queens, had 14 restaurants open before the pandemic. Now it has four, two of which are on Long Island. Even though a limited version of indoor dining will begin Wednesday in New York City, the restaurant group has no plans to reopen its remaining 10 establishments. “Twenty-five percent isn’t sufficient enough to relaunch,” said managing partner Terence Tubridy. “We’re being choked to

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/25-is-a-starting-point-indoor-dining-returns-to-nyc-today/

After Industry City, is Ulurp dead?

When the owners of Industry City embarked on the seven-month rezoning process, they lacked what developers treasure most: certainty. Those who enter New York City’s Uniform Land Use Review Procedure, or Ulurp, typically do so confident that their project will ultimately be approved: They have received the blessing of the mayor and at least a positive sign from the local City Council member, the gatekeeper for land-use decisions. But Industry City’s owners, promising to invest

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/after-industry-city-is-ulurp-dead/

Mortgage applications drop despite posting annual growth

Mortgage applications fell last week, mostly due to a decline in homeowners seeking refinancing. The Mortgage Bankers Association’s weekly refinance index dropped 7 percent seasonally adjusted for the week ending Sept. 25. The metric tracks the volume of refinancing applications filed each week across the country. Joel Kan, MBA’s head of industry forecasting, attributed the drop to lenders “working through operational challenges, ultimately limiting the number of applications they are able to accept,” he said

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/30/mortgage-applications-drop-despite-posting-annual-growth/

Harbor Group sued after defaulting on $40M loan at Midtown retail space

The Canadian bank CIBC has a message for Harbor Group International: Pay up or hand over the keys to its retail space on Fifth Avenue. CIBC is suing companies tied to Harbor Group for failing to meet its debt payments on a $40 million loan the real estate investment firm used to acquire the 18,000-square-foot retail portion of a 33-story Midtown condo building. The suit alleges that Harbor Group failed to make its monthly loan

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/29/harbor-group-sued-after-defaulting-on-40m-loan-at-midtown-retail-space/

Manhattan vacancies hit a record, 007’s Malibu manse hits the market, and Spire gets acquired: discover this week’s Residential Round-Up

In Manhattan, vacancies hit record lows; in LA, former 007 star Pierce Brosnan put a six-digit price tag on his Malibu manse. Back in NYC, brokerage Oxford Property Group acquired Spire, ballooning to nearly 800 agents. There are plenty of problems for resi professionals in today’s market, but boredom isn’t one. With breaking resi news flooding in from the East Coast to the West, it’s hard for even the savviest agents to keep up. Now,

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/29/manhattan-vacancies-hit-a-record-007s-malibu-manse-hits-the-market-and-spire-gets-acquired-discover-this-weeks-residential-round-up/

Top developers on their reasons for doubling down in South Florida market

For some Miami developers, the last few months have provided an opportunity to “double down.” “Our affordable division is extremely active,” Jon Paul Pérez, executive vice president of Related Group, said during The Real Deal’s latest episode of Coffee Talks. Pérez noted that Related has broken ground on three projects in the last 45 days. Another guest on the episode, Dezer Development founder Gil Dezer, also remains bullish on building across Miami. Last week, Dezer

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/29/top-developers-on-their-reasons-for-doubling-down-in-south-florida-market/

Landlords, tenants react to Cuomo’s latest eviction ban

There may be a light at the end of the tunnel for landlords who want an end to the state’s ban on evictions. In an executive order issued Tuesday afternoon, Cuomo broadened the scope of existing legislation to apply to pre-Covid evictions, rather than extending a blanket pause on commercial and residential evictions that lapses on Oct. 1. It also placed a Jan. 2021 end date on the Tenant Safe Harbor Act. “Let’s hope that

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/29/landlords-tenants-react-to-cuomos-latest-eviction-ban/

Retail bankruptcies on pace to rival 2010: report

It’s been a difficult year for retailers, and things may get worse before they get better: The number of bankruptcy filings by retailers this year could outpace those filed in the wake of the Great Recession. As of Sept. 29, nearly 30 retailers filed for bankruptcy, leading to almost 6,000 store closures, according to a biannual bankruptcy report from BDO International, a financial services firm. That’s on pace to beat 2010, when 48 retailers filed

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/29/retail-bankruptcies-on-pace-to-rival-2010-report/

“On the verge of a tragedy:” The stark numbers of a pandemic-hit NYC

About 24,000 New Yorkers have lost their lives to the coronavirus. The city’s unemployment rate is 16 percent — twice the national average. And just 10 percent of Manhattan workers have returned to the office, putting into question the value of the city’s prime office stock. Personal income tax revenue is projected to drop by $2 billion this fiscal year. Only a third of hotel rooms are occupied, and Manhattan apartment vacancies crept over 5

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/29/on-the-verge-of-a-tragedy-the-stark-numbers-of-a-pandemic-hit-nyc/

Colony deal puts Highgate among biggest hotel owners

  Highgate’s deal to purchase a $2.8 billion portfolio of hotels from Colony Capital will catapult the company into the upper ranks of the nation’s largest hotel owners. The privately held hospitality firm, launched in 1988 by brothers Mahmood and Mehdi Khimji, will have the fifth-largest portfolio in the country when it finalizes its deal with Colony, which is scheduled to close early next year. Highgate owns more than 34,000 rooms, according to figures from

source https://therealdeal.com/2020/09/29/colony-deal-puts-highgate-among-biggest-hotel-owners/