In 2017, the multifamily investment sales market in New York City followed the trends seen within the broader market with sales volumes dropping while property values were mixed. The year ended on a high note with regard to contract execution activity, which bodes well for sales volume in 2018. This year, we expect volumes to rise while values bottom out and start to climb by the end of the year as positive movements in fundamentals start to exert upward pressure on property values. With regard to the number of properties sold, there were 1,215 apartment buildings sold last year, down 19 percent from the 1,507 that were sold in 2016. The elevator building sector, which we differentiate from walk-up buildings as a separate asset class, performed better with 235 sales, down 14 percent from the 273 elevator buildings that were sold in 2016. In the walk-up sector, there were 980 sales, down 21 percent from the 1,234 walk-up buildings that were sold in 2016. If we compare the Manhattan submarket to the outer boroughs, we see that activity in the outer boroughs held up much better than in Manhattan. In the outer boroughs, elevator building sales dropped by 13 percent …
CLARENCE, N.Y. — Uniland Development Co. has acquired a $14.5 million interest in Mountain Development Corp.’s Eastern Hills Mall in Clarence, about 20 miles east of Buffalo. The Buffalo News, citing documents filed in the Erie County clerk’s office, reported the amount of the payment. The enclosed, 86-acre shopping mall will be redeveloped by the joint venture partners into Western New York’s first open-air, multi-use town center. During the redevelopment, the mall will remain open. No changes will be made to the mall until a master plan is complete in two to three years. Current tenants at the mall include Bon Ton, JCPenney, Orvis Sporting Goods and Sears. Brian Whitmer, Andrew Merin, David Bernhaut, Gary Gabriel, Seth Pollack, Joyce MacKnight, Ben Borruso and Kubby Tischler of Cushman & Wakefield represented Mountain Development Corp. in the transaction.
ROSELAND, N.J. — Bergman Real Estate Group and Gottesman Real Estate Partners have acquired 75 Livingston Ave. in Roseland through a joint venture. The sale price was not disclosed. The three-story, 94,000-square-foot office property was purchased from Mack-Cali Realty Corp. Michael DiFede of Bergman and Patrick Leary of Gottesman represented the joint venture in the transaction. TriState Capital Bank provided acquisition financing. The acquisition is the fourth joint venture between Bergman and Gottesman, which plans to invest more than $1.7 million in capital improvements to the building over the next 24 months.
WALL TOWNSHIP, N.J. — G.S. Wilcox & Co. has arranged a $9.8 million loan for the refinancing of three flex buildings in the Allaire Corporate Campus in Wall Township. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans provided the 10-year term loan. The borrower was a repeat client of G.S. Wilcox. The property, which is currently 100 percent leased to three tenants, is located less than two miles from I-95.
SHELTON, CONN. — R.D. Scinto Co. has purchased a 2.83-acre parcel of land in Shelton for the construction of a 27,000-square-foot retail center. Shelton is 10 miles west of New Haven. The land was purchased from 900 Shelton Plaza Associates for $1.5 million, or just over $530,000 per acre. When completed, the building will be a single-story center with a terra cotta exterior. Bruce Wettenstein of Vidal/Wettenstein was the listing broker and also represented R.D. Scinto in the transaction. Cohen & Thomas PC provided legal counsel for the seller.
NEW YORK CITY — Tishman Speyer, a New York-based owner and developer of trophy office assets around the world, plans to break ground in June on The Spiral, a $3.7 billion office tower that will rise 65 stories at 66 Hudson Blvd. in Manhattan. Global pharmaceutical company Pfizer recently signed an 800,000-square-foot, 20-year lease at The Spiral, which is slated for completion in 2022. Pfizer will occupy floors seven through 21, as well as some lobby space. The Spiral will serve as Pfizer’s new home, replacing its existing global headquarters at 235 E. 42nd St. in Manhattan. Blackstone Mortgage Trust Inc. (NYSE: BXMT) recently provided a $1.8 billion construction loan for the project. Tishman Speyer will finance the remaining $1.9 billion of development costs with its own equity, as well as financing from more than a dozen other institutional, pension fund and individual investors. Designed by BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group, each floor of The Spiral’s façade will feature landscaped terraces and hanging gardens that will be accessible to tenants. At one outdoor terrace per floor, the tower’s façade will be wrapped around by green space in a swirling pattern that serves as the tower’s signature element. The trophy office tower will …
LINCOLN, R.I. — CBRE New England has negotiated the sale of Albion Crossing, a 280,982-square-foot flex building in Lincoln. The sales price was not disclosed. CBRE represented the seller in the transaction, Albion Crossing LLC. The buyer was an affiliate of FoxRock Properties LLC. Located at One Albion Road in Lincoln, the property was originally developed as the global headquarters for A.T. Cross Co., a manufacturer of high-quality ballpoint and fountain pens. In 2007, Cross sold the building and it was converted to a mixed-use flex office building. Current tenants include United Natural Foods, Zebra Technologies, Granite Telecommunications and Vicor Technologies Inc.
BOSTON — Colliers | Boston has secured a $38 million refinancing for two office buildings at 155 Federal and 10 High streets in Boston’s financial district. Farley White Interests owns and manages the two adjacent buildings, which total 294,000 square feet. The two properties are currently 98 percent leased and feature ground-floor retail and more than 60 tenants. Nationwide Life Insurance Co. provided the long-term, fixed-rate financing on an interest-only basis. Colliers | Boston will service the loan until maturity.
EDISON, N.J. — HREC has arranged the sale of the Sheraton Edison Raritan Center in Edison, about 33 miles south of Manhattan. The sales price for the 276-room hotel was not disclosed. The hotel is located in the Raritan Center business park, which is home to local cable television station News 12 New Jersey and the regional operations for both UPS and FedEx. Kevin Hanley, Ketan Patel, Mark von Dwingelo and Bill Schoenenberger of HREC represented the undisclosed seller in the transaction. The buyer was also not disclosed. Edison has recently attracted a large amount of commercial business to the area, according to HREC.
FAIRFIELD, CONN. — RHYS has arranged the sale of 1 Eliot Place, a 25,000-square-foot office building in Fairfield, approximately 25 miles southwest of New Haven. Rockwest Real Estate Partners purchased the three-story property, which was constructed in 1985, for $5 million. The building is fully leased. The seller was FNL Enterprises. Alex Haendler, Ted Grogan and Greg Romano of RHYS were the sole brokers in the transaction. An office of Northwestern Mutual Insurance Co. is the building’s largest tenant. The Fairfield office market has recorded 15 percent rent growth since 2015, according to RHYS.