20
Sue thy neighbor
38
Woes for office market in B’klyn
42
How newbie investors start
113
Brokering deals at ‘Burning Man’
113
Eklund and Serhant bare all for TV debut
THEREALDEAL
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Fear & lending in New York With regulators on their backs, banks get too timid
BY ADAM PINCUS While commercial real estate lending has increased in NYC, SPECIAL REPORT banks still have federal regulators breathing down their necks and, in some cases, demanding that they sell off loans. NYC insiders say the result is that banks are going “overboard” and dampening the rate of the recovery.
N EW YO R K R E A L E S T A T E N E W S
Vol. 10 No. 4 April 2012 $3.00
Making nice with Mike Developers with close ties to City Hall, and who’s out of favor
Leftover lowballs With the spring selling season kicking into high gear, brokers are up against an unwelcome obstacle: uninformed buyers who insist on submitting lowball offers. Meanwhile, owners are getting more power in negotiations, brokers say. See page 16.
Carlyle goes shopping
Firm on prowl with $2B to spend and looming IPO
See story on page 30
Teaming up Broker partnerships are on the upswing
BY LEIGH KAMPING-CARDER Residential broker teams are on the rise. But there’s still little guidance for agents on how to divvy up both the work and commissions. See story on page 64
A gentleman broker On the heels of his record sale of Sandy Weill’s apartment for $88 million, broker Kyle Blackmon has snagged another mega listing, this one priced at $77 million. Is the 34-year-old the new go-to agent for the city’s priciest pads? See page 44.
Bloomberg’s buddies: The mayor has some go-to developers and others who are a no-go for city projects.
Mercedes House: Driving design ahead
BY C.J. HUGHES Knowing how to cozy up to City Hall and to elected powers-that-be is often key for future projects. This officials is an important skill for any developer, es- month, The Real Deal looked at which NYC real especially those vying for lucrative, cityFEATURE STORY tate firms have established warm relaled projects. But even for those who are tionships with Mayor Bloomberg and building “as of right,” knowing how to navigate the which have chillier ones. clubby world of politics and getting access to the See story on page 34
Mapping the recovery An analysis of which Manhattan neighborhoods are bouncing back fastest and which are still struggling
Stuart Saft on troubles at Dewey & LeBoeuf
BY LEIGH KAMPING-CARDER The fact that the Manhattan market is a composite of many neighborhoods that often perform differently was never truer than during the downturn, when bidding wars erupted over family-sized Upper West Side co-ops, while Harlem condos lingered on the market. This month, TRD analyzed sales and pricing data to see which neighborhoods have been recovering fastest, and which have been slower to bounce back.
See page 114.
See story on page 47
PHOTO CREDITS ARE HERE
The Supreme Court may decide this month whether to hear a case alleging rent regulation is unconstitutional; the ruling could affect 2.5 million New Yorkers. See page 22.
AT A GLANCE
See story on page 68
BY JANNA HERRON The Washington, D.C.-based Carlyle Group announced a $2.3 billion real estate fund recently. Now, as the fund unleashes its cash, the industry is watching to see which NYC properties will be in its crosshairs. And this is all on the brink of the company’s IPO.
FACT
Nabes with biggest rise in number of sales since ’09 East Village / LES
99%
Harlem
97%
Battery Park City
64%
(Source: see page 47)
NYC’s $50M and under club
The Mercedes House, a massive condo-rental hybrid on the Far West Side, is set to launch its second phase next month. Critic James Gardner says the Enrique Norten-designed project doesn’t fit with the rest of the area. But, he notes, that’s not a bad thing at all. See page 72. Mercedes House
Top building sales brokers that you rarely hear about
BY ADAM PINCUS While giants like CBRE and Eastdil get showered with attention for trophy investment sales, firms brokering small- and mid-sized deals often go unnoticed. Yet there’s actually more commission to be made in nondescript outer borough buildings. This month, TRD ranked top firms for deals under $50 million. See story on page 60
Interest in Pinterest NYC real estate pros are jumping on the latest social media craze: Pinterest. What’s all this pinning about? See page 32.
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SAFT PHOTOGRAPH BY MARC SCRIVO, BLOOMBERG PHOTOGRAPH BY GETTY; MERCEDES HOUSE PHOTOGRAPH BY DEREK ZAHEDI