18
Evolution of East River waterfront
28
Teeing off with TRD
56
Time to abandon timeshares in NYC?
97
Manhattan brokers flood into Florida
97
Toronto towers copy NYC names
THEREALDEAL
www.TheRealDeal.com
From distress back to health
N EW YO R K R E A L E S TAT E N E W S
Vol. 9 No. 8 August 2011 $3.00
The summer issue!
Five projects, five distinct ‘Hedgehampton’ to Jersey Shore show gains, while NYC buyers take break pathways to stability BY ADAM PINCUS For owners of distressed properties, it’s a harrowing journey to regain financial footing. While the NY market is imSPECIAL REPORT proving, billions have been lost since the financial crisis began. Inside: five deals and how they went from distress to health — all in different ways.
Uncle Sam scales back on office space As government agencies tighten their belts amid budget wrangling, brokers say they’re reducing their office-space needs and putting off growth plans in NYC. Some are selling buildings outright; others are in consolidation mode. See page 16.
Sternlicht’s next stop: New York Barry Sternlicht’s Starwood Capital goes on Big Apple tear
Brooklyn’s Fourth Ave. back from dead
BY DAVID JONES Starwood Capital Group has been one of the country’s most active downturn players. But since the start of 2011, it’s turned more attention to Manhattan deal-making.
Fourth Avenue is still not the ‘Park Avenue of Brooklyn’ that some predicted, but new residential towers on the oncefloundering strip are seeing a spike in activity. See page 32.
See story on page 52
Cyber- wars
Rendering of One 57
Website “squatting” is on rise for NYC brokers
See story on page 26
Catsimatidis: This grocer bags big buildings See page 98.
A Greenwich estate sold for $39.5 million, the highest ever paid for waterfront property there and the priciest Greenwich sale since 2004. See page 64.
AT A GLANCE
See story on page 36
BY SARABETH SANDERS Cyber-squatting, or buying a URL in someone else’s name, isn’t new. But it’s on the rise in NYC’s real estate industry as brokers snap up rivals’ domain names. Even nasty URLs are being created to poke fun at competitors. The lawsuits are already flying.
FACT
BY CANDACE TAYLOR AND JAKE MOONEY New Yorkers are fleeing the city in the scorching summer heat, trading subway cars for the Jitney and business casual for beachwear. The Real Deal heads to the Hamptons, where we look at hedge funders’
impact on the market and inter- in New York, brokers are divided on view mega-developer Joe Farrell. whether it makes sense to list forWe also talk to Jersale properties during sey Shore brokers FEATURE STORY the dog days of summer. about how Snooki Still, it’s not dead, with and the ‘Situation’ are impacting the rental market sizzling. the improving market there. Back See pages 14, 20, 24, 48 and 62
Rental firms rule
Inn fashion
Shakeup in rankings for new development marketers
NYC hotel sector heats up; investors come out in force
BY SARABETH SANDERS The recession has vastly shrunk the number of new residential developments in New York City. And the buildings that are coming online tend to be a new breed of ultra-luxury rentals, rather than condos. For new development marketers, these changes have drastically altered the play- New development marketers selling the most units, 2010-11 ing field. In The Real Deal’s rank2,966 ing of new development firms, Citi Habitats 2,651 Corcoran is still the city’s top Corcoran company by number of projects, Aptsandlofts.com 1,705 but rental giant Citi Habitats has Rose Associates 1,264 more units than any other firm.
BY C.J. HUGHES For the last few years, investing in hotels was like scoring the Presidential suite at the Plaza — an experience reserved only for a select few, primarily public REITs. But recently other investors—from high-profile names, like Tommy Hilfiger and Ron Burkle, to hedge funds—have been tripping over themselves to get into the NYC hotel market.
See story on page 78
Douglas Elliman
1,210
See story on page 44
NYC’s tallest condo gets soaring design One 57, the Christian de Portzamparc-designed tower rising on West 57th St., could forever change Midtown’s skyline. Critic James Gardner says the city’s soon-to-be-tallest residential tower could have the same impact that Rockefeller Center’s 30 Rock once did. See page 58.
City, U.S. gap widens It’s been a slog, but Manhattan’s market is swinging back faster than the nation’s. See page 34.
www.TheRealDeal.com
SUMMER ILLUSTRATION BY PETER BONO; CATSIMATIDIS PHOTOGRAPH BY MARC SCRIVO