Real Estate Trends

The partners behind the Jean Nouvel-designed tower at 53 West 53rd Street (also known as the MoMA Tower) will be serving even more price chops to the ultra-luxury project in the midst of lackluster sales, though they disagree on how much that should be. As Crain’s reported, Hines, Goldman Sachs, and Singapore’s Pontiac Land Group recently underwent an arbitration process to settle the matter, with Hines seeking aggressive discounts. The 1,050-foot condo building has already received $167 million in price cuts since hitting the market almost four years ago with a projection of $2.14 billion in sales. About 15 percent of the 145 units at 53W53 are under contract currently, with closings set to begin in the spring, a spokeswoman for the project said.
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See new photos and renderings of Bjarke Ingels’ The Spiral as it rises in Hudson Yards

Skyline rendering with The Spiral via Tishman Speyer

February 12, 2019

See new photos and renderings of Bjarke Ingels’ The Spiral as it rises in Hudson Yards

The Hudson Yards mega-development on Manhattan's far west side is fast becoming a collection of notable new skyscrapers; construction is underway on what may be the most recognizable of the bunch, the office tower known as The Spiral that will occupy full-block site at 66 Hudson Boulevard between West 34th and 35th Streets. Bjarke Ingels Group's design features setbacks that wind their way up the building's exterior, hosting landscaped terraces for tower-level floors along the way.
Many more renderings, this way

February 12, 2019

Mariska Hargitay finds a buyer for her $9.75M Upper West Side brownstone

The "Law & Order: SVU" star and her husband, actor Peter Hermann, who bought the stunning Upper West Side brownstone for $10.7 million in 2012, had hoped to make it a $10.75 million brownstone when they put it on the market last fall. After a price cut to an unprofitable $9.75 million, the six-story, 6,000+ square-foot home at 45 West 84th Street is in contract, the New York Post reports. The couple reportedly decided to sell because their family needs have changed, though they've said they plan on staying in their beloved neighborhood.
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Via CityRealty

February 11, 2019

Learning from Seattle: How Amazon could shape NYC real estate

By Cait Etherington

Since Amazon announced it had selected Long Island City for its new headquarters last fall, a lot of people have wondered what will happen to the neighborhood and its surrounding communities. While LIC has already undergone a series of radical changes of the past two decades—first there was an influx of artists seeking larger live-work spaces and later a wave of condo developments—the arrival of Amazon promises to have an even deeper impact on LIC. And the potential negative effect of the tech giant moving into town has not gone unnoticed by public officials and locals, who have led a strong opposition campaign. It was reported on Friday that Amazon was reconsidering its plan to move to the neighborhood after facing an intense backlash from those who fear increased rents and even more congestion. But with no plan to officially abandon Queens, it's important to understand what could happen if Amazon does put down roots in LIC by first looking at how the company has already changed Seattle, where it first set up shop back in 1994.
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Lucy Liu’s $5.9M pair of Flatiron condos finds a buyer

Lucy Liu image: Wikimedia commons.

February 6, 2019

Lucy Liu’s $5.9M pair of Flatiron condos finds a buyer

TV Star Lucy Liu of CBS' "Elementary" has just put a pair of condominiums that span the third and fourth floors of a Flatiron District apartment building at 29 West 19th Street into contract, Variety reports. The homes have a combined total of more than 3,500 square feet of living space, and though they haven't been combined, we wouldn't be surprised if a new buyer merged the two modern-on-the-inside pads for an impressive duplex in an historic Manhattan brownstone with only five floors total. Both units have private elevator access, so getting between the two–priced together at $5.9 million or $3 million for each unit separately–is already a luxury endeavor. What's more, the building's penthouse is also for sale, which would top a trophy triplex off nicely.
Imagine the potential

Apple in talks for office and retail space at Hudson Yards

55 Hudson Yards; Via Related Companies, Oxford Properties, Mitsui Fudosan

February 5, 2019

Apple in talks for office and retail space at Hudson Yards

Apple is looking to move to a Hudson Yards office tower, the New York Post reported Monday. The company is in advanced talks to secure 60,000 square feet at 55 Hudson Yards, a 51-story building opening soon, as well as possible retail space at the mega-development site. Designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox and Kevin Roche, the 779-foot-tower features light-filled offices with modest-sized floor plans.
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Real Estate Trends

February 4, 2019

Amazing photos show COOKFOX’s Domino Sugar tower getting its crystalline facade

The installation of 1 South First's (formerly known as 260 Kent Avenue) innovative exterior is officially underway, its molecular pattern now visible. Designed by COOKFOX Architects, the tower, part of the Domino Sugar project in Williamsburg, will feature concrete window panels made using 3D-printed molds. New photos from the Gate Precast Company reveal the start of the crystalline-inspired facade as the building's construction is more than halfway complete (h/t CityRealty).
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FREE RENT: This week’s roundup of NYC rental news

Images (L to R): 685 First Avenue, Glassworks Bushwick, One Columbus Place, and 363 Bond Street

February 2, 2019

FREE RENT: This week’s roundup of NYC rental news

By Ondel Hylton

One Columbus Place: Lincoln Square Rental Offers 1 Month Free; Net Prices from $4,194/Month [LINK] Glassworks Bushwick: Get to Know Brooklyn’s New Rental at 336 Himrod Street [LINK] 268 Metropolitan Avenue: New Rentals Launch in the Heart of Trendy Williamsburg [LINK] 685 First Avenue: An Inside Look at the Modern Rental Collection at 685 First […]

Real Estate Trends

One Times Square owner looking to construct observatory for prime New Year’s Eve views

Via Flickr

January 30, 2019

One Times Square owner looking to construct observatory for prime New Year’s Eve views

The most looked-at building in the world is getting a makeover. According to Crain's, Jamestown will redevelop One Times Square, the 23-story building that garners the attention of millions for its famed ball drop every New Year's Eve. The owner plans on installing 32,00 square feet of new signage, including a 350-foot-tall digital sign. To cash even further on its prime location, Jamestown may construct an observatory for NYE revelers to be at the heart of ball-drop festivities.
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Real Estate Trends

Co-working firm The Wing to lease the East Village’s former Stuyvesant Polyclinic building

Co-working network The Wing is moving its corporate headquarters to the former Stuyvesant Polyclinic building in the East Village, the Real Deal reported Monday. The space on Second Avenue is connected to the Ottendorfer Public Library, the first free public library in New York City. The adjoining buildings are both designated city landmarks, built as a pair in 1883 by German-born architect William Schickel. The Wing will lease all of the 22,000-square-foot building at 137 Second Avenue, which spans four floors.
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Real Estate Trends

New images of SHoP’s skinny supertall at 111 West 57th Street show facade progress

Progress images of 111 W57th Street; photo © Paul Clemence.

January 28, 2019

New images of SHoP’s skinny supertall at 111 West 57th Street show facade progress

Even before reaching its final height of 1,428 feet tall, SHoP Architect’s Midtown supertall 111 West 57th Street, which surpassed 1,000 feet a few months ago, wowed us with views from the tower’s 64th, 72nd, and 73rd floors. Upon completion, the Billionaires’ Row tower will become the tallest residential building in the world, taking the title from 1,396-foot 432 Park Avenue, (until 1,500-foot Central Park Tower tops out). With a super slender frame (a ratio of 1:24), 111 West 57th Street is also set to become one of the skinniest skyscraper in the world. The new year brings new progress–and new photos showing the 86-story tower's intricate terra cotta and bronze facade making its way skyward.
Terracotta and bronze: going up!

Images (L to R): One Flatbush, 420 Kent, 33 Bond Street, and The Mosaic.

January 26, 2019

FREE RENT: This week’s roundup of NYC rental news

By Ondel Hylton

One Flatbush: New Rentals in the Heart of Downtown Brooklyn from $2,336/Month [LINK] 33 Bond Street: Downtown Brooklyn Luxury Rentals with Balconies and Incredible Views from $2,530/Month [LINK] The Mosaic: Bushwick Rentals Debut at 23 Menahan Street, No Fee 1 Bedrooms from $2,200/Month [LINK] 420 Kent Avenue: Take a Look Inside Williamsburg Waterfront Rentals, Now […]

Real Estate Trends

Photo courtesy of Blue Point Brewing Company

January 25, 2019

Blue Point wants to help frustrated New Yorkers with ‘What the L?’ beer

By Dana Schulz

The L train shutdown may be canceled, but don't let Cuomo's Superman tactics trick you into thinking you'll get off unscathed. Even without a full 15-month shutdown, there will be a slew of headaches and, like beer company Blue Point Brewing Company says, "who knows what will happen next?!" And when in doubt, an adult beverage can help soften the blow, which is why Blue Point developed its new "What the L?" brew, complete with a very Williamsburg-esque label created by local graphic designer and subway artist Winston Tseng.
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Billionaire Ken Griffin buys $240M NYC penthouse, the most expensive home sold in the U.S.

Via Vornado Realty Trust and Robert A.M. Stern Architects

January 23, 2019

Billionaire Ken Griffin buys $240M NYC penthouse, the most expensive home sold in the U.S.

Update 1/29/19: The penthouse officially closed on January 23, 2019, for $239,958,219, more than was originally reported. Billionaire Ken Griffin has closed on a penthouse at 220 Central Park South for $238 million, setting the record for the most expensive home ever sold in the United States, as the Wall Street Journal first reported. Griffin, who founded Citadel, first signed the contract to buy a 24,000-square-foot unit at the under-construction tower in 2015. The hedge fund mogul reportedly picked up the pricey digs as "a place to stay when he's in town," since his company is looking to expand its footprint in New York City.
More on record-breaking deal

Real Estate Trends

Hudson Yards will ‘officially’ open on March 15

Rendering courtesy of Related/Oxford.

January 23, 2019

Hudson Yards will ‘officially’ open on March 15

Though it seems hardly a week can go by without a flurry of news from Manhattan's newest instant neighborhood, Hudson Yards, the west side mega-project–the largest private development in the nation's history–developed by Related Companies and Oxford Propertied Group now has announced that Friday, March 15th will be its official opening date. In addition to a grand opening celebration, the Public Square and Gardens and the neighborhood's centerpiece, Thomas Heatherwick's "Vessel," are set to open on that date; more importantly, The Shops and Restaurants at Hudson Yards will be officially open.
Off to quite a start

Real Estate Trends

January 22, 2019

Legendary designer Halston’s former UES house and famed party spot is off the market after four years

After being on the market for four years, the iconic Halston House at 101 East 63rd Street finally sold to an anonymous buyer for an undisclosed amount last week. The modernist property, one of only three residences in Manhattan designed by famed architect and former Yale School of Architecture dean Paul Rudolph, is best known as the home of designer Halston in the 1970s where he hosted lavish parties attended by the likes of Andy Warhol, Liza Minnelli, Truman Capote, and Jacqueline Onassis. It first hit the market in 2015 for $40 million when it was rumored that art dealer Jeffrey Deitch was interested in making a deal. One year later, the listing received a significant price chop to $28 million. According to a press release, the buyer was taken with the home's rich cultural history and is an admirer of Rudolph's architecture.
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Images (L to R): The Heritage, Level, Landing at Brooklyn Bridge Park and Arverne View

January 19, 2019

FREE RENT: This week’s roundup of NYC rental news

By Annie Doge

Images (L to R): The Heritage, Level, Landing at Brooklyn Bridge Park and Arverne View 1247 Atlantic Avenue: Brooklyn Rental with Swimming Pool Launches Leasing from $1,875/Month [LINK] Arverne View: Beachfront Apartments in the Rockaways from $1,374/Month [LINK] The Pierrepont: Floor Plans and Interiors Revealed for March 1st Launch [LINK] LEVEL: Williamsburg Waterfront Rental Offers […]

Real Estate Trends

Rendering courtesy of Wordsearch

January 18, 2019

Can Extell make Central Park Tower the most expensive condo in U.S. history?

By Dana Schulz

"Some people wonder if Mr. Barnett will become a victim of the condo explosion he helped create," wrote the Wall Street Journal today in a rare expose of Extell's Gary Barnett, referring to the success he had with One57, considered the catalyst for the supertall, ultra-luxury condo boom, and the more challenging climate he's facing with the Central Park Tower. The latter, which will be the world's tallest residential building at 1,550 feet, launched sales in October, but in a soft luxury market, it's not a sure bet that the mega-developer will be able to achieve his projected $4 billion sellout and the title of the nation's most expensive condominium ever. In a likely noncoincidental move timed with the Journal story, Extell today launched the tower's new website (h/t Curbed), and it gives us mere mortals some of the first views inside the billionaire bunker.
See inside and hear from Barnett himself

January 18, 2019

After more than two years, Hudson Heights’ cliffside ‘Pumpkin House’ sells for $2M

Back in 2016, 6sqft reported that the iconic “Pumpkin House,” a 1920s townhouse cantilevered from a cliff in Hudson Heights, had hit the market for the first time since 2011 for $5.25 million. Still without a buyer the following summer, the 17-foot-wide, six-bedroom brick home at 16 Chittenden Avenue received a price chop to $4.25 million. The unusual home—standing 250 feet above the Henry Hudson Parkway—finally found its new owner this Thursday, when it sold for a deeply discounted $2 million, as reported by the New York Post.
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City pulls permits for Extell’s controversial Upper West Side tower

Rendering courtesy of Binyan Studios/Snøhetta

January 17, 2019

City pulls permits for Extell’s controversial Upper West Side tower

Less than two months after rejecting a challenge against the tallest tower planned for the Upper West Side, the Department of Buildings has decided to pull permits for Extell Development’s 775-foot tower at 50 West 66th Street, as NY1 first reported. In December, opponents argued that the Snøhetta-designed structure was misusing structural voids—where a building’s mechanical equipment is stored—to add height without increasing square footage. They said the 160-foot mechanical spaces were designed not out of necessity, but presumably to boost the overall height of the apartments—and their price tags. Now, the DOB has made a surprise reversal, ruling that these spaces do not meet the current standards of the New York City Zoning Resolution.
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January 17, 2019

World Trade Center developer Larry Silverstein sells Upper East Side apartment at a loss

By Annie Doge

He may have hit it big at the World Trade Center redevelopment, but super-developer Larry Silverstein lost nearly $5 million on the sale of his long-time Park Avenue apartment. He first put the residence at 500 Park Avenue on the market for $13.9 million a little over a year ago, not long after he and his wife Klara bought a $34 million penthouse at Silverstein Properties' own development 30 Park Place, which overlooks the WTC site. The Silversteins have now sold the Upper East Side home, according to the Post, but for only $9.3 million.
Have a look around

Amazon could be the Chrysler Building’s new tenant

Via Creative Commons

January 14, 2019

Amazon could be the Chrysler Building’s new tenant

Amazon is close to reaching a deal to lease 10,000 square feet at the Chrysler Building, the New York Post reported on Sunday. News of the impending lease comes less than a week after it was reported that the Art Deco landmark is up for sale. Amazon announced in November plans to open a massive office complex in Long Island City to serve as their "HQ2." The company will start moving to the neighborhood this year, temporarily leasing space at One Court Square, a 50-story building with incredible views of the Manhattan skyline.
More here

Real Estate Trends

Images (L to R): 321 Wythe Avenue, EVE, Summit, and 535 Carlton Avenue

January 12, 2019

FREE RENT: This week’s roundup of NYC rental news

By Annie Doge

321 Wythe in Williamsburg Debuts Luxury Rentals with All-Star Amenities + Skyline Views [LINK] The Hamilton, 1735 York Avenue: Yorkville Rental Leasing 1- to 3-Bed Rentals with 1 Month Free [LINK] OTTO, 211 McGuinness Boulevard: Upscale Greenpoint Rentals from $2,317/Month [LINK] Summit, 222 East 44th Street: Ultra Luxury Midtown East Rental Launches Leasing [LINK] 535 […]

Real Estate Trends

Via Creative Commons

January 9, 2019

The Chrysler Building is for sale