off market real estate

The Real Deal – Robert Khodadadian

Two Midtown luxury mainstays led a boost in the first Manhattan signed contracts in 2024.

Seventeen units went into contract last week, up from 10 the final week of 2023, according to Olshan Realty’s report of homes in the borough asking $4 million or more. 

The most expensive home to enter contract was unit 69E at 217 West 57th Street, with an asking price of $24.5 million. The three-bedroom, 3.5-bathroom condo spans nearly 3,400 square feet, has 11-foot ceilings and views of Central Park.  

The apartment is in Extell Development’s Central Park Tower, a 1,500-foot-tall skyscraper that has been marketed as the tallest residential building in the world. Out of its 180 units, 24 closed last year for an average $4,620 per square foot, not including two studios that sold. 

Compass’ Alexandra Hedaya had the listing. 

The second most expensive home to enter contract was Unit 40W at 50 West 66th Street, Extell’s Lincoln Square property has made repeat appearances at the top of Manhattan’s signed contracts. 

The 2,800-square-foot condo had an asking price of $16.5 million. The home has three bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms, along with a 500-square-foot great room overlooking Central Park and opens onto a 140-square-foot loggia. 

Closings are expected to start later this year at the project. 

Corcoran’s Beth Benalloul and Hilary Landis had the listing. 

Of the 17 units to enter contract last week, 12 were condos, four were co-ops and one was a townhouse. 

The homes’ combined asking price was $141 million, which works out to an average of $8.3 million and a median of $6 million. The typical home spent 737 days on the market and received a 5 percent discount.

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The post Extell’s Central Park views top Manhattan luxury contracts  appeared first on The Real Deal.

Robert Khodadadian has long had a simple philosophy about selling real estate. There are approximately a million buildings in the city, and the broker that gets to sell any one among the multitude that will hit the auctioning block at a given moment is, sometimes, simply the person who happens to pitch their services to the right seller.

Uncategorized, Luxury Real Estate, Manhattan, Olshan Realty The Real DealRead MoreTwo Midtown luxury mainstays led a boost in the first Manhattan signed contracts in 2024. Seventeen units went into contract last week, up from 10 the final week of 2023, according to Olshan Realty’s report of homes in the borough asking $4 million or more.  The most expensive home to enter contract was unit 69E
The post Extell’s Central Park views top Manhattan luxury contracts  appeared first on The Real Deal. 

The Real Deal – Robert Khodadadian

Investors who once saw shimmering profits in Palm Springs Airbnb rentals have hit an impasse.

A cap on short-term rentals in the Coachella Valley hub has all but frozen the housing market in high-demand neighborhoods, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Homes sit unsold for months and investors who gobbled up Palm Springs properties during the pandemic now face hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses.

When the Airbnb platform launched in 2008, it transformed the rental market by making it easier for homeowners to rent out houses and rooms. But then cities started to notice how much housing was lost to short-term rentals. 

Critics said Airbnbs strip affordable housing from the market, while neighbors complained of waves of tourists and loud, late-night parties, in addition to disputes between hosts and renters.

As a result, some cities put the kibosh on short-term rentals, according to the Times.

New York allows such rentals only if the host remains present for the entire stay. L.A. adopted a Home Sharing Ordinance that requires a license allowing hosts to use only their primary residence to rent for up to 120 days per calendar year, providing owners live there at least six months of the year.

Coachella Valley cities such as La Quinta, Cathedral City and Indian Wells have banned new short-term rental permits entirely. Palm Springs, a mecca for tourism, tried a different strategy to safeguard its identity in the era of Airbnb, Vrbo and RentCafe.

In 2022, the City Council adopted an ordinance that capped the number of rental certificates in any neighborhood to 20 percent of its homes. 

Ten Palm Springs neighborhoods are now over the limit, with owners on a waiting list for a rental license that may take years. Homeowners with licenses who sell their properties can’t pass them down to buyers.

Of the 66 organized neighborhoods in Palm Springs, the 10 over the limit include Desert Park Estates, El Mirador, El Rancho Vista Estates, Gene Autry, Lawrence Crossley, Movie Colony East, Racquet Club Estates, Ranch Club Estates, Sunmor and Vista Las Palmas.

For the many Palm Springs buyers who snapped up properties to list them on Airbnb, owning one they can’t rent out has negated their plan. And the new ordinance is killing home values in those 10 neighborhoods, real estate agents say.

Michael Slate, a local agent with Equity Union, said most agents don’t even bother hosting open houses for listings in capped neighborhoods.

“No one shows up,” Slate told the Times. “Buyers are aware of the cap, and properties on the market in those neighborhoods don’t get a lot of activity.”

Slate has one client who paid $1.1 million for a home and poured $300,000 into renovations before the cap kicked in. Now, she’s not sure if she could get $1 million.

Michael Copeland, a real estate agent for Keller Williams based in Seattle, bought a home in March 2022 in the Gene Autry neighborhood for $1.8 million. He obtained a rental license before the ban.

But now he wants to sell the home, and Gene Autry has the longest waiting list of any neighborhood in Palm Springs, with 32 applications in limbo, according to the Times.

Copeland listed the home for $1.725 million, then cut the price to $1.595 million. After more than a year on the market, it still hasn’t landed a buyer.

“One of the things Palm Springs did wrong with this ordinance is not letting licenses transfer when you sell a home,” Copeland told the newspaper.

Some have tried to persuade the City Council to overturn the cap, but most locals have accepted the new way of life, Copeland said.

As a compromise, the city has introduced a junior vacation rental certificate that anyone can apply for, whether they live in a capped neighborhood or not. It costs $642 and allows homeowners to rent out a property six times per year. 

— Dana Bartholomew

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The post Palm Springs home market choked by Airbnb rules appeared first on The Real Deal.

Robert Khodadadian has long had a simple philosophy about selling real estate. There are approximately a million buildings in the city, and the broker that gets to sell any one among the multitude that will hit the auctioning block at a given moment is, sometimes, simply the person who happens to pitch their services to the right seller.

Uncategorized, Airbnb, short-term rentals The Real DealRead MoreInvestors who once saw shimmering profits in Palm Springs Airbnb rentals have hit an impasse. A cap on short-term rentals in the Coachella Valley hub has all but frozen the housing market in high-demand neighborhoods, the Los Angeles Times reported. Homes sit unsold for months and investors who gobbled up Palm Springs properties during the
The post Palm Springs home market choked by Airbnb rules appeared first on The Real Deal. 

The Real Deal – Robert Khodadadian

For the cost of a pizza slice, Boston Properties significantly increased its stake in a Midtown South office property.

BXP acquired a 29 percent stake in 360 Park Avenue South for the basement price of $1, Crain’s reported. Essentially, the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board was ready to wash its hands of the investment it made at the vacant building.

While the pension fund already poured $71 million into the property, its exit will save CPP from some future obligations. The pension plan is being released from $46 million in future funding, as well as $5 million in annual interest payments stemming from BXP’s assumption of CPP’s share of the $220 million mortgage.

BXP bought the property in 2021 for $300 million, quickly launching an extensive $100 million renovation after the acquisition. The purchase, made in a joint venture with the Steinberg family’s Empire Asset Management, gave BXP a 42 percent stake, as well as leasing and management responsibility for the 20-story, 440,000-square-foot property.

BXP chief executive officer Owen Thomas said CPP’s decision was indicative “of a change in strategy.”

In October, San Francisco-based wealth manager Iconiq Capital signed a deal for 70,000 square feet, becoming the first tenant to sign on under the new ownership. The building is 18 percent leased and tenants are expected to start moving in over the summer.

This isn’t the first time in recent weeks an investor has walked away from a Manhattan property without much to immediately show for it. SL Green recently acquired a 95 percent stake in the leasehold at 2 Herald Square for next to nothing, only paying $7 million to settle the property’s $182 million mortgage.

CPP’s decision could foretell a reduction in real estate exposure for the pension plan, according to BMO Capital Markets analyst John Kim. The pension fund, which manages more than $400 billion in assets, owns a 49 percent stake in SL Green’s 10 East 53rd Street.

In 2022, real estate investments from pension funds and large institutions fell 60 percent to $22 billion, according to Preqin.

— Holden Walter-Warner

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The post Boston Properties takes back Midtown South stake for $1 appeared first on The Real Deal.

Robert Khodadadian has long had a simple philosophy about selling real estate. There are approximately a million buildings in the city, and the broker that gets to sell any one among the multitude that will hit the auctioning block at a given moment is, sometimes, simply the person who happens to pitch their services to the right seller.

Uncategorized, Office Market The Real DealRead MoreFor the cost of a pizza slice, Boston Properties significantly increased its stake in a Midtown South office property. BXP acquired a 29 percent stake in 360 Park Avenue South for the basement price of $1, Crain’s reported. Essentially, the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board was ready to wash its hands of the investment it
The post Boston Properties takes back Midtown South stake for $1 appeared first on The Real Deal. 

The Real Deal – Robert Khodadadian

Charlotte’s development pipeline is shrinking, mirroring nationwide trends, and a nonprofit economic development group has the receipts.

In two of Charlotte’s hottest areas — uptown and South End —  roughly $4.2 billion of projects are underway or slated to start construction this year, marking a 39 percent decline from last year’s $6.9 billion forecast, the Charlotte Business Journal reported, citing Charlotte Center City Partners.

Even with the dropoff in development activity, Charlotte is in a relatively good position compared to other cities, as broader market challenges stifle commercial growth throughout much of the nation.

“Downtowns across the world have been stress-tested with lockdowns and protests and altered workplace rhythms and higher capital costs,” Center City Partners CEO Michael Smith told the outlet. “And it’s had its impact on Charlotte. The change in the development pipeline, we’ve got vacancy rates across the United States at the highest level [since 1979].”

Charlotte’s development pipeline in South End and uptown comprises 2.2 million square feet of office space, 377,000 square feet of retail, 1,300 hotel rooms and 9,300 apartments. 

Of the 2.2 million square feet of planned office space between the two submarkets, 82 percent is headed for South End. South End is also the leader in multifamily development, with roughly 6,900 units in the pipeline, accounting for 74 percent of the city’s total. 

“Urban areas with a mix of uses are doing better than office-centric ones,” Chuck McShane of CoStar Group told the outlet.  

Uptown and South End office vacancies stand at 17.9 percent and 7.9 percent, respectively. The national office vacancy reached 19.6 percent in the fourth quarter, the outlet said.

Challenges in the office market can’t be solved entirely with residential conversions or recruiting companies to Charlotte, James LaBar of Center City Partners said. A combination of those, along with demolitions, are needed, he said.

“If we rely solely on market forces and the current public sector tools that we have, this will be a protracted issue for our community,” Smith said. “I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say it’s something we’ll deal with for decades.”

Despite the hurdles ahead, optimism persists due to continued job growth, institutional real estate investment and attractive development opportunities.

Properties like the Pearl, the Iron District and North Tryon Street exemplify Charlotte’s potential for significant growth. The Pearl, for instance, is a 40-acre site that’s set to include a medical facility and a 700,000-square-foot “innovation district.” 

Meanwhile, investments in pro sports venues and cultural attractions have boosted tourism, with venues like the Spectrum Center and Bank of America Stadium driving a 10 percent increase in hotel revenue per available room.

“We’ve got a winning formula,” Smith said “And we’ve got to continue to invest in this formula.”

—Quinn Donoghue

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The post Charlotte’s development pipeline is slowing appeared first on The Real Deal.

Robert Khodadadian has long had a simple philosophy about selling real estate. There are approximately a million buildings in the city, and the broker that gets to sell any one among the multitude that will hit the auctioning block at a given moment is, sometimes, simply the person who happens to pitch their services to the right seller.

Uncategorized, Development pipeline, market overview, Multifamily, Office The Real DealRead MoreCharlotte’s development pipeline is shrinking, mirroring nationwide trends, and a nonprofit economic development group has the receipts. In two of Charlotte’s hottest areas — uptown and South End —  roughly $4.2 billion of projects are underway or slated to start construction this year, marking a 39 percent decline from last year’s $6.9 billion forecast, the
The post Charlotte’s development pipeline is slowing appeared first on The Real Deal.