Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

A luxe Lake Tahoe home once owned by billionaire casino mogul and hotelier Steve Wynn has hit the market for $76 million.

The lakefront estate at 1041 Lakeshore Boulevard (aka Billionaire’s Row), in Incline Village, Nevada, is the most expensive listing in Lake Tahoe and, if it sold for its listed price, would approach the record for the area’s most expensive sale, according to a press release.

The current owners are Nora Lacey, founder of biotech company Cell Marque, and her husband, Dr. Michael Lacey, a pathologist. 

Christine Perry of Christie’s International Real Estate Sereno has the listing.

Wynn, who bought the land for $6.5 million in 1993, built the 5-acre estate in 1994. Wynn sold the property, also known as The Old Forge — Wynn Estate, for $17 million in 1998, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The property has about 210 feet of private beach, and has a deep-water pier, boat hoist, jet ski platform, and two buoys.

The 12,660-square-foot main residence has a primary suite with lake views, three en-suite bedrooms, a fitness and massage room, a gourmet kitchen, media room, game room, wine room, and a great room that unfolds into a 5,000-square-foot outdoor living space.

The estate also has a three-bedroom guest house.

Wynn, who resigned as chairman of Wynn Resorts five years ago amid allegations of sexual misconduct, has not quelled his appetite for real estate deals. In the spring, Wynn sold his lakefront mansion at 1350 North Lake Way in Palm Beach for $66 million to coffee magnate Bob Stiller and his wife Christine.

1041 Lakeshore Blvd WSJ from Miles Minno Photography on Vimeo.

A company tied to the Wynn Resorts’ ex-chairman and CEO paid $49 million for the North Lake Way estate in March 2021, which means the entity sold the property for a 35 percent increase in price in a little over two years.

Former President Donald Trump told attendees of a Grant Cardone conference held last year that Wynn is a master house flipper.

“He does it for sport,” Trump said. “He will buy a house, fix it up a little and sell it. He doesn’t need to do it, but he likes it.”

The post Lake Tahoe estate once owned by Steve Wynn lists for $76M appeared first on The Real Deal.

 A luxe Lake Tahoe home once owned by billionaire casino mogul and hotelier Steve Wynn has hit the market for $76 million. The lakefront estate at 1041 Lakeshore Boulevard (aka Billionaire’s Row), in Incline Village, Nevada, is the most expensive listing in Lake Tahoe and, if it sold for its listed price, would approach the
The post Lake Tahoe estate once owned by Steve Wynn lists for $76M appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Billionaires, Luxury Real Estate, Mansions, Nevada, trophy homes 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Seattle will increase the maximum height of residential towers in part of downtown to tackle both empty downtowns and a significant housing shortage.

The City Council passed a bill last week to let towers on Third Avenue rise as high as 440 feet, up from 170 feet, the Seattle Times reported.

The zoning change could entice developers to build high-rise housing on the 11 parcels with the height increase. Council staff predict the development of two new high rises with 600 to 1,200 units and ground-floor retail – in the next 20 years — as a result of the update. 

“We are not engaged in a project of restoring downtown Seattle to the pre-COVID status quo,” Andrew Lewis, a council member who supported the measure, said. Six council members voted for the change.

“Downtowns have to evolve,” Lewis told the outlet. “By putting a large concentration of residents in our downtown core, we are creating the demand for new storefronts.”

Mayor Bruce Harrell’s administration backed the measure as a way of revitalizing downtown as well as curtailing drug use in that area, since construction zones would close off sidewalks for months.

Three council members who voted against the rezoning said it didn’t adequately address affordable housing. Under Seattle’s affordable housing laws, the two high-rises would create 10 to 20 affordable units, or the developers would pay somewhere between $4.2 million and $8.4 million to build affordable housing elsewhere.

Like many major cities in the U.S., including Boston, San Francisco and Portland, the Covid-19 pandemic profoundly impacted Downtown Seattle, with vacancy rates spiking as employers adopted remote or hybrid work policies.

Housing, or the lack thereof, has also been a major issue throughout the country. In New York City, Mayor Eric Adams announced changes to the city’s zoning code that, if approved by the City Council, would be wide-ranging. By the administration’s estimates, they could create up to 100,000 housing units over the next 15 years. 

— Ted Glanzer

The post Seattle approves tower height increase to spur downtown housing appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Seattle will increase the maximum height of residential towers in part of downtown to tackle both empty downtowns and a significant housing shortage. The City Council passed a bill last week to let towers on Third Avenue rise as high as 440 feet, up from 170 feet, the Seattle Times reported. The zoning change could
The post Seattle approves tower height increase to spur downtown housing appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Housing Shortage, office vacancies, Redevelopment, Return To Work 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

A Bermuda court has ordered the liquidation of a Chinese development firm whose subsidiary sank $1.1 billion into an uncompleted hotel, condo and retail project in Downtown Los Angeles.

The Caribbean court appointed liquidators of Beijing-based China Oceanwide Holdings, whose Oceanwide Holdings didn’t complete the three-building Oceanwide Plaza at Figueroa, Flower, 11th and 12th streets in South Park, Bloomberg reported.

Trading of the company’s stock on Hong Kong’s stock exchange was suspended Monday.

An unidentified creditor had filed a winding-up petition in Bermuda in June of last year to force the liquidation of China Oceanwide because of an unpaid $175 million loan. The financing involves a pledged New York property and secured shares.

A loan for that amount was made for the project by New York-based DW Partners in 2019, according to Bisnow. It appears that $6 million of the loan was repaid, leaving a $169 million balance, according to public documents. 

In July of last year, The Real Deal reported that a mysterious LLC had purchased the note secured by the property for $169 million.

China Oceanwide Holdings ran into strong headwinds in the U.S. after sinking $3.5 billion into real estate investments, Bloomberg reported.

Lenders last year seized control of a New York property where China Oceanwide planned to build one of lower Manhattan’s tallest towers after it failed to make its mortgage payments.

The firm said 18 months ago it was trying to raise cash by selling properties to resume construction of the $2.3 billion Oceanwide Plaza, which stalled in early 2019, leaving in the lurch a 2 million-square-foot hotel, condo and retail project. 

China Oceanwide Holdings has defaulted on a $157 million loan tied to Oceanwide Plaza, The Real Deal reported.

In July, Australian developer Lendlease, the former general contractor for the Downtown project,  filed a statutory declaration demanding repayment of $28.4 million, according to Bisnow, while threatening to file a winding-up petition.

Lendlease also challenged a ruling that would have given lien priority to EB-5 investors in the Oceanwide Plaza project, allowing them to be repaid before Lendlease and other contractors.

Oceanwide faces $220 million in lawsuit liabilities on the hotel and residential complex as detailed in a September 2022 filing, according to Bloomberg.  

— Dana Bartholomew

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The post Bermuda court orders liquidation of developer China Oceanwide Holdings appeared first on The Real Deal.

 A Bermuda court has ordered the liquidation of a Chinese development firm whose subsidiary sank $1.1 billion into an uncompleted hotel, condo and retail project in Downtown Los Angeles. The Caribbean court appointed liquidators of Beijing-based China Oceanwide Holdings, whose Oceanwide Holdings didn’t complete the three-building Oceanwide Plaza at Figueroa, Flower, 11th and 12th streets
The post Bermuda court orders liquidation of developer China Oceanwide Holdings appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Liquidation 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Illinois Attorney General is persisting with the state’s quest to hold Trump International Hotel & Tower responsible for alleged breaches of the Chicago River’s environmental protections.

Raoul has filed an amended complaint to a 2018 lawsuit, which accused the building’s owners of operating a cooling water system without the required permits and of underreporting water discharge levels into the river, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. 

According to the lawsuit, the 92-story tower at 401 North Wabash Avenue takes in roughly 20 million gallons of water daily and releases it at elevated temperatures to support its heating, air conditioning and ventilation systems. This high volume of water intake can be harmful to aquatic life as it poses a threat to fish and other organisms that may become trapped against intake screens.

In addition, the attorney general’s office alleges that the building owners have been discharging water into the river without a necessary National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit, which is mandated by federal law. The previous NPDES permit for the building expired in 2017 and was not renewed because the owners failed to provide required reports about intake structure conditions and other information, the outlet reported.

Despite an interim order in 2018 requiring compliance with the permit’s provisions, the owners reportedly failed to adhere to it, leading to ongoing violations.

“Even after the state of Illinois took steps to hold Trump Tower accountable for violations of state and federal environmental laws, violations have continued — underscoring a disregard for the laws and regulations that are in place to protect our waterways and aquatic life,” Raoul told the outlet.

The lawsuit is asking the court to levy a $10,000 fine for each day of violation, potentially equating to $12 million of fines for the hotel.

In a related matter, a recent appellate court ruling found that insurers of the Trump Tower are off the hook to pay claims linked to the alleged river misuse.

— Quinn Donoghue 

Read more

The post Raoul advances battle over Trump Tower’s alleged Chicago River misuse appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Illinois Attorney General is persisting with the state’s quest to hold Trump International Hotel & Tower responsible for alleged breaches of the Chicago River’s environmental protections. Raoul has filed an amended complaint to a 2018 lawsuit, which accused the building’s owners of operating a cooling water system without the required permits and of underreporting water
The post Raoul advances battle over Trump Tower’s alleged Chicago River misuse appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, environmental hazard, Lawsuit, Politics 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

As Congress enters the thick of budget negotiations for 2024, concerns are growing over the potential renewal of a longstanding program that gives agencies including the Chicago Housing Authority flexibility over how to use funds allocated for housing and vouchers.

Under the program, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development allows the CHA and other housing authorities to redirect those funds to other public services, which critics argue prevents thousands of Chicagoans from accessing vital housing assistance, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Moving to Work — the name of the program, which was established in 1996— gives leeway to housing authorities in addressing local housing needs and helping residents attain employment and self-sufficiency. However, opponents of the recent use of the program contend that these agencies are diverting millions of dollars away from housing assistance, leaving many families on voucher waitlists and hindering construction of essential public housing.

Some housing advocates argue that the program’s current allocation of funds is less effective than vouchers in assisting low-income families. They have called for more oversight and a reconsideration of Moving to Work contracts.

“Chicago is a very extreme example, but it’s a really important example of a housing authority and how they are using their MTW flexibilities not necessarily to benefit the residents,” Deborah Thrope, deputy director of the National Housing Law Project, told the outlet.

The program is set to expire in 2028 and currently under consideration for a 15-year extension through 2043 by the Senate Committee on Appropriations. Housing advocates argue that increased oversight is necessary, especially for agencies like the CHA, which redirected approximately $74 million in federal voucher dollars away from housing assistance in 2022, affecting over 6,000 families, the newspaper reported, citing Washington-based think tank Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

Tracey Scott, CEO of the CHA, defended the program, emphasizing its importance in meeting the city’s housing needs, while others argue that the funds should be entirely directed towards housing.

In 2022, the CHA allocated more $916 million from its $1.2 billion budget to the Moving to Work program. The funds were distributed across various purposes, including the voucher program, property management, capital repairs, personnel and resident services.

The CHA maintains that the program has allowed it to serve more families over the years, citing an increase from 49,921 families in 1999 to 63,449 families in 2022. In addition, the CHA claims that it has the capacity to build additional housing units, with more than 19,000 units in the pipeline, the outlet reported.

— Quinn Donoghue

Read more

The post Federal budget talks spark concerns over housing program’s renewal appeared first on The Real Deal.

 As Congress enters the thick of budget negotiations for 2024, concerns are growing over the potential renewal of a longstanding program that gives agencies including the Chicago Housing Authority flexibility over how to use funds allocated for housing and vouchers. Under the program, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development allows the CHA and
The post Federal budget talks spark concerns over housing program’s renewal appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Affordable Housing, Public Housing, Residential 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Eagle Four Partners has reopened a 295-room hotel near Fashion Island as Pendry Newport Beach.

After a renovation, the Newport Beach-based private equity firm reopened the 20-story hotel at 690 Newport Center Drive, the Orange County Register reported. It had been closed since the pandemic in 2020.

Eagle Four bought a leasehold interest in the 20-story Fashion Island Hotel from the Irvine Company in February last year for $143 million. It then secured a $146 million loan for its renovation, according to The Real Deal.

The Pendry Newport Beach debuted this week under the management of Pendry Hotels & Resorts, owned by Irvine-based Montage International, a luxury hotel and management company founded two decades ago by Alan Fuerstman.

Pendry, launched in 2017, has eight hotels across the U.S., including properties in West Hollywood, San Diego and New York. A Pendry La Quinta is in the works.

Its hotel near Fashion Island mall has 114 suites overlooking the Pacific Ocean, Newport Harbor or Back Bay. 

It has a spa, fitness center, a Tree Shack Bar & Grill by the hotel pool, a club for children ages 5 to 12 and a 58,000-square-foot indoor and outdoor meeting space. Rooms rent for about $400 a night.

Pendry aims to position its hotel in Newport Beach as a prime destination for dinner and drinks — as well as a “staycation” spot for locals — on top of the business and tourism trade of Newport Center. An interior redesign was done by Studio Munge, with architecture by WATG and landscaping by Burton Studio.

The Fashion Island Hotel was built by the Irvine Company in 1986. It was run by Four Seasons until the Irvine Company took over management in 2005 and renamed it Island Hotel Newport Beach. Five years ago, it was rebranded under the Fashion Island name.

Down the street, Eagle Four Partners is turning the former Newport Beach Marriott Hotel & Spa into a new Marriott-branded hotel called Vea Newport Beach. In 2020, Eagle Four and another investor bought the 400-room hotel for $216 million, the largest hotel deal in the state that year.

— Dana Bartholomew

Read more

The post Eagle Four Partners reopens Newport Beach hotel under Pendry brand appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Eagle Four Partners has reopened a 295-room hotel near Fashion Island as Pendry Newport Beach. After a renovation, the Newport Beach-based private equity firm reopened the 20-story hotel at 690 Newport Center Drive, the Orange County Register reported. It had been closed since the pandemic in 2020. Eagle Four bought a leasehold interest in the
The post Eagle Four Partners reopens Newport Beach hotel under Pendry brand appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Hotels 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

The prevailing — and altogether fair — narrative is that the office market is in the toilet.

But that doesn’t mean there aren’t a few fish willing to try to swim against that mighty current.

Wells Fargo is taking an expensive plunge — about $550 million — to buy 20 Hudson Yards for a retail-to-office conversion.

Related Companies and Oxford Properties Group are selling the three-story, 400,000-square-foot space while retaining ownership of the rest of the 11-story property.

Wells Fargo plans to occupy the space, which spans floors five through seven. The deal for the space hasn’t closed yet, but is expected to be one of the year’s largest commercial property deals in Manhattan once it does.

And while it’s not a reversal of office-to-residential, a conversion to office is rare these days as companies adapt hybrid and remote work policies.

Meanwhile, in Brooklyn, Two Tree Management went all in on office with its  460,000-square-foot Domino Park megaproject, which finally opened after 10 years of redeveloping and restoring the Domino Sugar Refinery.

Back in 2012, the original proposal for the project called for condominiums. But Two Trees bought the project in 2013 for $185 million, went back through the approval process and converted it into office space. Such a move was unheard of then and unthinkable, given where the markets are, now.

“No one trades residential for office space,” said the group’s spokesperson, David Lombino. “And that was in 2013. Flash forward to 2023, it seems even crazier.”

Indeed, office space is on the rise in Brooklyn, while office leasing is declining. But Two Trees officials believe in their project.

“The presence of workers here 24 hours a day, seven days a week changes the character of the immediate neighborhood and makes it more lively. It allows us to attract different and better retail, not just dry cleaners and drug stores,” Lombino said. “That, in turn, helps the residential.”

In Chicago, Fulton Street Cos. has secured financing for its $300 million development at 919 West Fulton Street, the city’s first major new office development in more than a year.

Little Rock, Arkansas-based Bank OZK and Toronto-based Manulife are financing the project with a $200 million loan, and Manulife provided $120 million, according to sources close to the deal.

Though soaring interest rates and a troubled office market have created a tough environment for commercial lending, Najem suggested that interest rates will come down by the time the project is completed and leased up enough to refinance the property.

The post Office bets made a comeback this week appeared first on The Real Deal.

 The prevailing — and altogether fair — narrative is that the office market is in the toilet. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t a few fish willing to try to swim against that mighty current. Wells Fargo is taking an expensive plunge — about $550 million — to buy 20 Hudson Yards for a retail-to-office conversion. Related
The post Office bets made a comeback this week appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Chicago, New York City, Week in Review 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Two Trees revealed its ambitious office building at the old Domino Sugar Refinery factory, part of a mixed-used megaproject on the Williamsburg waterfront. 

When Two Trees purchased the site in 2012 for $185 million, it was set for a condo development. But the firm made the decision to transition a good chunk of the project to office. However risky that move seemed in 2012, it’s started to look much worse in recent years, especially now that the building has opened its doors without an anchor tenant.

The building does have a few things going for it, though.

A rendering of the Domino Sugar Factory offices (The Refinery at Domino)

As we covered last week, true Class A office — what some would call Trophy class — has fared much better than the rest of the market. The brand-new space fits the Class A mold better than most in the area. Asking rents reflect that, with a price per square foot from the high $70s to the high $90s, according to Commercial Observer. 

Also worth noting: it’s beautiful. The 460,000-square-foot glass tower is nestled inside the brick exoskeleton of the 150-year-old Domino Sugar factory, complete with a retro-looking sign and breathtaking views of Manhattan. New York Magazine’s architecture critic Justin Davidson called it, simply, “a great work of architecture.” 

How much that beautiful design is worth remains to be seen, especially given its location in Williamsburg. Office leasing in Brooklyn has been falling fast. 

For now, the building is poised to act as a barometer of the market for new office developments, especially those sitting outside the traditional powerhouses of Midtown and the Financial District.

 —

What we’re thinking about: It’s been a huge week for Related at Hudson Yards. Credit agencies boosted the rating for construction bonds tied to the project. Perhaps more importantly, the company sold a soon-to-be converted retail space to Wells Fargo for $550 million. The deal has raised eyebrows across the industry. It’s certainly a strong vote of confidence for Hudson Yards and the market for high-end office space. What are your impressions of the deal? Send a note to david.westenhaver@therealdeal.com.

—

Closing Time

Residential: The priciest residential closing Friday was $10.5 million for a co-op at 1050 Fifth Avenue on the Upper East Side.

Commercial: The most expensive commercial closing of the day was $15 million for a rental building at 157-59 Wythe Avenue in Williamsburg.

New to the Market 

The priciest residence to hit the market Friday was a condo at 551 West 21st Street in West Chelsea asking $40 million. Douglas Elliman has the listing.

—

A thing we’ve learned: This September has been the second-wettest in New York City history. For most of the month, the rain has been little more than a damper on the city’s spirits. Now, it’s causing major delays to transit service. Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Adams both declared a state of emergency.

Elsewhere in New York

— A government shutdown could kick off this Sunday, as federal officials butt heads over a budget. A shutdown could impact millions of New Yorkers, Gothamist reports, from the 1.7 million people receiving food aid to the tens of thousands of government employees living and working in the city.
— A Manhattan judge ruled in favor of a city law requiring food delivery services to pay workers at least $17.96 an hour. The ruling is (obviously) a huge win for delivery workers, who earn $11 an hour on average, according to The City.

The post The Daily Dirt: Domino Park office searches for anchor tenant appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Two Trees revealed its ambitious office building at the old Domino Sugar Refinery factory, part of a mixed-used megaproject on the Williamsburg waterfront.  When Two Trees purchased the site in 2012 for $185 million, it was set for a condo development. But the firm made the decision to transition a good chunk of the project
The post The Daily Dirt: Domino Park office searches for anchor tenant appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Daily Dirt 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Some real estate professionals take time off to travel, others spend time with family and friends.

But Savena Mushinge, a transaction manager at JLL, is taking a week to compete in the Miss USA competition, BisNow reported. She qualified for the competition by winning the Miss Maryland USA pageant in April.

By day, Mushinge manages leases for the U.S. Postal Service facilities, working on numerous deals from JLL’s D.C. office. And she spends part of her life competing in scholarship competitions.

The upcoming Miss USA competition involves rehearsals, interviews with judges, social media and TV appearances, meet-and-greets, swimsuit and ballgown segments, and onstage questions. The final will be broadcast on the CW.

“You’ve got various amazing women. And so you really have to know yourself and know what you’re bringing to the table and what makes you stand out,” she told the outlet. “And I think the most challenging part is really knowing who you are because I think the judges are going to be able to pick up on that very quickly.”

She was born in Zambia and came to the U.S. when she was 13; her family’s involvement in real estate, buying and flipping houses, sparked her interest in the field.

Now, Mushinge aims to mentor others, especially women and people of color, to help diversify her profession.

In addition to her busy career and competing the Miss USA pageant, she serves as a health and wellness advocate for JLL, runs her charity, the Daughters Pride Foundation, and acts as a tourism ambassador for Zambia.

“I remember arriving to this country and the first thing that comes to mind is for whatever reason, it did not get dark,” she told the outlet. “The sun was out longer. It was 8:45 [p.m.], and it’s still bright as day outside. And ever since that day, I feel being in this country, my life has only gotten brighter, has only gotten better.”

Mushinge isn’t the only real estate professional with an unusual, high-profile pursuit outside of work.

Matija Pecotic, who is the director of capital markets for Wexford Real Estate Investors in Palm Beach, Florida, lived his dream in February when he took part in the Delray Beach Open tennis tournament.

The 33-year-old, who is ranked 784th in the world, ultimately fell in straight sets to No. 55 Marcos Giron, but not before creating some lifelong memories.

He got into the tournament as an alternate and a slot opened up. Earlier this year, he won three qualifying matches, including one over Jack Sock, who had once been ranked in the top 10 in the world and won the Delray Beach Open in 2017.

“Hopefully this has shown that I can play at a high level,” Pecotic told Bloomberg News. “I’ve actually never gotten a wild card to any event in my life — all my results have been meritocratic, so if this leads to opportunities at other big events, I would consider putting Wexford on pause, I wouldn’t quit.”

— Ted Glanzer

The post JLL manager looks to be crowned Miss USA appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Some real estate professionals take time off to travel, others spend time with family and friends. But Savena Mushinge, a transaction manager at JLL, is taking a week to compete in the Miss USA competition, BisNow reported. She qualified for the competition by winning the Miss Maryland USA pageant in April. By day, Mushinge manages
The post JLL manager looks to be crowned Miss USA appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Celebrity Real Estate, commercial real estate Companies: JLL 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Mark Wahlberg didn’t spend too many “Boogie Nights” at his Las Vegas home before deciding to boogie away.

The movie star sold a townhouse in the suburb of Summerlin to a limited liability company for $16.6 million, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported. The two-story, 7,300-square-foot home is in The Summit Club, a private community.

Wahlberg has talked a ton about moving his family to Las Vegas and turning it into a mecca for film production. His $14.5 million purchase of the townhouse last August exemplified him walking the walk.

While it may seem odd for Wahlberg to suddenly flip the home in Las Vegas he owned for 13 months, the city hasn’t seen the last of the multihyphenate. The Summit Club hasn’t seen the last of him either, as Wahlberg owns 2.5 acres in the same community, buying the land for $15.6 million before the townhouse purchase; he may be looking to build a mansion of his own on that plot.

The anonymous buyer is getting much more than a two-story townhouse. They are also getting access to all of the amenities at the Summit Club, which includes a golf course, 24-hour security, wellness and recreation programs, snack stations, tennis courts and of course, pickleball courts.

This year, Wahlberg and his wife, Rhea Durham, also sold their 30,500-square-foot mansion in Beverly Park, California for $55 million. That sum was $32.5 million below what the couple asked for the property when they put it on the market in April 2022 for $87.5 million; the Hollywood A-lister and his model wife bought the property for $8.2 million in 2009 before building their own mega-compound.

Wahlberg, a Boston native, is best known for his roles in movies such as “Boogie Nights,” “The Departed,” “The Fighter” and “Ted.” He was also a member of Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch in the 1990s, best known for their smash hit, “Good Vibrations.”

— Holden Walter-Warner

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The post Departed: Mark Wahlberg flips Las Vegas home for $17M appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Mark Wahlberg didn’t spend too many “Boogie Nights” at his Las Vegas home before deciding to boogie away. The movie star sold a townhouse in the suburb of Summerlin to a limited liability company for $16.6 million, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported. The two-story, 7,300-square-foot home is in The Summit Club, a private community. Wahlberg
The post Departed: Mark Wahlberg flips Las Vegas home for $17M appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Celebrity Real Estate, Las Vegas, Luxury Real Estate 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

El Presidente has a new palace from which to rule.

Dave Portnoy, the polarizing founder of Barstool Sports and pizza maven, recently bought a luxe Nantucket compound for a record-breaking $42 million, the Wall Street Journal reported.

This off-market sale is the highest not only in Nantucket, but the state of Massachusetts, where the previous record was $38.1 million, which was set just a few months ago. The deal included additional $2 million worth of furnishings and other items, the outlet reported   

Shellie Dunlap of Lee Real Estate, represented the sellers, identified only as  known as the MAK Daddy Trust and MAK Shack Trust, while Peter Engen of Lee Real Estate, represented Portnoy.

The 1.2-acre property, located in the Monomoy area, sprawls along the Nantucket Harbor waterfront. The owners bought two parcels in 2016 for a combined $13.3 million and custom-built the compound following the demolition of two existing homes. 

The property now has a main residence designed by Andrew Kotchen of Workshop/APD, with  four bedrooms and a primary suite with an indoor-outdoor shower and spectacular harbor views. The compound also includes a pool area and guest quarters, accessible via an underground tunnel. 

Portnoy, who is from Massachusetts, has previously invested in Nantucket real estate, having bought a property for around $2 million. He recently reacquired Barstool for $550 million after selling it to Penn Entertainment. He’s also known for appearing in headlines nearly as much as his media company generates them. In 2021, he faced allegations of sexual misconduct from several women, which he denied.

He’s also been accused of making misogynistic, sexist and racist harassing comments, which he has passed off as jokes, according to the Washington Post. 

At the same time, he’s developed several wildly popular brands, including Barstool and the “One Bite Pizza Reviews,” which he spun off into a festival that took place last weekend. He also has a rabid fanbase, known as Stoolies. His reviews can boost restaurant revenue up to 50 percent, the WaPo said, and a fund he created to support restaurants and small businesses during the pandemic raised millions of dollars.

He’s also fond of buying beach homes. 

In 2022, he bought a beach house in the Hamptons for $9.75 million.

The home sits on nearly a full acre of land, and the property includes a pool and a view of the ocean.

Compass’ Matt Breitenbach and Greg Gould represented both the buyer and seller in the off-market deal. Both declined requests for comment from The Real Deal on the transaction.

In 2021, he bought a bayfront Miami home for $14 million, a record for the city’s Morningside neighborhood.

That home is about 6,100 square feet in size, built in 1939 on a 1-acre lot. It also includes a pool, as well as nine bedrooms and eight-and-a-half bathrooms.

— Ted Glanzer

The post Barstool’s Dave Portnoy buys Nantucket home for state-record $42M appeared first on The Real Deal.

 El Presidente has a new palace from which to rule. Dave Portnoy, the polarizing founder of Barstool Sports and pizza maven, recently bought a luxe Nantucket compound for a record-breaking $42 million, the Wall Street Journal reported. This off-market sale is the highest not only in Nantucket, but the state of Massachusetts, where the previous
The post Barstool’s Dave Portnoy buys Nantucket home for state-record $42M appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Celebrity Real Estate, Luxury Real Estate, Massachusetts, Nantucket 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Deadly fires caused by e-bikes’ lithium ion batteries have set off attempts to regulate the vehicles by multifamily buildings and politicians.

In New York, where delivery workers and other residents have embraced e-bike use since their legalization in 2020, fires have caused 74 injuries and 13 deaths as of July 3, TechCrunch reported, citing statistics from the Fire Department of New York. That is twice as many deaths than in all of 2022 and three times the number from 2021.

That sounded like a problem to the co-founders of JOCO, which operates an e-bike rideshare company. JOCO, founded by two men named Jonathan Cohenm, will now offer fireproof cabinets to store lithium ion batteries. 

“It’s becoming increasingly more important,” said one of the Jonathan Cohens, who is from London. “They’re the fastest selling electric vehicle period, faster than electric cars. These buildings have to figure out how to accommodate them.”

Damaged or poorly manufactured batteries caused most of the blazes. Delivery workers, who on average make below the minimum wage, often buy cheap or second-hand batteries because those that are certified can cost up to $1,000. In September, a law went into effect in New York City that requires all sales and rentals of e-bikes to meet certain safety standards.

JOCO had incentive to find a solution. The company aims its service at delivery workers and has more than 60 locations across New York, Chicago and Miami.

“Our mission is to remove cars and trucks from streets for last-mile delivery,” the other Cohen, who is based in New York, said. “When you consider tickets, gas, delivery, it’s more favorable to not use them. We’re becoming a great option in a safe and sustainable manner. We saw the whole e-bike-fire issue coming and we produced proprietary fireproof cabinets.”

The firm has also drawn scrutiny for running afoul of local safety regulations. In July, the city fined JOCO and Grubhub nearly $6,500 for having 60 uncertified lithium ion batteries at a SoHo e-bike charging station, according to The City.

The cabinets range from $5,000 to $20,000 depending on their size and quality. To use one, an e-bike rider removes the battery from the bike, connects the battery to a cabinet slot and closes the door. 

“Once the doors are shut, should anything happen, everything is contained in the cabinet,” the New York Cohen said. 

The fire department gave its seal of approval with a “Letter of No Objection,” making JOCO the first New York-based company to receive it and the second company in the marketplace to receive it, according to the Cohens.

The Cohens say there are two markets for the cabinets: delivery companies like Grubhub, Orbital Kitchens and Gopuff, and residential and office building owners whose tenants ride e-bikes.

“Banning e-bikes is not the only option; storing them safely is an even better option,” the Cohens said in a statement.

The post JOCO’s fireproof cabinets offer solution for e-bike battery fires  appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Deadly fires caused by e-bikes’ lithium ion batteries have set off attempts to regulate the vehicles by multifamily buildings and politicians. In New York, where delivery workers and other residents have embraced e-bike use since their legalization in 2020, fires have caused 74 injuries and 13 deaths as of July 3, TechCrunch reported, citing statistics
The post JOCO’s fireproof cabinets offer solution for e-bike battery fires  appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Climate Change, ebikes, multifamily amenities, office amenities, Sustainability, Transportation 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Former president Donald Trump relinquished the Trump Organization to his sons and Allen Weisselberg when he took office in 2017.

In the next week or so, he could take steps towards giving up control again, now to a court-approved receiver after a New York judge ruled that Attorney General Letitia James could cancel legal certificates that allow some Trump companies to do business in New York.

Trump’s team wants more details and could request a stay on the receivership decision. If he can’t stop the courts from putting trophy properties like 40 Wall Street and Trump Tower into receivership, Trump wouldn’t be the first real estate giant whose buildings have ended up this way.

Most of the time, a receiver is appointed in foreclosure cases or when an owner won’t make repairs. Sources told The Real Deal that a receiver being called in on the Trump case puts the to-be-appointed person in the middle of an unusual situation. Receivers effectively manage properties while legal proceedings conclude, and after that, they prepare the properties for sale in a way to maximize the return. Rulings like this in non-foreclosure cases are usually reserved for illegal operations engaged in broad fraud.

“Typically, you ask the court to cancel the business certificate, and a court will decline,” said Lee Bergstein, a lawyer at Bergstein Flynn Knowlton and Pollina. “The fact that the court is [pursuing] this remedy is certainly unique. I can’t say that it hasn’t been done before, but I haven’t been involved in a case where I’ve seen a court order this type of remedy.”

Engoron’s ruling orders Trump and New York Attorney General Latitia James’s office to suggest no more than three potential receivers within 10 days of Sept. 26. The actual appointment could be months away. Another non-jury trial held in Engoron’s court is set to begin Monday to rule on outstanding issues in the case. It will go forward after an appellate court rejected Trump’s attempt to postpone.

The duties of a receiver include collecting rent, managing tenant relationships, making needed repairs, keeping financial books, paying taxes and insurance premium, negotiating expiring leases and anything involved in managing the property to protect the value of the property. Receivers appear to need nothing more than a certification, but they are usually lawyers. After the financial crisis, troubled condos, rental buildings and even in-progress projects ended up with receivers. Receivers don’t make much money: 95% of rent and other revenue goes into the property, with 5% left for their fee.

In this case, the receiver will need experience managing a vast portfolio of varying assets that consist of office buildings, residential towers and golf courses named in the ruling, in addition to basic qualifications stipulated in statute. 

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It’s a monumental task that will require subsequent permissions from Engoron to seize rent rolls, security deposits, service contracts and anything else needed for operation of the properties. Owners typically want to leave properties in good working order so they can reclaim them in similar shape. 

Trump’s lawyers suggested Barbara Jones, a former U.S. district court judge who served as monitor in the case, and she is likely the frontrunner for the position. As monitor, Jones concluded that Trump’s financial disclosures were inconsistent and incomplete, which played a role in Enogron’s rulings.

“Judge Jones has impeccable credentials, broad experience and the gravitas to effectively handle such an assignment,” said Michael Miller, a New York based lawyer with experience serving as a receiver and the president of the New York State Bar Association. “She would certainly be highly qualified for such a challenging and high-profile assignment.”

The post Who could manage the Trump Org? appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Former president Donald Trump relinquished the Trump Organization to his sons and Allen Weisselberg when he took office in 2017. In the next week or so, he could take steps towards giving up control again, now to a court-approved receiver after a New York judge ruled that Attorney General Letitia James could cancel legal certificates
The post Who could manage the Trump Org? appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Commercial Real Estate, Donald Trump 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

A mystery buyer has purchased a retail center in South Austin from SITE Centers.

Cathy Nabours and Kyle Shaffer of SRS Real Estate Partners brokered the sale of the 26,000-square-foot Oaks at Slaughter, which property records show is owned by an LLC with the same address as Ohio-based SITE Centers. The buyer is a New York-based REIT, according to a news release from SRS.

The center benefits from the adjacent H-E-B. 

“Investor demand for retail product throughout the South and in Central Texas is at an all-time high,” said Nabours, managing principal of SRS.

Torchy’s Tacos, Ramen Tatsuya, Twin Liquors and JuiceLand are tenants of the shopping center, which is 94 percent leased overall. It’s off of Interstate 35 at the confluence of Slaughter Lane and South Congress.

“The submarket has seen expansive growth with a 60 percent population increase over the past 10 years and a projected 7 percent increase over the next five years,” SRS said in a news release.

In the same vein, South Florida-based JBL Asset Management bought the 106,000-square-foot Olmos Creek Shopping Center in San Antonio from Dallas-based TCP Realty Services. It is 95 percent leased with tenants including Dollar Tree and Planet Fitness.

Six of the 13 bidders were from out of state, said Nabours, who brokered the sale with Shaffer.

“Despite the rising interest rate environment, there are more investors looking to buy than there are properties available for sale,” she said.

Ohio-based Phillips Edison purchased the 41,000-square-foot Lake Pointe Market at 6702 Dalrock Road in Rowlett from Houston-based Main Street Investment Company. Adam Howells, Chris Gerard and Megan Babovec of JLL Retail Capital Markets represented the seller and procured the buyer.

Indiana-based Kite Realty Group Trust bought Prestonwood Place, a 160,000-square-foot shopping center at 5290 Belt Line Road in Addison, the Dallas Morning News reported. It was built in 1980, and tenants include Loro, Flower Child, La La Land, Shake Shack and OrangeTheory Fitness.

Kite Realty signed 13 tenants to the Southlake Town Square recently, the Dallas Morning News reported. Southern Tides, Chubbies, Waggle Golf and Fount are opening their first Dallas-Fort Worth stores in the shopping center, at 285 Grand Avenue, northeast of Fort Worth.

A massive Nebraska Furniture Mart is planned in the Austin suburb of Cedar Park, the Austin Business Journal reported. The 1.2 million-square-foot store is expected to have 700 employees and is the Berkshire Hathaway-owned retailer’s first location in the Austin area. Construction is expected to start early next year, and the store could open in late 2026. A 1.7 million-square-foot NFM store in The Colony, near Dallas, is in the chain’s top three for sales.

Kroger started construction on a Kroger Marketplace store in Plano, the Dallas Morning News reported. The 124,000-square-foot store at State Highway 121 and Coit Road is replacing a nearby store that’s about half the size, the outlet reported.

H-E-B plans to open its store at 575 East Exchange Parkway in Allen on Wednesday, Oct. 4, the Dallas Morning News reported. The San Antonio-based grocery chain’s next Dallas-Fort Worth stores will be in Melissa, Prosper and Rockwall and are expected to open in 2025.

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The post Out-of-state buyers snap up Central Texas shopping centers appeared first on The Real Deal.

 A mystery buyer has purchased a retail center in South Austin from SITE Centers. Cathy Nabours and Kyle Shaffer of SRS Real Estate Partners brokered the sale of the 26,000-square-foot Oaks at Slaughter, which property records show is owned by an LLC with the same address as Ohio-based SITE Centers. The buyer is a New
The post Out-of-state buyers snap up Central Texas shopping centers appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Shopping Centers 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

A father-son team is getting to work in Turtle Bay 

SK Development filed plans to demolish three buildings on the corner of First Avenue and East 51st Street, Crain’s reported. The properties slated for demolition are 930 First Avenue, 936 First Avenue and 401 East 51st Street.

While the wrecking ball is being prepared, it’s not entirely clear what will spring up to replace the buildings. Scott Shnay, the younger member of the executive team, said the firm would build a multifamily property in its stead. The project is still in the predevelopment phase, however, and no estimated cost or construction timeline has been made available. CB Developers will work with SK on the project.

SK purchased the trio of properties in June for $46.8 million. The existing buildings combine to span 51,000 square feet with 47 residential units split among them.

A four-minute walk from the development site is another project from SK, a 140,000-square-foot mixed-use property at 301 East 50th Street. The 57-unit condo was developed by SK alongside frequent partners CB and Ironstate Development.

CBSK Ironstate, a partnership between all three companies, also developed the Upper East Side condo building at 1228 Madison Avenue. Less than a year after its completion, Compass replaced Corcoran Sunshine from marketing the five remaining unsold units in October, brining the trio of the St. André Team, the Philip Scheinfeld Team and the brokerage’s Development Marketing Group.

In May, a 95-unit building in Turtle Bay sold at a 90 percent discount after crowdfund investor Prodigy, which had a majority stake in the 20-story property, lost it through foreclosure. An anonymous limited liability company picked it up.

— Holden Walter-Warner

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The post SK Development eyes Turtle Bay multifamily project appeared first on The Real Deal.

 A father-son team is getting to work in Turtle Bay  SK Development filed plans to demolish three buildings on the corner of First Avenue and East 51st Street, Crain’s reported. The properties slated for demolition are 930 First Avenue, 936 First Avenue and 401 East 51st Street. While the wrecking ball is being prepared, it’s
The post SK Development eyes Turtle Bay multifamily project appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Demolition, Multifamily Real Estate 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Something stinks at the Cloisters.

That’s because sewage has been backing up into apartments at the student housing complex since Landmark Properties moved residents in last Friday. Aside from the sewage, University of Miami student residents and their families have reported issues with water quality, dysfunctional air conditioning, missing locks and window covers, and leaking roofs, among a litany of other complaints. A Cloisters representative told one parent they have received more than 400 work orders this week alone, according to text messages reviewed by The Real Deal. 

Photos provided to TRD confirm the sewage backup, which was also confirmed by a Miami-Dade County representative.

After county inspectors spent two days on site, some students are being forced to move out of their units and return to the hotel rooms they lived in for a month, awaiting construction to be completed. 

It marks another messy chapter in the Cloisters saga. 

Lorna Mejia-Lopez, a public engagement representative for Miami-Dade County, said a slew of complaints from residents and families caught the building department’s attention on Monday. 

“Following inspections and following a meeting with the project managers for the site, they came up with a list of items that need to be looked at and addressed,” she said. The full list of required fixes has yet to be released. 

University of Miami students were supposed to move into the housing complex at 5830 and 5840 Southwest 57th Avenue on Aug. 18. Landmark alerted its tenants on Aug. 13 of an “unexpected and unfortunate delay” in construction of the project, which includes 36 new-construction townhouses and 81 renovated apartment units, for a total of 296 bedrooms in the complex. 

Since then, students and parents have taken to a Facebook group, the UM Cloister Cluster, to air grievances and share information. 

The townhouses received a temporary certificate of approval in early September, and residents of those units were able to move in the first weekend of the month. Apartment tenants were told they’d be able to move in Sept. 15 — only for inspections to fall through at the 11th hour. Then, on Wednesday, Sept. 19, Landmark informed residents they’d be able to move in starting at 7:00 a.m. that Friday.

On Sunday, Cloisters resident Kayla Collinson shared a photo to the UM Cloister Cluster group. It showed a bathtub full of poop.

“This is my friend’s apartment right now. Called every Cloisters number and emergency maintenance multiple times,” she wrote. “We don’t know what to do.”

On Thursday, residents of the first floor apartments in the complex’s Building 1 received calls to vacate their apartments. Landmark would put them up in hotel rooms again, saying the repairs would be completed and they could return by Oct. 4. 

Those remaining are still concerned about their water quality, however. Allan Friedman, a parent of a Cloisters resident, said his daughter is bringing in her own drinking water to the apartment.

“The water is just unusable,” he said. “As a parent, I spent $2,950 a month in rent there…. Now we’re in this mess.”

Landmark responded to a request for comment with a statement, saying the health and safety of its residents is its “top priority,” and it is addressing work orders as quickly as possible. It confirmed that it is offering “alternative accommodations” if it cannot immediately resolve issues that “impact habitability.” 

Miami-Dade officials confirmed in a statement that the final inspections at the Cloisters prior to move-in were conducted by a private provider, Universal Engineering Sciences. The county is now conducting a full audit of the firm’s inspection of the Cloisters.

The county also confirmed the contractor is required to clear the blockage and video sewage lines, and any additional issues uncovered will require further permitting and inspection.

The original apartment building was built in 1965, records show. Landmark bought the development site in December 2021 for $23.3 million. Records show the developer filed a notice of commencement with the county in February 2022, with BDI Construction as the general contractor. Plans for the property’s landscaping were filed in July, and approved Aug. 15, according to county planning documents. 

For some families, the delays and treatment by Landmark have been too much to bear, and they want out. Dozens of families have enlisted local attorney Jacqueline Salcines to help them break the 56-page leases they signed with Landmark.

Landmark is a Goliath in the student housing market. The firm, led by co-founders J. Wesley Rogers and James B. Whitley, has $11 billion in assets under management, according to its website, and is one of the largest student housing developers in the country. Landmark also has another 400-unit, eight-story student housing tower planned in Coral Gables. 

Following a meeting with Landmark’s attorneys earlier this week, Salcines confirmed the developer plans to hold tenants and their guarantors accountable for the full value of their leases.

“I’ve never honestly seen anything this egregious,” Salcines said. “It’s just really sad all around.”

The post S***storm: UM Cloisters residents back in hotels after sewage backup appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Something stinks at the Cloisters. That’s because sewage has been backing up into apartments at the student housing complex since Landmark Properties moved residents in last Friday. Aside from the sewage, University of Miami student residents and their families have reported issues with water quality, dysfunctional air conditioning, missing locks and window covers, and leaking
The post S***storm: UM Cloisters residents back in hotels after sewage backup appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, construction delays, Coral Gables, Landmark Properties, Miami-Dade County, Student Housing, University Of Miami 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

In the latest roundup of residential sales in South Florida’s luxury market, buyers include a self-storage mogul, a big dairy honcho, and New York City jeweler.

Sales stretched from Palm Beach to Miami, and ranged in price from $6.8 million to $14 million. 

Two of the closings were at Estates at Acqualina, the oceanfront condominium at 17901 Collins Avenue in Sunny Isles Beach developed by the Trump Group (no relation to Donald Trump). LeBron James bought a unit in the project for $9 million last year. 

This month, Jay Schneier is among the buyers. He is president and co-owner of Cream-o-Land Dairy, according to LinkedIn. Based in Florence, New Jersey, Cream-o-Land is a full service dairy company and one of the largest dairy providers in the Northeast. Zippia estimates the company’s revenue last year at $85 million. 

Records show Schneier bought unit N-4102 in the north tower of Estates at Acqualina for $9.1 million from the developer’s affiliate, A3 North Development LLC. 

Another Northeasterner, Angela Arabov, also bought a unit in the north tower. Records show her N2002 Acqua LLC, a Florida entity, bought condo N-2002 from the developer for $6.8 million.

Arabov is CEO of Jacob & Co, a New York City-based maker of fine jewelry and watches, LinkedIn shows. The jeweler has partnered with Bugatti and new South Florida resident Lionel Messi for collections, according to its website. 

In Miami, self-storage mogul Jay Massirman bought a non-waterfront mansion in the Ponce- Davis neighborhood near Coral Gables for $8.5 million. Records show Massirman bought the house at 5001 Pine Drive from Moses and Jacqueline Saba. 

Jennifer Goldstein of Official had the listing, and Judy Zeder of the Jills Zeder Group at Coldwell Banker Realty brought the buyer. 

Built in 2004, the nearly 9,000-square-foot mansion includes eight bedrooms, eight bathrooms, one half-bathroom and a pool, the listing shows. The property spans an acre, records show. It last sold for $3.8 million in 2010, according to records. 

The deal comes six months after Massirman and his ex-wife, Lisa Massirman, sold their longtime Coral Gables home for $10 million. He is a founding partner of Basis Industrial, a Coconut Grove-based self-storage provider that owns more than 15 million square feet. 

In Palm Beach, Jane Baird and her husband, Girard Polk Brownlow III, sold their non-waterfront home for $14 million.

Records show the couple sold the house at 168 Kings Road to a Delaware entity named for the address. Lisa Cregan of Sotheby’s International Realty represented the seller, and Brooke Murphy of Compass brought the buyer.

Baird bought the house for $4.1 million in 2013, records show. Built in 1959 on 0.4 acres, the 3,600-square-foot house has five bedrooms, six bathrooms, two half-bathrooms and a pool, records show. It was recently renovated, according to the listing. 

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The post Resi roundup: Self-storage, dairy and jewelry moguls buy South Florida homes appeared first on The Real Deal.

 In the latest roundup of residential sales in South Florida’s luxury market, buyers include a self-storage mogul, a big dairy honcho, and New York City jeweler. Sales stretched from Palm Beach to Miami, and ranged in price from $6.8 million to $14 million.  Two of the closings were at Estates at Acqualina, the oceanfront condominium
The post Resi roundup: Self-storage, dairy and jewelry moguls buy South Florida homes appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Estates At Acqualina, Home Sales, Housing Market, Housing Prices, Miami, Miami-Dade County, Palm Beach, Palm Beach County, Sunny Isles Beach 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Hudson Yards is having a banner week.

On Tuesday, S&P Global boosted the bonds used to build Related Companies’ megadevelopment, Crain’s reported. The ratings agency determined the development is generating enough cash to pay debt holders on an ongoing basis. 

The Hudson Yards construction bonds jumped from AA- to AA, reaching the same credit rating as that of New York City.

The development is now home to headquarters for tenants Blackrock, KKR and Pfizer, adding to the generally higher success in terms of rent and occupancy at new properties as compared to the rest of the commercial market. The outlet noted Vornado Realty Trust’s properties near Hudson Yards, which boast an occupancy rate 10 percentage points higher than the citywide average.

The development has had its fair share of naysayers. This summer, City Comptroller Brad Lander admitted the Bloomberg administration was right about the public financing scheme, chided by progressives as being a giveaway to real estate and a bad risk for taxpayers.

“Hudson Yards is giving about $200 million more a year than we expected, and that’s going to grow to $300 million,” Lander said on NY1 in June, going on to admit he was wrong about the risk the scheme posed to the city.

The city issued bonds to pay for billions of dollars’ worth of infrastructure to make the development possible, including an extension of the No. 7 line. The resulting increase in property tax revenue was promised to pay back bondholders, but city taxpayers would be on the hook if revenue fell short of expectations.

Evidently, it hasn’t. The Hudson Yards Infrastructure Corporation reported that payments in lieu of taxes revenue grew by $40 million between fiscal 2020 and fiscal 2023, reaching $160 million. PILOT revenues are anticipated to grow another 44 percent by 2027, according to an S&P analyst.

One of the big defeats for the 28-acre, $25 billion development was the departure of anchor mall tenant Neiman Marcus, which left in 2020 after declaring bankruptcy. Wells Fargo this week agreed to buy the three-story space from Related and Oxford Properties Group for $550 million, planning to convert the retail front into an office for itself.

— Holden Walter-Warner

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The post S&P Global upgrades Hudson Yards construction bonds  appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Hudson Yards is having a banner week. On Tuesday, S&P Global boosted the bonds used to build Related Companies’ megadevelopment, Crain’s reported. The ratings agency determined the development is generating enough cash to pay debt holders on an ongoing basis.  The Hudson Yards construction bonds jumped from AA- to AA, reaching the same credit rating
The post S&P Global upgrades Hudson Yards construction bonds  appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Debt, Real Estate Finance, S&P 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Swig Company President Connor Kidd will replace outgoing CEO Jim Carbone, the San Francisco-based development company announced Thursday. 

Carbone signed on for a five-year stint at the San Francisco-based office and multifamily landlord when he came aboard in 2018, he said in a statement, adding that “a major part of my role at the company was to help position Connor to become the CEO and president of the future.” 

Kidd joined Swig in 2011 as an associate on the Investment team and in January 2019 was promoted to director of asset management, overseeing the company’s leasing and property management operations nationwide. He became Swig’s president in January 2022, a position he will continue to hold, according to the press release. 

He previously worked at Accenture, Prologis, North Star Realty Finance and Hunter Properties before joining Swig. 

In a statement, Kidd thanked Carbone for his “mentorship” and said he looked forward to growing the company’s portfolio. 

Swig recently partnered with fellow San Francisco-based firm SKS Partners to buy 350 California Street for $61 million, one of several recent deals in the city where a downtown tower sold for less than half its original asking price. 

SKS had originally planned to buy the building with a South Korean equity partner. When the international investor dropped out, Carbone approached Paul Stein, a managing partner at SKS, during an event at UC Berkeley’s Fisher Center, about joining forces to buy the property, according to The San Francisco Standard. Kidd told the Standard that with two local forces now owning the building, the plan is to hold it for at least 10 years and rent the mostly empty 22-story tower for very attractive rents to start, with more investment in the property as rents rise in the years ahead. 

Other recent deals by Swig in the Bay Area include the redevelopment of 633 Folsom Street, which it built in the 1960s, and the historic Mills Building, where Gensler recently relocated due in part to the eco-friendly upgrades Swig put into the turn-of-the-century building it has owned since the 1950s. Swig is upgrading buildings it owns across its nearly 8-million-square-foot office portfolio to reach environmental social and governance targets, Kidd previously told TRD. 

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The post Swig President Connor Kidd to assume CEO role  appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Swig Company President Connor Kidd will replace outgoing CEO Jim Carbone, the San Francisco-based development company announced Thursday.  Carbone signed on for a five-year stint at the San Francisco-based office and multifamily landlord when he came aboard in 2018, he said in a statement, adding that “a major part of my role at the company
The post Swig President Connor Kidd to assume CEO role  appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Commercial, Development, Job Announcement 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Tech firm Capgemini America will pull up stakes in San Francisco’s South of Market and move to Mission Rock, a waterfront development across from Oracle Park in Mission Bay.

The U.S. subsidiary of Paris-based Capgemini has leased 30,000 square feet of offices at 1011 Third Street, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Financial terms of the 10-year-lease were not disclosed.

Capgemini will move into the third floor starting in April in the highrise known as The Canyon, which in addition to offices also contains 283 apartments, including 102 affordable units. The pending move was first reported by the San Francisco Business Times.

The 23-story building is the first of four buildings planned at Mission Rock, the 28-acre development by New York-based Tishman Speyer and the San Francisco Giants across McCovey Cove from the Giants’ ballpark.

The Canyon includes 58,000 square feet of offices, of which nearly half will be taken up by the tech services and consulting firm.

Capgemini will vacate its offices at three buildings in SoMa by uniting its workforce under one roof at Mission Rock, according to Tishman. 

The company occupies a 20,000-square-foot building at 425 Brannan Street and also leases an unspecified number of offices at 640 Bryant Street and 1130 Howard Street.

The consolidation of its workforce in Mission Bay will leave more empty offices in South of Market. Despite a recent surge in office leases by artificial intelligence firms, the office vacancy in San Francisco has hit a record 33.9 percent as a result of the shift to remote work.

When complete, Mission Rock will contain 1,200 homes, 8 acres of parks and open space and up to 1.7 million square feet of offices, shops and restaurants. Capgemini is the second big company to move there.

In 2019, Visa announced that it would move its headquarters from the Financial District to a 300,000-square-foot building under construction at Mission Rock.

— Dana Bartholomew

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The post Capgemini to relocate SF offices to Mission Rock from SoMa appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Tech firm Capgemini America will pull up stakes in San Francisco’s South of Market and move to Mission Rock, a waterfront development across from Oracle Park in Mission Bay. The U.S. subsidiary of Paris-based Capgemini has leased 30,000 square feet of offices at 1011 Third Street, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Financial terms of the
The post Capgemini to relocate SF offices to Mission Rock from SoMa appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Mission Rock 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Stockdale Capital Partners has snagged a Houston hotel in a premier location, betting on continued post-pandemic recovery for the city’s lodging industry.

The Los Angeles-based firm acquired the 354-room InterContinental Houston – Medical Center, a prominent luxury hotel at 6750 Main Street in the heart of downtown, on undisclosed terms, the Houston Business Journal reported. 

Stcokdale was drawn to the hotel due to the anticipated growth of the nearby Texas Medical Center — a leader in life sciences research, with the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center as an anchor. Plus, the hotel’s location is poised to attract both business and leisure travelers, with NRG Stadium, Rice University and the Museum District all in close proximity.

“The InterContinental Houston is the only luxury hotel in the TMC area, and we intend to build even further upon its strong track record of success,” Stockdale’s Bill Doak told the outlet. “Stockdale Capital Partners continues to be well-positioned as the travel and hospitality sector makes a strong recovery.”

Built in 2019, the 21-story InterContinental Houston is operated by IHG Hotels & Resorts, and it was developed by Houston-based Medistar and TRC Capital Partners. The hotel received a $102 million loan from Cottonwood Group and Hana Alternative Asset Management in 2019.

Amenities include a Safina Restaurant, the Naturalist Café and Lounge, 18,000 square feet of meeting space, a 24-hour fitness center and an outdoor pool. The lobby is shared with the Latitude Med Center apartment complex, developed by Greystar.

Despite Houston’s reputation as one of the worst hotel markets in the nation, plagued with low occupancy rates and high delinquency, some investors are showcasing confidence that it will return to pre-pandemic levels across the various segments of the hospitality trade.

Neway Hospitality is building a 17-story Holiday Inn Express/Staybridge Suites near Minute Maid Park in downtown. And CDC Houston bought a majority stake in two hotels earlier this year: the Residence Inn by Marriott Houston Springwoods Village at 22814 Holzwarth Road and the Courtyard by Marriott Houston Springwoods Village 22742 Holzwarth Road.

—Quinn Donoghue 

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The post Stockdale snags luxury hotel in downtown Houston appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Stockdale Capital Partners has snagged a Houston hotel in a premier location, betting on continued post-pandemic recovery for the city’s lodging industry. The Los Angeles-based firm acquired the 354-room InterContinental Houston – Medical Center, a prominent luxury hotel at 6750 Main Street in the heart of downtown, on undisclosed terms, the Houston Business Journal reported. 
The post Stockdale snags luxury hotel in downtown Houston appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Acquisition, Hotel, Sale 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

As the fate of the Trump Organization hangs in the balance, so too does the ownership of some of New York’s most prominent properties.

New York Attorney General Letitia James sought to have the company’s business certificates when she filed her civil lawsuit against former President Donald Trump and his real estate business last year. A judge’s ruling this week found Trump fraudulently inflated values of his properties, enabling the potential loss of such properties to happen, according to the New York Times.

Penalties against the Trump business and clan are expected to be decided in a trial slated to begin as early as Monday. Trump’s team is still playing its cards, requesting more information on the ruling’s impact and weighing a stay on the decision about a receivership for the properties.

These are the vulnerable properties that could be in danger of slipping from the Trump empire.

Trump Tower

Both the property and the former president’s penthouse apartment at 721–725 Fifth Avenue are at risk. James alleged Trump deceptively came to the highest possible value for the building, at one point using a nearby sales comparison to boost the value of Trump Tower by $170 million over a single year. 

As for Trump’s personal triplex, financial statements from the Trump Organization showed the pad’s value increased by 400 percent from 2011 to 2015, reaching $327 million in the latter; James alleged Trump overstated gross square by nearly triple.

40 Wall Street

The Trump Organization is under scrutiny for a 2015 valuation of 40 Wall Street, which came in nearly $200 million above that made by a lender-ordered appraiser. Among the issues James cited in her suit was the use of a valuable Dean & Deluca lease not yet signed and an understatement of expenses like management fees. Fitch recently downgraded a security attached to the property.

4-6 East 57th Street

Trump and his organization’s entities valued the interest of the leased property at $445 million in 2019. Trump allegedly inflated the value by at least $37 million by using elevated forward-looking income figures and diminished backward-looking expense figures. The retail picture at the property has seesawed back and forth in recent years.  

Trump Park Avenue

Trump is accused of inflating the value of the building at 502 Park Avenue by valuing a dozen rent-stabilized apartments as market-rate. James’ suit said the appraised value of those apartments was $750,000, versus the $50 million valuation given by Trump. The then-GOP presidential candidate sold a sponsor condo unit there in 2016 for $14 million.

1290 Sixth Avenue

Trump only has a minority stake in the 43-story Midtown building, but he and his entities are accused of calculated his 30 percent stake — minus debt — as an asset that can be freely sold, which isn’t the case due to the rules governing the partnership that owns the property. He is also accused of inflating the building’s worth by using a false capitalization rate. Vornado Realty Trust is the co-owner of the 2.1 million-square-foot office tower.

Seven Springs

The bucolic Westchester estate was one of the Trump properties targeted in a criminal probe of the Trump Organization. A subsidiary of the company purchased the property in 1995. When Eric Trump put his sights on building two dozen luxury lots there in 2014, an appraiser the company hired valued the lots at $30 million. Yet the company reported a value of $23 million per lot, just accounting for the plots in one town of the sprawling estate.

Trump National Golf Club Hudson Valley

The Trump Organization is inflated membership prices at the Hopewell Junction golf club to inflate the property’s value, too. While the listed initiation fee a decade ago was $10,000, Trump regularly valued unsold memberships between $15,000 and $30,000, according to the lawsuit.

Trump National Golf Club Westchester

Membership fees were again cited as an issue at a Trump golf course, this one in Briarcliff Manor. Trump’s valuation of the course in 2011 assumed 67 incoming members would pay $200,000 each in entry fees; most ultimately paid nothing, according to the lawsuit.

— Holden Walter-Warner

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The post These are Trump’s NY properties endangered by judge’s ruling  appeared first on The Real Deal.

 As the fate of the Trump Organization hangs in the balance, so too does the ownership of some of New York’s most prominent properties. New York Attorney General Letitia James sought to have the company’s business certificates when she filed her civil lawsuit against former President Donald Trump and his real estate business last year.
The post These are Trump’s NY properties endangered by judge’s ruling  appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Fraud, Letitia James, Real Estate Lawsuits, receivership 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Tokyo Electron is looking to sell its U.S. headquarters in Southeast Austin and downsize its office real estate footprint in the city.

The company, which produces semiconductor manufacturing equipment, is offering the 107-acre property at 2400 Grove Boulevard in two sections, the Austin Business Journal reported. 

Tokyo Electron’s two-building, 189,795-square-foot campus is offered up, along with a 60-acre tract that’s primed for development opportunities. Prospective buyers have the option to purchase the entire property as a whole, though. HPI and CBRE have been hired to market the site.

The asking price wasn’t disclosed, but the 47-acre section was last appraised at $45 million for tax purposes, while the undeveloped section was valued at $4 million. 

The company is finalizing negotiations for a smaller office in the city, but it hasn’t disclosed where or how much less space it will occupy. Some of Tokyo Electron’s employees work at Samsung’s facilities in Taylor, another reason the company is reducing its footprint. Samsung, a major customer of Tokyo Electron, is building a $17 billion semiconductor factory in tiny-town Taylor, northeast of Austin. 

“We look at Samsung — a huge customer of ours — building their new Taylor site,” Jason Jowers, Tokyo Electron vice president of support services, told the outlet. “Well, [our employees] who are going to be working there will not need the headquarters space that they are currently taking up.”

Tokyo Electron is the latest company to shed office space in Austin. Meta has subleased nearly 700,000 square feet across two downtown buildings since last November. TikTok, another social media giant, put 126,400 square feet at 300 Colorado up for sublease in April. 

—Quinn Donoghue

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The post Tokyo Electron selling 107-acre office campus in Southeast Austin  appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Tokyo Electron is looking to sell its U.S. headquarters in Southeast Austin and downsize its office real estate footprint in the city. The company, which produces semiconductor manufacturing equipment, is offering the 107-acre property at 2400 Grove Boulevard in two sections, the Austin Business Journal reported.  Tokyo Electron’s two-building, 189,795-square-foot campus is offered up, along
The post Tokyo Electron selling 107-acre office campus in Southeast Austin  appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Listing, Property sale, Relocation 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Despite some opposition from residents, Miami Beach elected officials narrowly approved a proposal by Boucher Brothers and Major Food Group to take over the Nikki Beach Club site in the city’s South of Fifth neighborhood.

The city commission voted 4-3 Thursday night to authorize City Manager Alina Hudak to negotiate a new 10-year lease with the joint venture to take over the city-owned property at 1 Ocean Drive when the agreement with the current operators, Jack and Lucia Penrod, expires in 2026. 

The decision marks the end of a contentious procurement battle that began in April when city commissioners initially awarded Miami Beach-based Boucher Brothers a no-bid, non-binding term sheet for Nikki Beach Club, a restaurant-and-entertainment venue the Penrods have controlled for 38 years. A month later, the city commission rescinded its decision amid complaints from residents, and ordered a competitive bidding process. 

“I know in my heart that this was a fair process,” said commissioner David Richardson, who voted yes. “It was objective. At the end of the day, the city administration has recommended an operator we know and has been a responsible operator for many, many years.” 

Boucher Brothers, which has a longstanding contract to provide beach chairs and other concessions in Miami Beach, and Major Food Group beat three other proposals by The Group, RH (formerly known as Restoration Hardware) and Tao Group Hospitality. 

However, the Penrods have a pending lawsuit and a court petition against the city, alleging Miami Beach officials violated procurement rules in initially going with Boucher Brothers and for rejecting its proposal because they submitted it 15 minutes after a city-imposed deadline. 

A “flawed” competitive process

Commissioner Steven Meiner, who voted no, said the city’s process in finding a new operator for 1 Ocean Drive was flawed from the beginning. “We started off on the wrong foot,” Meiner said. “There was such an outcry from our residents that the commission voted again to open it up for bid. It ultimately soured the process.” 

In addition to Richardson, Mayor Dan Gelber and commissioners Ricky Arriola and Kristen Rosen Gonzalez voted for the Boucher Brothers and Major Food Group, which owns and operates fancy restaurants such as Carbone at 49 Collins Avenue in Miami Beach. The New York-based firm is also partnering with David Martin’s Terra to develop a 58-story condominium in Miami’s Edgewater. 

Commissioners Laura Dominguez and Alex Fernandez joined Meiner in voting no. 

Boucher Brothers and Major Food Group are offering the city annual payments equaling 10 percent of the proposed new beach club’s gross operating revenue, or $4 million per year. The payments would increase by 3 percent each year with Miami Beach receiving about $41 million during the 10-year term, a city memo states. Executives for the two companies also have cozy relationships with some city officials, at times helping them score reservations for beach concessions and at Major Food Group restaurants, according to city emails the Penrods obtained in discovery for their lawsuit.

The joint venture is proposing a $26 million renovation of the existing building that would include a pool, a wellness center and spa, a “kids corner” and a beach concession area, according to bid documents. The proposal also includes Sadelle’s, an all-day dining restaurant by Major Food Group. 

Rush to pick Boucher Brothers and Major Food Group

Ahead of the meeting, RH CEO Gary Friedman issued a statement that the city’s selection of Boucher Brothers and Major Food Group “certainly seemed rushed.” He also said “the final outcome will remain uncertain for some time” due to the Penrods’ litigation, the upcoming election and the current lease that still has more than two years left. 

“We continue to believe in our vision for One Ocean Drive,” Friedman said. “And we hope that the people of Miami Beach will be given a meaningful opportunity to have a voice in defining the future of this irreplaceable public property.”

RH submitted a proposal that offered the city the most money: a minimum guaranteed rent of $333 million over the life of a 30-year lease. The Santa Monica, California-based firm also proposed investing $150 million to $170 million in redeveloping the existing two-story building. 

The Group, a New York-based hospitality company that is opening Le Jardin Boucherie in Miami Beach, also proposed tearing down Nikki Beach Club and replacing it with a $36 million three-story restaurant and cultural theater, a beach concession area and a “lagoon” for wellness programming. The Group offered the city $3 million in annual rent, increasing by 10 percent every five years for a 30-year lease. 

Paula Allen was among several South of Fifth residents who criticized the city’s decision to go with Bocuher Brothers and Major Food Group. “The city manager’s recommendation [came out] in a very short time,” Allen said. “It didn’t seem clear or transparent why there is such a rush to give Boucher Brothers more business.” 

The post Miami Beach approves Boucher Brothers’ Nikki Beach proposal appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Despite some opposition from residents, Miami Beach elected officials narrowly approved a proposal by Boucher Brothers and Major Food Group to take over the Nikki Beach Club site in the city’s South of Fifth neighborhood. The city commission voted 4-3 Thursday night to authorize City Manager Alina Hudak to negotiate a new 10-year lease with
The post Miami Beach approves Boucher Brothers’ Nikki Beach proposal appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Boucher Brothers, Major Food Group, Miami Beach, Miami-Dade County, Nikki Beach Club, Restaurants, South Beach, South Of Fifth 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

Brookfield Properties has secured a $700 million loan to refinance one of the largest malls in the Chicago area.

The move allows Toronto-based Brookfield to pay off $475 million in existing debt on the 2.6 million-square-foot Oakbrook Center mall,  CoStar reported. 

After closing costs, Brookfield is poised to rake in $220 million in equity out of the west suburban property, which it acquired in 2018 as part of a $15 billion buyout of GGP. Brookfield took out the $475 million loan in 2020.  Institutional Mall Investors is an investment partner with Brookfield.

The recent  $700 million refinance highlights the recovery of the Oakbrook Center, which has lost major tenants such as Lord & Taylor and Sears in recent years.

The refinancing move is the second-largest such deal on a shopping mall in 2023, trailing Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield’s $925 million refinancing of Westfield Century City in Los Angeles, the outlet reported.

The loan, set to replace debt maturing in November, is a five-year, interest-only term with a rate of 7.65 percent, slightly lower than the current CMBS loan’s rate of 7.73 percent

Morgan Stanley is the main provider of the loan, while Wells Fargo, Citi and Goldman Sachs participate. 

Oakbrook Center, established in 1962, is the second-largest mall in the Chicago area. Since 2015, it has seen roughly  $90 million in upgrades, including a new food hall, parking deck renovation and updates to AMC theaters. Furthermore, $177 million is earmarked for renovations of retail space to attract new tenants. 

The mall is 88 percent leased and generated $971 million in sales last year, a significant increase from the pre-pandemic figure of $806 million in 2019, the outlet reported.

—Quinn Donoghue 

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The post Brookfield scores $700M refinancing loan for Oak Brook mall  appeared first on The Real Deal.

 Brookfield Properties has secured a $700 million loan to refinance one of the largest malls in the Chicago area. The move allows Toronto-based Brookfield to pay off $475 million in existing debt on the 2.6 million-square-foot Oakbrook Center mall,  CoStar reported.  After closing costs, Brookfield is poised to rake in $220 million in equity out
The post Brookfield scores $700M refinancing loan for Oak Brook mall  appeared first on The Real Deal.  Uncategorized, Investment, loan, Mall, Refinancing 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.

Robert Khodadadian – The Real Deal

After their attempts to refinance a Dumbo office campus fell flat, owners RFR and Kushner Companies defaulted this month on the portfolio’s $180 million loan.

The firms, who failed to pay off the debt at maturity, are pushing for a five-year extension, service commentary shows, in a means of kicking the can and avoiding the near-term risk of foreclosure. The debt is collateralized 117 Adams Street, 55 Prospect Street, 81 Prospect Street and 77 Sands Street, Trepp shows.

The botched refi signals how challenging the financing market has become for office landlords, after the valuations of many office buildings slipped below their debt balances, according to JLL.

Lenders are also requiring sponsors to refinance at a lower loan-to-value ratio, a recent CBRE report found. The combination of falling valuations and larger equity commitments has created a sizable financing gap — CBRE forecasted it would hit $73 billion within the next two years and could leave some landlords out in the cold.

It’s unclear where the valuation of the Dumbo Heights portfolio now stands. RFR did not comment, Kushner Companies did not respond to a request for comment and Morningstar has yet to list a current appraisal value. 

But financials that have been updated by Morningstar signal the portfolio is struggling. Cash flow at the properties was barely covering debt service in March and occupancy had slipped to 73 percent from 94 percent in 2018 when the loans were made, according to servicer commentary.

It’s possible WeWork is to blame for that jump in vacancy. The coworking firm was the second-largest tenant when the loans were made with a lease totalling 21 percent of the portfolio’s total rentable area.

WeWork appeared to have leased space at 81 Prospect and 77 Sands Street, which is still listed for rent on WeWork’s website. The Wayback Machine shows 81 Prospect disappeared from the firm’s site sometime between 2020 and 2021. 

In April 2020, WeWork temporarily shuttered its 81 Prospect space after an employee tested positive for the coronavirus. 

This summer, the coworking firm told investors it would try to renegotiate nearly all of its leases as rumors swirled about a possible bankruptcy.