Blu Realty to market 248-unit London condo project

Renderings of the project at Olympic Park E20 in London and Ray Smith of Manhattan Loft Corporation
Renderings of the project at Olympic Park E20 in London and Ray Smith of Manhattan Loft Corporation

Blu Realty Group is set to market a 248-unit combination hotel and condominium tower in East London’s Stratford City area—the first overseas marketing project for the brokerage’s newly minted international division. Blu, which launched the division this month, is acting as the U.S.-based marketer for the Skidmore, Owings and Merrill-designed tower, said Ray Smith, sales director at Manhattan Loft Corp., which is developing the building. Manhattan Loft’s in-house sales team will handle sales in London, Smith said.

The project had a soft launch in November, and the brokerage is planning a hard launch for March or April, with occupancy in 2016. Blu’s marketing efforts, under the direction of Derek Nowicki, will target American buyers on the hunt for loft-like living in London, according to Smith and Vince Rocco, the head of Blu’s international division.

The studio to three-bedroom units range in price from £360,000 to £2 million (or $577,404 to about $3.2 million based on today’s exchange rate), Smith said, and the architectural plans for the building allow for 100 different floor plans.

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Manhattan Loft — which is based in London, despite the name — recently redid the landmark St. Pancras Hotel. The company seized the opportunity to develop the Stratford City tower in order to capitalize on the Olympics-related improvements to the area, Smith said. In fact, the development is on the grounds of the Olympic Park, he said.

Manhattan Loft chose Blu for the job because the two companies have referred business to one another for years. “I trust these guys completely,” he said.