New York investor snaps up Mobil building for over $900M

New York investor David Werner is in contract to purchase the trophy Mobil building on East 42nd Street for more than $900 million.

Werner snagged the 42-story tower at 150 East 42nd Street, built in the 1950s, from seller Hiro Real Estate LLC, according to the Wall Street Journal. Goldman Sachs Group was also instrumental in the sale, because it holds a significant chunk of debt on the building, people familiar with the deal told the Journal.

The 1.8 million-square-foot property was listed for sale last month by Eastdil Secured, with brokers Douglas Harmon and Adam Spies handling the listing. Current tenants include Wells Fargo and Mount Sinai Medical Center, which inked a 450,000-square-foot lease at the building’s base earlier this year.

Harrison & Abramovitz designed the stainless steel structure in the 1950s, to be the headquarters of what was then the Socony Mobil Oil Company, now Exxon Mobil. Japanese investor Hiro, controlled by Japan’s Honzawa brothers, purchased the tower in 1987.

Werner, who has been an active player in New York City real estate for over 20 years, purchased the Newsweek building at 1775 Broadway in 1999 and is currently in talks to pick up 5 Times Square for more than $1.5 billion, sources familiar with the matter told the Journal. Eastdil’s Douglas Harmon is the broker in that deal as well. [WSJ] — Julie Strickland