From left: 475 Fifth Avenue, Darcy Stacom, vice chairman at CBRE and
William Shanahan, vice chairman at CBRE

Pension fund giant TIAA-CREF purchased the 280,000-square-foot office building 475 Fifth Avenue from Barclays Capital Real Estate this week for $144 million, about $4 million more than expected, according to sources involved in with the transaction.

The deal closed Wednesday, sources said, at sale price of about $514 per square foot. Midtown-based TIAA-CREF had been expected to buy the building, but for $140 million or less.

A joint venture of real estate developer Joseph Moinian and Westbrook Capital acquired 475 Fifth Avenue, located at 41st Street, in 2007 for $160 million, but lender Barclays took the property back in 2009 through a deed in lieu of foreclosure. In the slow commercial real estate market of the time, Barclays sought to unload the 86-year-old office tower for just $105 million. Comments

Retirement services firm TIAA-Cref is leading the race to buy 475 Fifth Avenue, between 40th and 41st streets, from Barclays Capital Real Estate, Crain’s reported, though no deal has been signed yet. Sources said the transaction was most likely valued between $100 million and $140 million.
Barclays reclaimed the building from Westbrook Partners and the Moinian Group in 2009 after they declined to put more equity in the building. L&L Holding Company managed the building until several months ago, when CB Richard Ellis took over. L&L sued Barclays earlier this year after it said it was denied first refusal on the property, despite a previous agreement. The suit was dropped.
Westbrook and Moinian paid $162 million for the 275,000-square-foot property in April 2007.
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L&L Holdings withdrew its claims Wednesday against Barclays Capital Real Estate for breach of contract over a deal relating to the purchase rights to 475 Fifth Avenue, Crain’s reported. Its
reasons for abandoning the claims could not be immediately determined.

L&L previously filed court action alleging that it had been deprived of its right to first offer on the 24-story property, which it managed on behalf of Barclays for almost two years before being replaced last month by CB Richard Ellis. [more]

Barclays Capital Real Estate is being sued for breach of contract relating to a deal involving the purchase rights to a 275,000-square foot property at 475 Fifth Avenue, according to Crain’s.

L&L Holding, which has managed the 23-story building on behalf of Barclays for close to two years, says it had the first right of offer on the property in the event that Barclay’s should ever choose to sell (note: correction appended). It is seeking damages after Barclays denied this right by offering the building at a “commercially unreasonable price that is substantially above fair market value,” according to a summons filed in New York State Supreme Court last month. [more]

475 Fifth Avenue and P. Diddy (Building photo source: PropertyShark)

P. Diddy is suing the landlord at his flagship clothing store, Sean John, at 475 Fifth Avenue for $2.5 million (see suit document via TMZ after the jump). The suit alleges the landlord, 475 Fifth 09 LLC, never removed scaffolding which was erected in August 2006, leaving customers unable to view the storefront and costing P. Diddy $5 million in lost revenues at the once-bustling store. Christian Casey, the company which runs P. Diddy’s clothing line, said revenues at the flagship store have been cut in half because of the scaffolding and want the lease rescinded for an alleged breach of contract. Barclays Capital took back the building from developers Westbrook Partners and Joseph Moinian earlier this year. [TMZ] and [Courthouse News Service]
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Barclays Capital is hoping to sell 475 Fifth Avenue, which it took back from developers Westbrook Partners and Joseph Moinian earlier this year. Moinian and Westbrook closed on the building for $160 million in 2007. Barclays is now asking $105 million for the property, sources told the New York Observer. That’s about $381 per square foot for the 275,284-square-foot property, which is largely empty, the sources said.

Developer Joseph Moinian has informed lenders over the past several months that he expects to default on loans at two of his properties, 180 Maiden Lane and 17 Battery Place North, Crain’s New York Business reported. Both properties’ loans — $292 million at 180 Maiden Lane and $453 million on 17 Battery Park North — are due in November. The credit crunch has made it difficult for Moinian, who has already had to give up 475 Fifth Avenue, to refinance loans. In addition, Moinian’s payments on his 1775 Broadway mortgage are likely to go up 23 percent next year, and the building is only one-third filled. [more]

From the June issue: In the easy lending climate of recent
years, it seemed almost anyone, no matter how much money they had in their bank
account, could become a real estate developer. But in the post-boom
world, lenders are hinging much of their decision-making on something
that was previously off-limits: a developer’s personal wealth. Real
estate financial experts say sponsors now must display evidence of
tremendous riches to qualify for a loan, as lenders examine everything
from borrowers’ cars to their vacation homes and their kids’ college
tuitions. As a result, real estate development has transformed from a
great equalizer, an industry offering opportunities for a wide range of
entrepreneurs, to the exclusive province of the rich and famous. [more]