From the December issue: Upper Fifth Avenue (the portion between 49th and 59th streets) is the most expensive retail stretch in the world. However, it’s not the most stable. This past year, the strip saw an unusual amount of activity taking place in its 60-plus spaces, with about a dozen retailers signing leases, opening stores or changing brands.

The half-mile span, where CBRE Group says asking rents average more than $2,400 per square foot, is now jammed with holiday shoppers jostling for gifts.

But behind the scenes, there are other groups jockeying for position: the real estate brokers, dealmakers and analysts who pore over pedestrian counts, comparable leases and store revenue numbers to determine what spaces they or their clients can afford.

This month, The Real Deal looks at the current tenants in the nearly three dozen retail buildings along the stretch, as well as possible new arrivals. We combed through property records and news reports, and interviewed brokers and owners who specialize in Fifth Avenue. [more]

From the November issue: Three autumns ago, the collapse of Lehman Brothers knocked the wind out of New York’s real estate industry. Home sales flattened. Prices plunged. And, as layoffs mounted, office buildings emptied out. While there have been some spurts of activity, the industry has not gotten back to the highs of the boom. In fact, as the unemployment rate still hovers at an uncomfortably high level, and Wall Street (a once-reliable real estate engine) reports losses, it seems that a complete recovery might be years away.

All the same, there are signs of comebacks — whether they are from developers who once defaulted on mega-loans and seemed like pariahs, or stock prices that have bounced back from the doldrums at some public real estate companies. There are also geographic stretches of the city that had been pocked with empty retail spaces and empty condo buildings, but are now filling up with stores and residents. There are even some bankers who had been caught up in the subprime mess who are now back on the lending scene in a big way. [more]

MetLife is actively lending, providing a $350 million, five-year, fixed-rate mortgage for a joint venture between affiliates of Edge Fund Advisors and HSBC Alternative Investment at the Bertelsmann Building at 1540 Broadway through its real estate investments department among other investments, the company announced today.

“We are pleased to be providing financing for such a high quality asset as 1540 Broadway,” said Robert Merck, senior managing director and head of real estate investments for MetLife. “We originate, underwrite and manage each investment with a long-term view, and we are well positioned to identify and complete attractive financing opportunities in top-tier markets such as New York.” — Katherine Clarke [more]

The Daily News’ publisher could soon be the New York Post’s landlord. According to the Wall Street Journal, Mortimer Zuckerman-led Boston Properties was one of at least seven groups that bid for the News Corp. building at 1211 Sixth Avenue in Midtown last week, along with SL Green Realty, Vornado Realty Trust and Tishman Speyer among others.

In June, Beacon Capital, which purchased the building for $1.5 billion in 2006, enlisted Eastdil Secured to market the 2 million square foot building for about $900 per square-foot, in what is widely seen as a test of whether the trophy tower market has returned to peak prices. [more]

From left: CBRE’s Darcy Stacom and William Shanahan, 2 Grand Central Tower and 299 Park Avenue

It’s been a good week for CB Richard Ellis’ Darcy Stacom and William Shanahan. The Alaska Permanent Fund has agreed to pay $1,075 per square foot for a 49.5 percent stake they were marketing in 299 Park Avenue, sources told the New York Post, in a deal revaluing the property at $1.25 billion.

The pair were hired by the Rockpoint Group to market their share in May. Rockpoint purchased the stake from Swiss bank UBS in January 2010. That earlier deal had valued it at just over $600 million, or $625 per square foot.

Developer Fisher Brothers still holds the majority share and runs the Class A building. [more]

Mort Zuckerman and 950 Fifth Avenue (Source: Propertyshark)

The Real Deal interviewed Mort Zuckerman for what it thought was The Closing section of the September magazine, a wide-ranging monthly Q & A piece with some of New York real estate industry’s top players.

But Zuckerman, the chairman of Boston Properties and publisher of the New York Daily News, might not have been thoroughly briefed on the personal nature of The Closing interview, which generally includes questions ranging from where people maintain homes to who they are dating to mistakes they’ve made in their careers. When The Real Deal asked about the size of his apartment, one of the tamer questions slated for him, the 74-year-old billionaire said he didn’t “have any idea” about the square footage, called the question “silly” and terminated the interview.

The Real Deal decided to share a slightly condensed version of the Q & A with the divorced father of two on the Web. Check here to see what Zuckerman had to say. [more]

From left: Boston Properties’ Mort Zuckerman, Moinian Group’s Joseph Moinian, 250 West 55th Street rendering and 237 West 54th street

Two big construction projects on the block bounded by Broadway and Eighth Avenue and 54th and 55th Streets were given the go-ahead by the Department of Buildings yesterday, the New York Post reported.

As a result, Boston Properties’ 900,000-square-foot office tower at 250 West 55th Street will begin construction after a two-year hiatus and Joseph Moinian’s as yet unflagged, 34-story hotel at 237 West 54th Street, designed by Gene Kaufman, will rise on the site of a small building which is currently being demolished.

Law firm Morrison Foerster recently signed on for 200,000 square feet at the Boston Properties building. [more]

FAO Schwarz has ended speculation by finally renewing its lease at Boston Properties’ General Motors building, the New York Post reported. There had been rumors that the Toys “R” Us-owned toy retailer might leave when its lease ended in 2012. Agent Bradley Mendelson of Cushman & Wakefield confirmed the extension.

In March it was reported that Boston Properties and FAO Schwarz had entered arbitration over the rent. Shortly after purchasing the 1.77 million-square-foot building, Boston Properties said FAO Schwarz was not the most financially viable tenant considering the under-market rent it currently pays.

Sources said Mendelson’s team quietly talked to other prospective users if Schwarz decided not to renew. [more]

Mortimer Zuckerman, founder and chairman of Boston Properties and owner of the New York Daily News, appeared on CNBC this afternoon to discuss the media business, the debt ceiling and the commercial real estate market. When CNBC noted the bifurcated nature of the market, which is seeing growth in the best markets, but rent declines in other large cities, Zuckerman said that the dichotomy does not concern him. “We’ve limited our own activities to Washington and New York, Boston and San Francisco and these are the best markets to be in,” he said. [more]

Financial firm Thiam Management inked a deal for nearly 6,000 square feet at 510 Madison Avenue, for a price in the $90s-per-square-foot range, Real Estate Weekly reported. The space represents one of two pre-built office units on the eighth floor of the 30-story, 350,000-square-foot property. The other eighth floor space was recently leased to a financial firm called Africa Global for about the same price. “The leasing on the eighth floor is supportive of the continued interest in the building,” said Paul Amrich, an executive vice president at CB Richard Ellis, who along with Kerry Powers, represents the building’s landlord, Boston Properties. Real Estate Weekly notes that the renewed interest shows the building has come along way since funding issues plagued 510 Madison when it was controlled by Macklowe Properties. [more]