510 Madison Avenue (center)

Investment firm LH Financial inked a 6,553-square-foot, 10-year lease at the Boston Properties-owned office building at 510 Madison Avenue, the New York Observer reported. [more]

From left: Mort Zuckerman and incoming Boston Properties CEO Owen Thomas

Boston Properties channeled its energy into investment sales in the first quarter, GlobeSt reported, citing an earnings call with officials at the real estate investment trust.

“We are in the market selling assets right now and in 2013 we could sell a billion dollars or more,” Boston Properties president Douglas Linde said on the call, noting that the firm sold 125 West 55th Street in Manhattan and a property in San Jose, Calif. in the first quarter, raising $510 million. [more]

Owen Thomas

From the April issue: The line of succession at Boston Properties, the $18 billion real estate investment trust, seemed clear to the real estate industry: When Mortimer Zuckerman stepped down as CEO, surely the firm’s president would take over.

But Zuckerman announced his resignation last month and his replacement is not Doug Linde, the son of his longtime friend and business partner, Ed Linde, who died in 2010. Instead, the 75-year-old Zuckerman and the company board went outside Boston Properties for its new top leader — to the financial world. [more]

The CEOs of the major New York REITs- Clockwise from top: Marc Holliday, Michael Fascitelli, Owen Thomas, David Neithercut, Dennis Friedrich, Timothy Naughton

The large New York-focused real estate investment trusts struggled in the first quarter of 2013, unlike their national counterparts, with only SL Green Realty outperforming both the MSCI US REIT Index and the Standard & Poor 500 Stock Index.  [more]

Mort Zuckerman

Real estate and media mogul Mort Zuckerman is stepping down as head of Boston Properties, the biggest U.S. office real estate investment trust. His replacement will be Owen Thomas of Lehman Brothers Holdings, Bloomberg reported. Zuckerman, 75, plans to stay on as executive chairman; Thomas, 51, oversaw the liquidation of Lehman’s real estate assets, including the $6.5 billion sale of apartment operator Archstone to Samuel Zell’s Equity Residential and AvalonBay Communities. Thomas signed a three-year agreement to serve both as CEO and sit on Boston Properties board. His annual base salary will be $750,000…. [more]

Boston Properties CEO Mort ZuckermanIf there’s opportunity in the current real estate market it’s all manufactured by the Federal Reserve, Boston Properties Chairman Mort Zuckerman said in an appearance yesterday on Bloomberg Television’s “Street Smart” (see video after the jump).

Zuckerman, who regulalry touts his companies focus on “A buildings in A locations,” said his portfolio is not being bouyed by growing rents, rather by the low interest rates. Zuckerman said the board at his company was able to secure $1 billion at a 3.85 percent interest rate over more than 10 years…. [more]

Boston Properties CEO Doug Linde and the GM Building

Boston Properties will have another high-profile vacancy to focus on beyond the half of its rising Eighth Avenue office tower that remains unrented. In an earnings call last week, Boston Properties CEO Doug Linde said the landlord has negotiated a deal with broadcaster CBS to release it from a 39,000-square-foot lease in the General Motors Building, at 767 Fifth Avenue, that is signed through 2015, according to the Wall Street Journal. [more]

From left: Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates, Boston Properties Chairman Mort Zuckerman, SJP Properties CEO Steven Pozycki and a rendering of 250 West 55th Street

Having been bumped from Boston Properties’ under-construction 250 West 55th Street, Microsoft now has the option of renewing its deal at the Vornado-owned, 2.1-million-square-foot 1290 Avenue of the Americas or relocating to 11 Times Square, the New York Observer reported.

The reason for being bumped from 250 West 55th Street? Law firm Kaye Scholer signed a letter of intent to take 260,000 square feet in the tower, as previously reported. This and another deal with the law firm Morrison Foerster on the tower’s lower floors leaves Microsoft with the top floors, which are too pricey. [more]

A rendering of 250 West 55th Street

Boston Properties is on the verge of landing a second large tenant for its under-construction Midtown office tower in law firm Kaye Scholer. Crain’s reported the firm signed a letter of intent to move to 260,000 square feet at 250 West 55th Street from its current offices at 425 Park Avenue. The 1 million-square-foot new building is slated to open in 2014.

Scholer has agreed to pay an average of $85 to $90 per square-foot over the course of a 20-year lease at the tower, located between Broadway and Eighth Avenue. Scholer could not renew its lease at its Park Avenue building because its owner, L&L Holding, will be demolishing most of the building once all its leases expire to build a new tower. [more]

Boston Properties CEO Mort ZuckermanMort Zuckerman said he’s been surprised by the high rents media and technology companies are paying for older office stock, and that his Boston Properties may try to cash in on the trend. Still, he’s got another new office building in the works for Midtown, he said today on Bloomberg TV’s “Market Makers” (see video after the jump). Zuckerman regularly touts his company’s focus on “‘A’ buildings in ‘A’ locations.” When focusing on commercial real estate Boston Properties’ goal is “always to imagine that it is possible that the economy doesn’t go up all the time,” he said…. [more]