From the September issue: In its eight years of publication, The Real Deal has covered the real estate industry in a city that’s been transformed by a massive building boom, was crippled by the subsequent bust, and is now in the midst of a tentative recovery.
The compendium of stories we’ve written runs the gamut from the record-setting building and apartment purchases during the boom, to the toppling of mega-developers during the bust, to new entrepreneurs trying to get into the real estate game during today’s fragile recovery. This month, for the anniversary of our 100th issue, we bring you some of the most compelling stories we’ve tracked in these pages, many of which have unfolded and evolved over time, much as the magazine itself has. And watch the video below to see The Real Deal Publisher Amir Korangy talk about the special process for creating the unique 100th issue cover.
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From left: Yair Levy, Rector Square (source: PropertyShark) and Andrew Cuomo

A state Supreme Court judge ruled that developer Yair Levy defrauded the Rector Square condominium
in Battery Park City and spent $1.6 million in reserve fund money on personal and other illegal expenses,
which could possibly lead him to being banned from the real estate business.

Former New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo filed a massive $7.4 million civil suit against Levy in 2010
alleging Levy misappropriated the reserve fund money at the 303-unit tower, signing over checks to his
own family members and using the funds to pay credit card and cell phone bills.
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From the April issue: In the mid-2000s, residential real estate brokerages seemed to be sipping from the fountain of youth; that is, staffing their firms with freshly minted college graduates.

Today, though, firms appear to be going with the more fine-wine approach of “older is better” when it comes to bringing on agents, according to brokers, firm managers and teachers at real estate schools.

This brain drain of fresh-out-of-college talent in New York City’s residential real estate world, which has happened over the past few years, is the result of a perfect storm of forces, sources say.

In a still-tight market, many young brokers don’t have Rolodexes stuffed with established contacts, or the financial wherewithal to last through lean times. Comments

From left: Dolly Lenz, Jacky Teplitzky and Michael Shvo

It’s time to let the other kids have a turn.

Prudential Douglas Elliman’s star broker Dolly Lenz, who has been awarded the company’s top agent prize for the past eight years in a row, has said she will no longer compete for the honor.

Elliman released a statement today stating that Lenz “has graciously agreed to no longer compete for the top sales agent award, allowing other member of the company’s sales force to vie for the top individual prize.”

Instead, starting in 2011 Lenz will receive a newly created “Stratosphere Award” honoring her “unprecedented sales achievement and exemplary contributions to the company.”
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Michael Shvo and the W Downtown

Broker Michael Shvo filed a $3.7 million lawsuit against real estate
mogul Joseph Moinian’s W Downtown Hotel & Residences, alleging the
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Bob Siegel, co-founder of Gwathmey Siegel & Associates Architects

Bob Siegel who co-founded Gwathmey Siegel & Associates Architects in 1968, said his staff numbers 40 today, down from 65 two years ago. Plus, a few major projects are winding down, “and there are not a lot of replacements coming in” to the firm’s sole office, in Manhattan, Siegel said. One recently completed project is the new W Hoboken Hotel and Residence, a 26-story high-rise in New Jersey with 225 rooms and 30 condominium units, while the Financial District’s under-construction W New York Downtown Hotel & Residences, whose 58 stories contain 217 rooms and 159 residences, is set to debut within weeks, though the project has been somewhat troubled: the city has slapped it with 30 stop-work orders, and it’s wrapping up two years behind schedule. In an interview with The Real Deal, Siegel, 70, spoke about why his favorite New York neighborhood is Battery Park City, what apartment buildings will look like later this century and coping with the death of the firm’s other founder, Charles Gwathmey, last year. [more]

David Kuperberg

Cooper Square Realty,
a subsidiary of FirstService Residential Management, is one of the
largest residential property management companies in New York City. It
manages 437 condominiums, cooperatives, and rental properties in New
York City, including the Plaza Residences, 10 West End Avenue and One
Lincoln Square, with an aggregate value of over $5 billion.

How profitable is your business today compared to say five years ago?
Our net income is four times higher and our staff has increased more than 150 percent.

A group of 45 unit owners at Rector Square condominium in Battery Park filed a $100 million lawsuit against Yair Levy, Michael Shvo and you, alleging widespread fraud, negligence and misrepresentation. How do you respond to the suit?
In a lawsuit of this size — there are 12 defendants named — the
plaintiffs included as many parties as possible. As the managing agent,
we were also named. The majority of claims are unrelated to our role as
managing agent; we did nothing wrong.
Compiled by Lauren Elkies. [more]

A New York State Supreme Court judge shut the door on developer Yair Levy in the highly publicized foreclosure at Battery Park City’s Rector Square condominium.

Judge Joan Madden awarded summary judgment this afternoon to Anglo Irish Bank, which filed to foreclose after Levy’s firm defaulted on a $165 million mortgage loan. Madden rejected Levy’s arguments that the bank subverted the project by cutting off funding, and noted numerous defaults by Levy’s YL Real Estate, including improper withdrawals from the emergency reserve fund and “questionable” requests for construction money.

“Anglo further alleges that at least one contractor has accused YL of pocketing some of the loan proceeds and that YL embezzled most of the tenant reserve funds,” Madden wrote in her decision.

Levy himself filed suit in state Supreme Court, alleging the bank forced the project into bankruptcy by shutting off his construction funds.

Levy was not immediately available for comment, nor was YL Real Estate attorney David Segal. Christopher Sullivan, an attorney representing Anglo Irish Bank, was also not immediately available. [more]

Michael Shvo (left) celebrated his birthday at Abe & Arthur’s restaurant (right), with Elie Tahari vice president Rory Tahari (top center) and restaurateur Daniel Boulud (bottom center) in attendance

Marketing wunderkind Michael Shvo, who has been off the radar
for a while, celebrated his 37th birthday at Abe & Arthur’s restaurant
last night with a party of 15 including real estate developer Charles
Yassky and restaurateur Daniel Boulud, according to sources. Other
attendees at the Meatpacking District gathering included Rory Tahari,
vice chairman of clothing designer Elie Tahari, and hospitality
designer Adam Tihany (note: correction appended). Reports say that singer John Legend was at the neighboring table. Shvo was not immediately available for comment and representatives from Abe & Arthur’s declined to comment. TRD [more]

Direct impact of Dubai crisis on New York City is limited, experts say

As the international credit crisis spread into the kingdom of the United Arab Emirates, real estate experts said that while any direct impact on New York would be limited, it may signal the inability of sovereign wealth funds to bail out distressed assets here. The financial world briefly shuddered last week after Dubai World, the main investment arm of the powerful Gulf region city-state, asked lenders for a six-month suspension of nearly $60 billion in debt payments. Analysts say the suspension may force Dubai to sell many of its trophy assets around the world, including several high-profile buildings in New York, like the Jumeriah Essex House, the former Knickerbocker Hotel and the flagship W New York-Union Square hotel, whose mezzanine debt is scheduled for a Dec. 8 foreclosure auction. “Dubai got drunk with debt just like we did here in New York,” said Dan Fasulo, managing director of research at Manhattan-based investment research firm Real Capital Analytics. “A lot of people think Dubai [was financing its deals with] oil. In actuality, it was very much of a debt-fueled building boom.” [more]