Sam Zell, Chairman of Equity Residential

Equity Residential’s purchase of a stake in apartment builder Archstone was blocked by the estate of Lehman Brothers Holdings, as Lehman exercised the option to match the bid, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Equity, run by Sam Zell, offered $1.33 billion for 26.5 percent of Archstone, a major competitor of Equity’s. Lehman’s purchase is half of the position in Archstone owned by Bank of America and Barclays and brings its total stake in Archstone to 73.5 percent.   [more]

Ten23Equity Residential is requiring renters to put down a $1,000 non-refundable deposit to reserve an apartment in its new Ten23 rental building near the High Line, the New York Times reported. That’s on top of the astronomical rents at the 111-unit building, at 500 West 23rd Street near 10th Avenue, where Equity is charging $3,205 for a studio. “This is the most expensive deposit that I’m aware of,” said Citi Habitats President Gary Malin. “Typically, it’s more like $500.” [more]

Sam Zell’s Equity Residential has purchased 175 Kent Avenue, in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, for $76 million, Crain’s reported. The condominium-turned-rental was developed by the Chetrit Group, which bought the property for $56 million in 2007. It was not clear why it chose to sell the project, which leased up after only six months. It may have been less profitable than the developer expected after it converted to rental, Crain’s speculated. Aptsandlofts.com is the exclusive marketing agent for the building, at North 4th Street. Renting commenced in March 2011, with studios for $2,343 a month, one-bedrooms starting at $2,756 and two-bedrooms at $3,413. [more]

Lehman Brothers Holdings matched Equity Residential’s $1.33 billion bid for a 26.5 percent stake in Archstone, and then sued partners Bank of America and Barclays for breaching Lehman’s right of first refusal for the stake in a sale, Bloomberg News reported.

Archstone is a real estate investment trust with stakes in 60,000 U.S. apartment units and 14,000 units in Germany, that Lehman purchased in October 2007 with Tishman Speyer for $22 billion. Lehmar eventually filed for the biggest bankruptcy in U.S. history and refinanced the portfolio and brought in equity partners Barclays and BofA, which combined for a 53 percent stake. [more]

From left: Sam Zell of Equity Residential, Bob Toll of Toll Brothers, Will Silverman, Woody Heller, both of Studley, and 400 Park Avenue South

In the most expensive development site deal of the year so far, home builder Toll Brothers and real estate investment trust Equity Residential partnered in reportedly paying $134 million for a large development site at 400 Park Avenue South.

The joint venture plans to build a 40-story condominium and rental apartment tower at the Park Avenue South and 28th Street site, which has 400,000 square feet of development rights, the companies said in a statement.

Sam Zell’s Equity Residential will own and operate the lower 22 floors with 265 rental apartments and retail, while Toll Brothers will build and sell about 100 condo units on the upper floors, the Wall Street Journal reported. [more]

Sam Zell and a rendering of 500 West 23rd Street

Ten23, the first ground-up Manhattan development by Sam Zell’s Equity Residential, opened for leasing today. The rental building, located at 500 West 23rd Street near 10th Avenue in Chelsea, is a 111-unit mix of studios and one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments with rents ranging from $3,205 to $11,577 per month, according to a statement issued by Equity, which markets the building in house. However, the building’s website shows a 414-square-foot studio asking $2,965 per month as the least expensive unit. It opens for occupancy in January. – Adam Fusfeld [more]

From left: Equity International Chairman Sam Zell, Toll Brothers Chairman Bob Toll and 400 Park Avenue South

Sam Zell’s Equity Residential and Toll Brothers are closing in on the acquisition of 400 Park Avenue South, according to Crain’s, with plans to build a residential tower with condominium units above rentals.

The site, at 28th Street is currently a 20,000-square-foot parking lot owned by A&R Kalimian Realty. A&R obtained approval for a 40-story, 435-unit rental building, but it put the site on the sales market in May with brokerage Studley. The price Equity Residential and Toll Brothers plan to pay for the site was not revealed, but previous reports said it could draw $400 for each of its 420,000 buildable square feet. [more]

Equity International Chairman Sam Zell and 170 Amsterdam Avenue (building credit: PropertyShark)

For all his talk of investments in emerging markets, Sam Zell hasn’t completely abandoned his home country. According to the New York Post, his Chicago-based Equity Residential firm just grabbed an Upper West Side development site for $76.5 million.

The firm picked up a 99-year leasehold on the 20,700-square-foot site at 170 Amsterdam Avenue between 66th and 67th streets with intentions to build a new structure with 230 apartments and 8,500 square feet of retail. [more]

Equity International Chairman Sam Zell

Sam Zell, chairman of Equity International, said he is entering real estate markets in Colombia and India over the next two weeks, starting with a $75 million investment in Bogota, Colombia-based Terranum Development, Bloomberg News reported. Terranum is developing a 2 million-square-foot mixed-use complex near Bogota’s El Dorado International airport.

Since co-founding Equity International in 1999, Zell has invested largely in Brazil, China and Mexico. [more]

Sam Zell’s Equity Residential has poached a top member of Toll Brothers’ executive team to head up its hunt for new development sites in the New York metropolitan area. According to Crain’s, George Kruse, the former managing director of Toll Brothers Realty Trust, joined Zell’s company last month and will be looking for building opportunities as well as overseeing the construction of TEN23, Equity Residential’s new 111-unit rental building on the High Line, which is slated to kick off leasing efforts this fall. [more]