Vornado grabs UES rental building for $170M

Vornado Realty Trust Chairman Steven Ross and 11 East 68th Street (building credit: PropertyShark)Vornado Realty Trust went into contract to buy an Upper East Side rental building for $170 million, the New York Post reported.

The 11-story, 41-unit apartment building at 11 East 68th Street, with two rental units along Madison Avenue, hit the market in July, with some experts predicting it could fetch as much as $220 million, in part because of its potential for a condominium conversion. Adam Spies and Doug Harmon, senior managing directors at Eastdil Secured, marketed the property for Abro management, which acquired it for $191.8 million in 2008. Abro will have a continuing interest.

Combine retail leases, currently held by clothing retailers Malo and Joseph, that expire next year with an additional 5,000 square feet of buildable air rights, and Steven Roth-led Vornado can add even more value to the property (note: correction appended). Earlier reports said just a handful of the apartments were rent-controlled. [Post, 2nd item]