Accounting watchdog expands at Mitsui’s 1251 Sixth Ave.

1251 Avenue of the Americas
1251 Avenue of the Americas

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, a nonprofit government-sponsored watchdog agency, has signed a renewal and expansion deal at Mitsui Fudosan’s 1251 Avenue of the Americas, data from commercial real estate information firm CompStak shows.

PCAOB, which was subleasing 33,125 square feet on the 16th floor since 2006, will renew that space in a direct lease and expand to take the full 41,900-square-foot floor. In the new 15-year deal, PCAOB will pay an average rent in the low-$80s, on par with other leases in the building, according to CompStak.

The 2.36-million-square-foot building is located within the Rockefeller Center complex between 49th and 50th streets, and is managed by Hines. The asking rent for PCAOB’s sublease began in the $60s per square foot and escalated to the $70s per square foot, according to CompStak.

Montieth Illingworth, a spokesman for Mitsui Fudosan, confirmed the deal but declined to comment further. Representatives from PCAOB could not immediately be reached for comment. Representatives from Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, which handles leasing at the building, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

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Mitsui Fudosan, the real estate division of the Japanese conglomerate Mitsui Group, was one of the bidders on the $1.1 billion Sony Building at 550 Madison Avenue, which ultimately went to a consortium headed by Joseph Chetrit.

The company also owns 527 Madison Avenue, which it bought for $225 million in 2008 after previous owner Harry Macklowe defaulted on the property.

PCAOB was established by the Congress’ Sarbanes-Oxley Act to oversee the audits of public companies and safeguard investor interests.