Macklowe taps Compass to sell 1 Wall Street

Condo conversion has a $1.7B projected sellout

From left: Compass CEO Robert Reffkin, 1 Wall Street and Macklowe Properties chairman Harry Macklowe (Getty; Macklowe Properties)
From left: Compass CEO Robert Reffkin, 1 Wall Street and Macklowe Properties chairman Harry Macklowe (Getty; Macklowe Properties)

Developer Harry Macklowe is shaking up the sales team at 1 Wall Street ahead of the condo project’s official sales launch.

Macklowe Properties has tapped Compass to replace Core Real Estate to sell units at the Financial District tower, according to sources.

As one of the largest office-to-residential conversions in New York history, 1 Wall Street is slated to have 566 units with a projected sellout of $1.7 billion, according to an offering plan approved in 2018.

Core, which is part-owned by the Related Companies and Midtown Equities, did not immediately comment. The boutique firm, run by Shaun Osher, had been involved in planning at 1 Wall Street since the pre-development phase.
In a statement, Macklowe thanked Osher and Core for being “tireless advocates” of 1 Wall Street.

“Over five years ago, we engaged Core to undertake the pre-development phase of this project and they were instrumental in helping us craft” the building’s amenities, floor plans, pricing, marketing and design, the developer said in a statement. The work “was validated by our very successful global outreach to pre-sell the building.”

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Sources said Core sold about 10 percent of the building to Asian buyers, but selected a larger firm to sell the rest of the project. Harry Macklowe and Elizabeth “Libba” Stribing, who sold her eponymous firm to Compass in 2019, have a relationship dating back decades.

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Macklowe Properties purchased the 51-story Art Deco tower for $585 million in 2014. After a series of delays, the developer nabbed a $750 million construction loan in 2018 from Deutsche Bank to convert the building to condos with retail at the base. Macklowe’s partner is Qatari billionaire and former prime minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jaber al-Thani (HBJ).

While low inventory and demand for suburban living has bolstered the national housing market, the opposite is true in New York City. Manhattan new development sales plunged nearly 40 percent during the third quarter, according to Miller Samuel, while supply surged 73.8 percent. The average marketing time — 267 days — is now at its highest point in more than eight years.

Developers have rejiggered marketing strategies accordingly, with broker swaps and discounts.

Unlike Macklowe’s 432 Park Avenue, 1 Wall is billed as more affordable luxury, with prices around $2,500 to $3,000 per square foot. There is a 13,000-square-foot penthouse, however, which has not yet been priced. The building is currently under construction.