R.I.P., Town Residential. Over the course of a few hours on April 19, when it told agents the end was at hand, Town went from a megafirm with flashy Manhattan offices to a cautionary tale. The bold residential brokerage, known for its over-the-top holiday bashes and agent benefits, burst onto the scene in 2010 and quickly ballooned to 600 agents and 10 offices. The firm, which was founded by industry… [more]
May 2018 Issue
The death of the brokerage
It’s adapt or die for NYC residential firms as income shrinks, costs rise and tech startups eat into market share
When luxury leaks
New high-end NYC condos are seeing an uptick in construction defects — from warped floors to fireproofing problems — and another wave of complaints could be coming
Not long after closing on a $28.5 million pad at 56 Leonard last spring, the new owner had a problem. More than one, actually. The master bathroom allegedly had… [more]
Secret listings soar
In break from industry norm, more brokerages are promoting whisper listings, and REBNY is not happy
The year was 2016. The billionaire was Len Blavatnik. And the house was the Wildenstein mansion, a 20,000-square-foot property at 19 East 64th Street. After a handshake deal, Blavatnik… [more]
Oxford out front
The Hudson Yards backer is taking the lead role for the first time in NYC amid a leadership shakeup — and as it tries to close a nagging deficit for its pension-fund parent
If anyone knows what it’s like to be Blake Hutcheson, the CEO of Oxford Properties, it’s probably his counterpart at Ivanhoe Cambridge. Hutcheson and … [more]
Sizing up NYC’s debt brokerage powerhouses
A look at the top commercial mortgage shops as local players face off against global giants
UPDATED, May 3, 12:42 p.m.: HNA Group’s $2.21 billion purchase of 245 Park Avenue — the city’s biggest investment sales deal of 2017 — was brokered by the world’s largest… [more]
The little flexible office startup that could
Inside Knotel’s swift rise as the three-year-old company co-founded by Amol Sarva goes head to head with industry giant WeWork
Amol Sarva has a way of saying things that can make you think: Did I just hear that right? In early 2017, when barely anyone knew of his flexible office… [more]
The “nightmare candidate” for New York real estate
Despite her long odds of winning the governor’s seat, Cynthia Nixon is pushing Cuomo to the left on housing — a red flag for the city’s developers and landlords
She chose a church in Brownsville, one of the poorest neighborhoods in … [more]
How NYC’s hard hats stack up
In the wake of a development slowdown and widespread corruption and labor battles, NYC’s top construction firms are navigating a tumultuous market while trying to stay active
One57, the first of the glassy giants to rise on 57th Street, wasn’t Lendlease’s key to Billionaire’s Row — it was a 60-story residential project on West… [more]
Roosevelt Island’s revamp
As the 2.1 million-square-foot Cornell Tech campus comes together, real estate values on the island are expected to continually increase
The first time David Kramer visited Roosevelt Island, it was to run a 5K race. The route looped around the thin, nearly two-mile-long stretch of land, … [more]
Isaac Hager’s higher power
The developer is gaining outer borough market share, despite a trail of foreclosures and lawsuits from his early real estate days
A couple months ago, one of Brooklyn’s most active and under-the-radar developers, Isaac Hager, crossed into Queens to buy a 50,000-square-foot Long Island … [more]
The Closing: Michael Phillips
The Jamestown principal on dropping out of college, working closely with Google and his vintage motor scooter collection
Michael Phillips is a principal and the president of Jamestown, the real estate investment manager based in Atlanta and Cologne, Germany, with offices in New York, Boston, California and Bogotá,… [more]
Cracking the university real estate code
A first-ever ranking of the New York colleges with the largest property footprints at a time when many are expanding their strongholds
More than a decade after it was first proposed, Columbia University’s massive Manhattanville campus has started to take shape in earnest, with two of… [more]
The Ravitch family retrospective
In its 93 years, Saul Ravitch’s HRH Construction reinvented itself through multiple financial crises and built some of NYC’s most storied properties including the San Remo and Citigroup Center
In its final years, a dark cloud has… [more]
Libeskind’s lackluster debut
The architect’s first NYC building shows little of the brilliance he’s brought to previous work
In New York, Daniel Libeskind is undoubtedly best known for his work as the master planner of the World Trade Center redevelopment. But he still does not have a building… [more]
How developers hunt for architects
Builders of everything from high-end condo towers to affordable rentals want designers with vision and practicality
Like fashion designers, architects go in and out of vogue — but a building has a much longer life span than a pair of jeans. “Arguably, architecture is an art… [more]
Residential market report
From Tribeca’s tepid triumph to the latest L train rent declines, a look at the biggest trends
City’s priciest neighborhoods see old and new Tribeca held as the city’s priciest neighborhood in 2018’s first quarter, despite a 30 percent year-over-year drop in its median sales price to… [more]
Commercial market report
From retail’s lonely hot spot to co-working’s latest growth spurt, a look at the biggest trends
Meatpacking bucks the retail slump Retail rents throughout Manhattan are sliding at a faster rate, and almost no submarket is immune. In the first quarter, asking rents in the shopping… [more]
Editor’s note: Painting the town red
The talk of the town last month was the demise of Town. Andrew Heiberger’s residential brokerage, which at one point touted 600 agents and amassed $13 billion in sales, shut… [more]
Cleaning up after Toys “R” Us
The failure of the largest U.S. toy chain — the third-biggest retailer ever to file bankruptcy — puts 800 locations up for grabs and presents the retailer, as well as brokers, landlords and lenders, with a plethora of options, though not all of them are attractive
Retail real estate these days can… [more]
The indestructible tenant?
As they proliferate in record numbers, dollar stores may be one of the only retailers immune to the sting of e-commerce — but a mounting challenge from midmarket players could soon pose a risk
It’s been called the “e-pocalypse”: the closing of so many brick-and-mortar stores because customers would rather get what… [more]
The kingpins of leasing
TRD’s ranking of top retail leasing brokerages in four major markets shows that a few thriving chains are offering bright spots in gloomy markets
Property owners seem to be willing to get a bit unconventional these days to keep rent payments rolling in amid the ongoing waves of store closures. Indoor … [more]
The top closers
TRD’s ranking of the top commercial sale brokerages finds them closing smaller deals and pushing sellers to get real on pricing
Sales of retail properties may be down compared to last year, but executives at the country’s top brokerages remained characteristically upbeat, … [more]
Coming up Kimco
With his company offering up to $900 million in assets for sale this year, Kimco Realty’s COO David Jamieson says the REIT’s slimmed-down portfolio will benefit from a focus on redevelopment
The stock market hasn’t been kind to REITs lately, and open-air shopping center… [more]
What to expect at RECon 2018
Tenants are likely to pressure brokers and landlords with demands at this year’s ICSC show, but the convention’s timing over a religious holiday may put a damper on activity
Tenants, who have had their backs against the wall in recent years, are … [more]
Amazon’s mysterious ways
It’s notoriously secretive about its real estate negotiations, and Amazon’s next moves are nearly impossible to guess, but as the company expands its brick-and-mortar presence with Whole Foods, competitors brace for what’s next
Ask any broker who’s dealt with… [more]
How REITs are making it work
TRD’s tracking of real estate investment trust activity reveals that the struggle to lease spaces means they’re buying less, but when they do, they’re diversifying in a bid to ride out the market
Now more than ever, REITs in the retail space are being forced to raise… [more]
Retail’s revolving door
While some apparel brands are enjoying a surprising bounce back, a slew of bankruptcies and downsizing efforts from other tenants have mall landlords scrambling to fill space
The onslaught of retail bankruptcies and store closings in the past year has mall owners in a mad dash to fill … [more]
The co-working cure?
The shared office trend is drawing a captive audience to neighboring shops, but oversupply of that type of work space could negatively impact retail owners
Before Josh Freed opened a 6,000-square-foot co-working facility in a pair of storefronts in Montrose, Colorado, the two spaces had stood abandoned for more than… [more]
Software’s symbiosis with brokers
A host of data tools are boosting retail brokers’ ability to scout locations and target buyers and tenants
With new data-harnessing tools, retail real estate brokers have the power to go from global to granular in just a few clicks, offering tenants, developers and owners… [more]
Retail’s biggest newsmakers
The top headlines in retail real estate over the past year show big operators pushing ahead with new strategies for battling tough market conditions
The last year in retail has been marked by stories that would have been unimaginable a decade — or even a few years — ago, from the struggles of iconic… [more]
Toying with the formula
The giraffe mascot of Toys “R” Us, seen on this issue’s cover as a lanky giant laid low, made for a fitting visual for the company it represented — a… [more]
Features
With Rikers Island and several other prisons in NYC shuttering, developers are stepping in to redevelop
The HPD commissioner on her poor gardening skills, shoveling snow on the High Line, and warding off evil spirits
The EDC president and CEO on running an $850M operation, courting life- science tenants and his love of cooking
Featured News
We Heard
Adam Leitman Bailey, the pugnacious real estate attorney, is showing a softer side with a new children’s book called “Home.” It’s the story of a little boy who looks all… [more]