Vornado backs Macklowe debt deal

Vornado Realty Trust has reportedly agreed to back a deal over developer Harry Macklowe’s overdue $5.8 billion debt. The deal would let Deutsche Bank take control of the seven Manhattan office towers that Mackowe bought for $7 billion in a highly-leveraged deal from Equity Office Properties Trust. The agreement, which is yet to be finalized, would give Macklowe an extension of six months to a year so that Deutsche Bank could sell the buildings. Vornado, which held the smallest slice of Macklowe’s debt, had reportedly been blocking the deal because it feared it could lose its equity if Macklowe’s properties were sold for far less than what he paid for them.