The Carlyle Group has put a Midtown office tower near the Sony Building on the market, in a move that could see the investment behemoth receive more than $1 billion from the sale, according to written reports seen by Crain’s. The 27-story tower is located at 650 Madison Avenue between East 59th and East 60th Streets and totals roughly 600,000 square feet, making it a shade smaller than the Sony Building, which was acquired by Joseph Chetrit’s Chetrit Group for $1.1 billion earlier this year.
Eastdil Secured will handle the marketing, according to written reports viewed by Crain’s, which also indicate that plans for the building could include a conversion to residential and hotel space, which was earlier considered by former owner Ashkenazy Acquisition Corp. The Washington, D.C.-based Carlyle, which was recently profiled by The Real Deal, has been aggressively investing in the New York City market.
The tower is part of a bevy of office buildings that have come to market as a result of a recovering commercial mortgage market — particularly the resurgence of commercial mortgage-backed securities — and increased buyer demand.
Crain’s could not immediately reach Carlyle for comment. [Crain’s] – Hiten Samtani