RXR, GO Partners refinance Two Sutton Place North

A little more than a year after acquiring an apartment portfolio from the Solow Building Company, RXR and GO Partners are refinancing one of the assets.

Apollo Global Management affiliate Athene Annuity and Life provided a $146 million loan to refinance Two Sutton Place North in Manhattan’s Lenox Hill neighborhood, Bloomberg reported. 

The 37-story luxury property at 1113 York Avenue was one of several to trade hands in November 2022.

That month, RXR and GO — a joint venture between Orbach Affordable Housing Solutions’ Meyer Orbach and Black Spruch Management’s Josh Gotlib — purchased three multifamily assets developed by the late Sheldon Solow on the Upper East Side for $825 million, according to Traded. Those assets included 850 apartment units.

The deal was part of a $1.75 billion portfolio of residential buildings with a combined 1,766 units. Orbach and Gotlib also paid $837 million in March 2022 for the American Copper Buildings in Murray Hill and have been some of the most active multifamily players in recent years, closing on more than $2 billion in transactions.

As for Two Sutton Place North, Solow completed the 203-unit building in 2014. Two years later, he refinanced the property with a $154 million loan. The black glass tower features views of the East River and the Queensboro Bridge, and includes amenities such as a children’s playroom, a swimming pool and a gym.

A wall of maturities continues to loom over the multifamily market — and commercial real estate as a whole — as borrowing costs make refinancing properties challenging for ownership. There could be a glimmer of hope to emerge this year, though, if the Federal Reserve moves to cut interest rates, as expected.

And while banks have pulled back on lending, there are alternative lenders out there ready to capitalize on a moment of distress. Private equity firms, debt funds and family offices are stepping into the void left by tightening bank loan standards.

— Holden Walter-Warner