Rabina Reels In $640M Refi For Fifth Avenue Supertall

Rabina locked down a refinancing for its Fifth Avenue supertall as the 88-story cloud buster nears the finish line.

Carlyle Group provided a $640 million condo inventory loan for 520 Fifth Avenue, according to property records. The fresh financing replaces a $540 million construction loan from Bank OZK and Carlyle’s Global Credit business as the mixed-use tower transitions to leasing and sales.

The 1,000-foot project located near the Empire State Building now stands as the tallest tower on Fifth Avenue in that stretch of Midtown. The property combines 25 floors of offices and 100 luxury condominiums. Condo sales launched in April 2024 and the building’s private club, Moss, opened in November and the offices are open for tenant move-ins.

The developer first filed plans in 2021 for the tower at the corner of East 43rd Street and Fifth Avenue, then envisioned as a 70-story building. The proposal called for 98 residential units spread across 16 floors, with most of the remaining stories devoted to office space and a suite of amenities. Those amenities include restaurants, retail space and a solarium.

Kohn Pedersen Fox is the architect on the project.

Ceruzzi Properties and SMI USA acquired the site for $275 million in 2015, laying the groundwork for the development. But in 2017, founder and president Lou Ceruzzi died suddenly at the age of 64, and his company’s portfolio was thrown into turmoil.

Rabina came on board in 2019, bringing in an equity contribution that helped wipe out roughly $232 million in debt tied to the project and becoming the lead developer.

The tower is the biggest project in Mickey Rabina’s six-decade career. Rabina is a familiar name among real estate’s top dealmakers — in part for his reputation as a fix-it guy. When Ceruzzi died, it seemed the project might never get off the ground.

Rabina declined to comment. Carlyle did not immediately respond to request for comment.