Carmel Partners Buying Into Columbus Circle Portfolio

Ron Zeff’s Carmel Partners is buying into a $500 million multifamily portfolio that was pitched as an investment shielded from a potential rent freeze under Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

The investment firm is nearing a deal to buy MetLife’s minority stake in a 5 building, 710-unit portfolio near Columbus Circle, The Real Deal has learned. Four of the five buildings are free market, and the fifth is subject to an older 421a agreement under which an owner could raise rents by 47 percent before hitting their legal rent limits.

MetLife put its piece of the deal up for sale over the summer, pitching the investment as an opportunity to hedge against a potential rent freeze that Mamdani had campaigned on before being elected mayor.

“With no exposure to income-restriction and minimal impact from Rent Guidelines Board limitations, the portfolio benefits from robust, market-driven rent growth across all assets,” read an offering memo from Newmark.

Mamdani was sworn in as mayor at the start of the year, and the RGB will decide later this year whether or not to freeze rents.

Representatives for Carmel Partners and MetLife did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

A Newmark team led by Adam Spies and Adam Doneger arranged the deal.

Carmel’s purchase will set a valuation approaching $500 million for the portfolio that MetLife currently owns in partnership with the Colorado-based multifamily REIT UDR, which will maintain its majority stake.

The buildings are 775, 795, 805 and 808 Columbus Avenue, as well as 801 Amsterdam Avenue.

UDR teamed up with MetLife in 2012 to buy the portfolio from Laurence Gluck’s Stellar Management and the Chetrit Group for $635 million.