Paramount Group Locks In $175M Refi for Manhattan Tower

Paramount Group has refinanced its 600,000-square-foot, Class A office building at 900 Third Ave. with a $175 million loan provided by New York Life Insurance, The Real Deal reported Wednesday.

An Eastdil Secured team led by Managing Directors Grant Frankel and Rob Turner arranged the refinancing. The building reportedly was 69 percent leased at the end of 2024.

The Real Deal cited a $270 million loan from German lender Landesbank Baden-Württemberg in 2008 as evidence that—like so many office buildings in Manhattan and nationwide—900 Third Ave. has struggled to hold its value in the post-COVID work-from-home era.

As Commercial Property Executive reported in January, Paramount Group sold a 45 percent stake in the 36-story building to a still-unidentified entity. The deal valued the tower at an estimated $210 million.

The REIT had acquired 900 Third Ave. from The Carlyle Group in November 1999 for $163.2 million, according to information provided by Yardi Matrix.

Rithm and blues

Following the January deal, even bigger news unfolded. In September, we reported on the move by Rithm Capital Corp. to acquire Paramount Group for $1.6 billion, highlighting broader trends in commercial real estate affecting major office REITs. At that time, the deal had been approved by both companies’ boards, but had still to be approved by Paramount shareholders.

Paramount’s portfolio includes 13 owned and four managed office assets aggregating more than 13.1 million square feet. The portfolio is primarily in Manhattan, but also includes five San Francisco properties and is 85.4 percent leased.

Meanwhile, other issues lurk, The Real Deal reported. Paramount Group earlier this year had disclosed that it had paid millions of dollars, under the radar to other companies affiliated with Paramount Chairman, President & CEO Albert Behler—and that the REIT is under SEC investigation.

Further, Behler had reportedly given a no-bid contract to a company tied to an ex-girlfriend.