DAILY READS: Dec. 6, 2019

Facebook to Grow West Side Fiefdom with Giant Farley Building Lease

“The social media giant is in talks to lease 700,000 square feet of office space at Vornado Realty Trust’s conversion of the James A. Farley Post Office, according to the Wall Street Journal. Apple had also reportedly been looking into leasing space at the office redevelopment.”

—The Real Deal

Rent Cap Makes Sense Now, Multifamily Sellers Say, But There’s Danger On The Horizon

“The new law will also make it harder for landlords to evict tenants by using “just cause” criteria, meaning landlords must now provide a reason for eviction, such as nonpayment of rent or criminal activity.”

—Bisnow Los Angeles

The Taxman Cometh for Some Condos

“The end of those benefits, through an expired program known as 421-a, could not have come at a worse time for many sellers, who are faced with mounting taxes and stiff competition in a weak market. Some are selling for marginal returns or even less than what they paid several years ago.”

—New York Times

Blackstone and Brookfield Join £4BN Hunt for UK Student Housing Group IQ

“The interest in London-based IQ comes as its owners at Goldman Sachs and Wellcome Trust, the medical research charity, are preparing an initial public offering of the business for which they joined forces to grow in early 2016.” 

—Financial Times

Amazon buys Land in Mt. Juliet Where Project Sam is approved for Nearly $5 Million

“Amazon.com Services is listed as the buyer and new owner of two properties that total about 77 acres with East Division Street addresses, according to Wilson County property records.”

—The Tennessean

Kimco’s Ross Cooper Discusses the Future of U.S. Shopping Centers

“The biggest challenges are a combination of a lack of investment by certain owners and landlords, as well as some of the assets in the marketplace being too [commodity-focused.] It really is critical in today’s retail environment to invest in the centers in both the aesthetics and tenant mix.”

—NREI

FCPT Announces Acquisition of PNC Bank Property for $1.5 Million

“The property is located in Michigan, is leased to the corporate operator under a triple-net ground lease with approximately 5 years of term remaining and has high deposits according to the FDIC. The transaction was priced at a 6.7% going-in cash cap rate, exclusive of transaction costs.”

—Yahoo Finance

One Developer Wants to Build ‘the Most Sustainable Block in Downtown Brooklyn’

“The schools, which will be designed by Architecture Research Office and built in partnership with the NYC’s School Construction Authority, will be built to passive house standards, a first for the city. The 38-story tower, meanwhile, will be entirely electric, with all of the functions that would typically use natural gas—stovetops, for example, or boilers for heating—replaced with electric energy. It will also have a number of other measures (including cooling towers, triple-pane windows, and energy recovery units) that will help lower its carbon output.”

—Curbed New York

Public Housing Complex in D.C.’s Navy Yard Re-Emerges as a Mixed-Income, Mixed-Use Development

“Twenty percent of the apartments are replacement units for people who previously lived at the Capper/Carrollsburg public housing development. Once the entire redevelopment of that former public housing is complete, more than 1,600 townhouses, apartments and condos will be in place, along with offices and recreational amenities.”

—Washington Post

Big New Suburban Warehouses Fetch Nearly $200 Million

“The Chicago industrial real estate market is so strong these days that developers like Bridge are stamping out massive warehouses in the suburbs, selling them quickly and moving on to their next project. Developers will complete 23.7 million square feet of industrial space in the Chicago area this year, just shy of the 24.8 million completed in 2017, a high for the current boom, according to Colliers International.”

—Crain’s Chicago Business