DRA Buys Stake In 1301 Sixth Ave. At $1.3B Valuation: The N.Y. Deal Sheet

Rithm Capital has sold a slice of a Sixth Avenue office tower to DRA Advisors in a deal that values the property at $1.3B.

The two firms are forming a joint venture for 1301 Sixth Ave., with DRA taking a 49% stake in the building and Rithm retaining majority ownership, Commercial Observer reported. The 45-story, 1.7M SF office tower also has a new tenant, with law firm Adler & Stachenfeld moving into the entire 40K SF 12th floor, according to a release from the law firm.

“Strong leasing activity across New York City’s leading office assets continues to reinforce demand for best-in-class space,” Rithm CEO Michael Nierenberg said in a release. “We are excited to begin our partnership with DRA.”

Newmark’s Adam Doneger, Adam Spies and Ben Lushing reportedly arranged the equity deal. CBRE’s Andrew Sussman and David Hollander represented Adler & Stachenfeld, which joins a tenant roster that includes KeyBank, Piper Sandler and Crédit Agricole in the building.

The building is now fully leased. Rithm took over the building in December when it acquired Paramount Group and the companies’ properties for $1.6B. Rithm rebranded the Paramount office business as Elecor Properties. 

TOP LEASES

Morgan, Lewis & Bockius leased 210K SF at Mitsui Fudosan America’s 54-story office tower at 1251 Sixth Ave., according to Colliers. The deal is a relocation for the law firm, which lists its NYC office at 101 Park Ave. on its website. Newmark leases the tower for Mitsui Fudosan.

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Fisher Brothers has two new tenants at 1345 Sixth Ave., according to a release. It signed Silvercrest Asset Management to a 15-year, 41K SF lease and i80 Group to a 10-year, 17K SF lease. CBRE’s Howard Fiddle, Peter Turchin, Gregg Rothkin, Ben Joseph, Bill Iacovelli and Charles P. Laginestra represented ownership in both deals, along with Fisher Brothers’ Clark Briffel and Jason Vengilio. CBRE also represented the tenants, with Silvio Petriello representing Silvercrest and Hugh McDonald representing i80 Group. Blackstone purchased a 46% stake in 1345 Sixth last year at a $1.4B valuation.

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Stawski Partners signed two tenants to a combined 29K SF at 1212 Sixth Ave., according to a release. The Bank of India signed a 20-year, 15K SF lease on the 12th floor, repped by Chris Helgesen, Dirk Hrobsky and Alejandro Alvarez of Cushman & Wakefield and Joseph Hilton of Joseph Hilton & Associates. Investor group IQ-EQ Fund Services inked a 10-year lease for the entire 14K SF 14th floor, relocating from 250 W. 57th St. It was represented by JLL’s Matthew Astrachan, Kristen Morgan, Seth Godnick and Jamie Boast. JLL’s Paul Glickman, Diana Biasotti, Greg Wang and Harrison Potter represented the landlord in both deals. 

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Global investment manager Qube signed a 52K SF lease at Related Co. and Oxford Properties Group’s planned 52-story office tower at 70 Hudson Yards, according to Avison Young’s third-quarter report. Qube follows consulting giant Deloitte, which signed on as an anchor tenant last summer for the building, kicking off the first major ground-up office project since the pandemic. Qube currently lists its office across the street at 50 Hudson Yards, Commercial Observer reported.

TOP SALES

Daryl Hagler paid $75.8M for a mixed-use tower in Ridgewood that has been under development for more than a decade, Crain’s New York Business reported. Hagler, a controversial investor in nursing homes, bought the 133-unit, 17-story apartment building at 3-50 St. Nicholas Ave. from AB Capstone and Arch Cos. Hagler signed a 99-year ground lease for a parcel on the same block that is also part of the development, paying $10.2M to the Stahl Organization in another all-cash deal. The apartment building, dubbed Myrtle Point, received its certificate Aug. 25 and has retail deals lined up with Target and Burlington, Crain’s reported. Valley National Bank provided Hagler with a $65.8M loan for the purchase, PincusCo reported.

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Cincinnati-based Phillips Edison & Co. has acquired a Staten Island outdoor shopping center known as South Shore Commons, a 157K SF shopping center at 2965 Veterans Road W., from Joyland Management for $57M, Commercial Observer reported. Joyland’s Joel Wertzberger, Judy Wolcowitz and Jack Wolcowitz handled the deal in-house, while Newmark’s Daniel O’Brien, Conor Lalor, Caroline Hodes, Loren Valla, Felton Hatcher and Adam Spies represented the seller and procured the REIT as a buyer.

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Synergy Hospitality Management sold the 353-room DoubleTree by Hilton New York LaGuardia Airport to Palette Hotels, according to a deed filed with the city on Friday. Richard Lou’s Palette Hotels acquired the property at 104-04 Ditmars Blvd. for $72M. Pennsylvania-based Synergy acquired the hotel in 2007 for $1 from the city, according to property records. In 2024, it took out a $64.5M loan to convert the hotel into a DoubleTree after decades as the LaGuardia Plaza Hotel.

TOP FINANCING

Blue Owl Capital provided KPG Funds with a $127.9M loan to refinance three SoHo properties, PincusCo reported. The properties include one residential unit and the retail space at 478 Broadway, plus the office and retail condos at 153 Spring St. The debt replaces an $83.3M loan from BrightSpire Capital, Maxim Capital Group, Sabal Investment Holdings and GDSNY.

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The Olnick Organization scored a $170.5M loan from Chase Commercial Bank for Lenox Terrace, a 1958-built Harlem multifamily complex at 484 Malcolm X Blvd. The property comprises six 16-story buildings with 1,696 units that are largely rent-regulated. The new permanent financing was arranged by Walker & Dunlop’s Jonathan Schwartz, Aaron Appel, Keith Kurland, Adam Schwartz, Dustin Stolly, Sean Reimer, Michael Ianno and Cody Ela.

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ABS Partners Real Estate refinanced the office building at 915 Broadway with a $95M loan from John Hancock Life Insurance, PincusCo reported. The loan on the 216K SF Flatiron District office building replaces a prior $100M loan from MetLife.