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A six-story elevator apartment building at 110-48 72nd Avenue, located between 110th and 112th Streets in Forest Hills, Queens was sold in an all cash transaction valued at $7,300,000.  

The building is approximately 36,436 square feet and sits on a 110’ x 100’ lot. There are forty-eight units in the building of which there are twenty-nine studios, eleven one-bedroom units, seven two-bedroom units and one three-bedroom unit. Features include a small laundry room and garage parking for fourteen cars. The sales price represented $153,125 a unit and 10.52 gross rent multiple.

Neighborhoods: Forest Hills

237-239 East 53rd Street consists of two 27'2" wide adjacent mixed-use buildings, located on the North side of East 53rd Street between Second and Third Avenue. Each property consists of three retail units, while 237 East 53rd Street has 18 residential units and 239 East 53rd Street has 17 residential units. Based on existing rents, there is approximately 13% upside. It should be noted that the boiler is shared by the neighboring buildings through an easement, and there exists an agreement whereby 50% of the fuel bill is covered by the neighbors.

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Neighborhoods: Midtown East

Building upon a very active December, Massey Knakal is starting off 2010 with the closing of five properties throughout Brooklyn. Combined, there are 29 residential units and one retail unit totaling 21,040 square feet with a total aggregate sales value of approximately $4,000,000.

Two three-story multifamily buildings at 239 North 5th Street, located between Roebling and Havemeyer Streets in Northside Williamsburg, sold in an all cash transaction valued at $1,025,000. The front building contains three floor-though apartments and is approximately 2,500 square feet. The rear building, which is approximately 2,700 square feet, has two studio apartments on the ground floor and floor-through apartments on the second and third floors. Vice President of Sales Mark Lively was the sole broker in this transaction.

A six-family walk-up building at 197 St. Marks Avenue, located between Carlton and Vanderbilt Avenues in Prospect Heights, sold in an all cash transaction valued at $900,000. This three-story building is approximately 3,840 square feet.  There are five one-bedroom apartments and one studio. Senior Vice President of Sales Ken Freeman and First Vice President of Sales Jonathan Berman were the sole brokers in this transaction.

A four-story seven-family building at 149 DeKalb Avenue, located between South Portland Avenue and South Oxford Street in Fort Greene, sold in an all cash transaction valued at $850,000. The building is approximately 3,360 square feet and contains one one-bedroom apartment and six studios. First Vice President of Sales Stephen Palmese was the sole broker in this transaction.

A three-story six-family building at 6815 Owls Head Court, located between 68th Street and Bay Ridge Avenue in Bay Ridge, sold in an all cash transaction valued at $735,000. The building is approximately 4,920 square feet and consists of three one-bedroom units, two two-bedroom units, and one studio. First Vice President of Sales Matthew Giordano was the sole broker in this transaction.

A three-story mixed-use building at 950 Nostrand Avenue, located between Montgomery and Crown Streets in Southern Crown Heights, sold in an all cash transaction valued at $425,000. The building is approximately 3,720 square feet and consists of two three-bedroom apartments and one store. First Vice President of Sales Jonathan Berman was the sole broker in this transaction.

Neighborhoods: Bay Ridge, Williamsburg, Prospect Heights, Crown Heights, Fort Greene/ Agents: Mark Lively, Stephen Palmese

The remaining unsold co-op units in a five building, six-story elevatored apartment complex, known as Donner Gardens, were sold in an all cash transaction valued at $12,000,000.

The complex consists of three buildings on 81st Street and two buildings on 82nd Street; all between Northern Boulevard and 34th Avenue in Jackson Heights, Queens. 

The units consist of the unsold sponsor shares retained from a conversion to co-op in the 1980s and have remained under the ownership of the original developer since the building’s construction in 1951. Of the 270 total units, 121 remained rental apartments. Eight-eight (88) units are free market with the remaining thirty-three (33) being rent stabilized.  The apartment sizes ranged between studios to two-bedrooms with the majority (70%) being one-bedrooms.   

Neighborhoods: Jackson Heights

This offering consists of 2 prime mixed-use buildings in the heart of Greenwich Village with a total of 85 apartments and 5 stores.

The buildings at 7-11 Cornelia Street are a 5-story, elevatored apartment building and a carriage house which currently contain 48 apartments plus two commercial spaces. They are 100% occupied. The buildings are made up of studios, 3 room units and 1 bedrooms units which average approximately $43/NSF. Of the 48 units, 17 are rent regulated and 31 are fair market.

The building at 102 Christopher Street is a 5-story, walk-up apartment building. The building has 37 apartments plus three commercial spaces including rag & bone and MZ Wallace. The residential units are made up of 1 studio apartment, 25 one bedrooms, and 11 two bedrooms which have rents of $48/NSF. Of the 37 units 10 are rent regulated and 27 are fair market.

The property benefits from several upgrades including the common spaces, repointing, and newer roofs. This is an excellent opportunity for an investor who is looking for strong in-place cash flow with upside potential from the below market rent regulated rents.

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Neighborhoods: Greenwich Village

The title of this piece makes you wonder what is meant by “they should sell for”. What, after all, is value? Many people (particularly appraisers) feel that value is a very different thing than the price someone is willing to pay for a property. There are all types of qualifiers such as “an arms length transaction” between a “willing buyer and willing seller”, etc. As a broker who only represents sellers, I see value as the highest price that the most aggressive buyer will pay for a property. Whether the property is “worth it” or not is completely dependent upon the perspective of the buyer.

Arguments about value versus price versus worth can go on for quite a while. This column will not attempt to define the differences between these terms, but will merely look at the relative price levels investment properties are selling for today and try to figure out why.

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Massey Knakal Realty Services has been retained by the ownership to arrange for the sale of 137-39 West 25th Street. The property is floors 2-11 in a 12-story commercial condominium building. The ownership interest is as follows: 2nd & 4th FL has 8% share on each floor.; 5th FL has 8.01% share; 6th-7th has 8.02% share; 8th-11th FL has 8.32% share on each floor. Zoned M1-6, the property can be used for commercial or hotel use. This presents a rare opportunity for both investors and users to capitalize on the emerging Chelsea commercial real estate market. Each floor offers 5,900 SF (Approx.) for a total of 59,000 gross square feet (Approx.). A majority of the property can be delivered vacant by year's end. The commercial condominiums at 137-39 West 25th Street will be offered separately or as a package. Ownership requests proposals for either possibility.

Bank of America is offering SBA financing for qualified buyers. Please see the attached information from Bank of America for further information.

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Neighborhoods: Chelsea/ Agents: Robert Burton

A retail conversion site at 1505 Albany Street, located on the corner of Albany Avenue and Farragut Road in Brooklyn’s East Flatbush neighborhood was sold in an all cash transaction valued at $1,850,000.

This corner-to-corner property has approximately 200’ of frontage on Farragut Road. The 14,000 square foot one-story building, which is adjacent to a Pathmark supermarket, is situated on a 23,775 square foot lot zoned M1-1.  The building was previously leased by Wonder Bread Company and was used as a distribution center for their products. The interior consists of office space, showrooms, and warehouse space.  The site was originally part of Farragut Pool, a private neighborhood pool club that closed in the 1970’s.

Neighborhoods: East Flatbush

Backing up to Soundview Park, this site offers over 44k buildable sf of residential development opportunity. The owner has plans for a 15 new homes (13 three-family, and 2 two-family) or will build to spec. Located within close proximity to I-95, and the Bruckner Boulevard. Although subway access is remote, there are several express bus lines that service the area.

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Neighborhoods: Soundview/ Agents: Karl Brumback

Backing up to Soundview Park, this site offers over 44k buildable sf of residential development opportunity. The owner has plans for a 15 new homes (13 three-family, and 2 two-family) or will build to spec. Located within close proximity to I-95, and the Bruckner Boulevard. Although subway access is remote, there are several express bus lines that service the area.

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Neighborhoods: Soundview/ Agents: Karl Brumback

Steps from Central Park and two blocks from the Frick Museum,
16 East 73rd Street is a five and a half story, 22.6 foot-wide
limestone and brick mansion located between Fifth Avenue and
Madison Avenue. The mansion contains approximately 10,500
square feet and will be delivered vacant. The property is located
in the heart of New York City’s most prominent Upper East Side
neighborhood and is flanked by Museum Mile and Madison
Avenue’s prominent galleries and designer stores. Architectural
details of the building include limestone window enframements,
a limestone base with a segmented arched entrance, a parapet
above an ornate cornice, French windows on the first floor and
French doors with an iron balcony on the second floor.

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Neighborhoods: Upper East Side

A three-story mixed-use building at 91 Avenue D located on the corner of Avenue D and 7th Street in Manhattan’s East Village neighborhood was sold in an all cash transaction valued at $1,320,000.  

The building is approximately 2,982 square feet and sits on a 25’ x 39’ lot. There is one store on the ground floor and two residential units above. The two apartments are currently vacant while the lease on the ground floor expires June 2011.

Neighborhoods: East Village/ Agents: Michael DeCheser

Three contiguous brick buildings with NNN retail stores located on a combined 60’ x 92.92’ corner lot of Pitkin Avenue and Amboy Street. Each retail tenant has occupied the same space for 5-10 years. Above the retail stores are 8 apartments of which 1 is occupied. The 7 remaining apartments are vacant and in need of major renovation as they have not been occupied in approximately 20 years. These buildings are located in the prime retail area of the Brownsville neighborhood in Brooklyn.

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Neighborhoods: Brownsville/ Agents: Stephen Preuss

A four-story office building and two adjacent lots at 910 East 172nd Street, located on the southwest corner of East 172nd Street and Southern Boulevard in the Bronx, was sold in an all cash transaction valued at $5,550,000.

The office building, located at 910 East 172nd Street, sits on a 150’ x 100’ lot. The building is approximately 40,000 square feet. Currently, two of the floors are occupied by the city and the third floor is occupied by a city funded tenant. It is zoned C2-4/R7-1 with a max allowed FAR of 3.44. Combined, the two adjacent lots at 1517 A/B Southern Boulevard contain 28,500 buildable square feet. The sale price represented $138.75 per square foot.

8413 Avenue K is a vacant corner location, commercial condominium located on the first floor and lower level of a newly constructed luxury condominium building. The property is located on the west side of Avenue K between E 84th and E 85th Streets. The first floor space is approximately 4,000 SF with 100’ of frontage on Avenue K and E 84th Street and approximately 750 SF on the lower level. The property is about 10 blocks away from the Rockaway Parkway subway L train station. Retail rents in the area range from $20-$29/SF depending on quality and size. The nearby major thoroughfares are Flatlands Avenue and Rockaway Parkway. The condominiums can be sold separate or together depending on the needs of the buyer. A great space for any type of office use.

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Neighborhoods: Canarsie

A  four-story vacant building at 237 East 77th Street, located on the north side of East 77th Street between Second and Third Avenues on the Upper East Side, was sold in an all cash transaction valued at $2,700,000.

Formerly a carriage house, this building was later configured as a gallery downstairs and an apartment on the upper floors. Most recently it was used as a non-residential service center for homeless people. The building is approximately 5,629 square feet and sits on a 25’ x 102.17’ lot.  The sale price represented approximately $480 per existing square foot and $264 per buildable square foot.

Neighborhoods: Upper East Side

The entire package, referred to as "75 Greene Avenue", is comprised of five tax lots, with a total foot print of 23,209 SF. The package is comprised of a vacant 7 story office building, a 4 story townhouse (please see listing for 378 Clermont Avenue) and 3 parking lots / development opportunities. The site's central location and configuration is ideal for a private school, college or other institution due to the ample parking available (over 16,000 SF). Additionally, there is a tremendous potential for a residential condominium / rental conversion. Sold as a package or individually.

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Neighborhoods: Fort Greene/ Agents: Stephen Palmese

A 28’ wide,8-story plus basement, commercial building consisting of approximately 22,847 square feet above grade. The property is ideally situated on the west side of Fifth Avenue between West 35th and 36th Street and is within walking distance to both Penn Station and Grand Central Station. The ground floor is currently occupied by David Z, a New York City based shoe store franchise, whose lease expires January 31, 2016. The above 7 floors are all owner occupied and can be delivered vacant. The interior and façade of the building have been renovated and include marble and granite finishes throughout. With local landmarks such as The New York Public Library and Empire State Building just steps away, 384 Fifth Avenue presents a unique opportunity to lease or buy within a superior Midtown South location.

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Neighborhoods: Murray Hill/ Agents: John Ciraulo

A 12,600 square foot catering hall at 129 Beach 116th Street, located in Rockaway, Queens was sold in an all cash transaction valued at $2,750,000.

The 12,600 square foot catering hall sits on a 206’ x 200’ lot. There is a 16,000 square foot parking lot. The property has been vacant for over three years. The sale price represented $218.25 per square foot.

Neighborhoods: The Rockaways

55,065 existing s.f. with 230.6 feet of frontage along Third Street. Excellent commercial/retail conversion opportunity. Strategically located between Park Slope and Carroll Gardens. Located on the primary two-way bridge crossing the Gowanus Canal, one block from future Whole Foods Market.

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Neighborhoods: Gowanus