The developer behind the condo conversion at the historic Art Deco Verizon Building is scooping up two more towers for conversion.
Ben Shaoul, the head of Magnum Real Estate Group, has signed a contract to buy the 199-unit Post Toscana and the 138-unit Post Luminaria for a total of $270 million, or just over $800,000 per unit. Both include small amounts of local street retail.
These are the only local buildings owned by the seller, Atlanta-based Post Properties, which developed them with Ronnie Hackett’s Clarett Group in 2002 and 2003.
Investment brokers Douglas Harmon and Adam Spies of Eastdil Secured marketed the buildings for Post. Shaoul is expected to close by the middle of summer.
Both towers were much sought after by the city’s real-estate community, as expiring tax abatements will mark the end of rent stabilization rules.
Potential buyers included those that would have kept the buildings as high-end rentals, but others, including Shaoul, had an eye on a condominium conversion that penciled out to under the $2,000-a-foot range.
“The plan is to ride out the abatement, and ideally, we would love to have all the renters convert to owners,” Shaoul said. “The biggest thing in America is home ownership, and as interest rates are very low, you could own a unit here and pay the same out-of-pocket costs as your current rent. We want to do this at a price point so that people can stay in their apartments.”
Shaoul also plans to combine some units, give some a facelift with new appliances, and add amenities such as a children’s playroom to both buildings.
The 20-story Post Luminaria at 385 First Ave. on the southeast corner of East 23rd Street has luxury apartments with floor-to-ceiling windows and washer/dryers. Some apartments have terraces. The building boasts a fitness center, a club room with a pool table along with a private rooftop garden and sundeck. A one-bedroom is available in September for $3,780. The 138,000 square-foot building also includes 9,400 feet of retail.
On the Upper East Side at 389 E. 89th St., the 33-story Post Toscana has a similarly appointed high-floor one-bedroom available in August for $3,600 a month. It has 11,700 feet of retail, a club room, roof-top terrace and garden. Its penthouses have terraces.