New York’s iconic Chrysler Building  sells for $150 million

The owners of the Chrysler Building have reached a deal to sell the iconic New York City building for ‘a little more than $150 million, it was reported.   

The sale price of the tower in midtown Manhattan, considered an Art Deco masterpiece, marks a significant loss for Emirati investment firm Mubadala, 

Mubadala, an Abu Dhabi investment fund,  paid $800 million for a 90 percent stake in the building in 2008.

Real estate group Tishman Speyer, which had bought the building outright for a reported $210-250 million in 1997, retained a 10 percent stake, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. 

It reported that the building’s owners do not own the ground beneath it and pay annual rent that went up from $7.75 million to $32 million in 2018 and was set to increase again to $41 million in 2028.

Citing brokers, the newspaper said those fees ‘have eaten away at much if not all of the building’s revenue.’

It is uncertain as to when the deal will close. The building sold relatively quickly after being publicly placed on the market only two months ago. The sale was handled by CBRE Group.

The building also has some 400,000 square feet (37,160 square meters) of space that is either vacant or will become so in the coming years, the Journal said.

The buyer is RFR Holding, a New York real estate company. 

It’s unclear when the deal will close. The building sold fairly quickly after being publicly placed on the market only two months ago. The sale was handled by CBRE Group.

The incentive to sell the building at such a huge loss was due to the soaring rent the owners pay to Cooper Union, a New York college, for the land under the building. 

The rent is rising from $7.75 million last year to $32.5 million this year to $41 million in 2028, CNN reported. 

The building is among the best known in the city — even to people who have never been to New York.

It is famous for its triangle-shaped, vaulted windows worked into the stylized crown, along with its distinctive eagle gargoyles near the top.

The skyscraper has been featured prominently in many films, including Men in Black 3, Spider-Man, Armageddon, Two Weeks Notice and Independence Day.

A previous sale took place just before the 2008 financial meltdown led to a plunge in real estate prices.

The Chrysler Building, which opened in 1930, stands 1,046 feet (319 meters) tall. It was the world’s tallest building, but only for 11 months, after which it was dethroned by the Empire State Building, also in Manhattan.

The building was a personal project for Walter Chrysler, the founder of the car manufacturer that bears his name, but remained separate from the auto business.

The building also has some 400,000 square feet of space that is either vacant or will become so in the coming years, the Journal said.

The Chrysler Building, which opened in 1930, stands 319 meters tall. It was the world’s tallest building, but only for 11 months, after which it was dethroned by the Empire State Building, also in Manhattan.

The building was a personal project for Walter Chrysler, the founder of the car manufacturer that bears his name, but remained separate from the auto business.