Office Asset Goes for $85 Mil; Buyer Bullish on Market

NEW YORK CITY-Murray Hill Properties and the other TCN companies have been busy. Murray Hill closed on the sale of Madison Square Park and several TCN companies are reporting favorable market conditions in a regional report. Actions do still speak louder than words, and one can only see this landmark purchase as a good sign.

Madison Square Park is a 368,000-sf 20-story office building built in 1912. The sale price was $85 million. The seller was Lend Lease, which was represented by Darcy Stacom of Cushman & Wakefield. Norman Sturner, partner, represented Murray Hill Properties. The building was completely renovated over the last five years and is anchored by Structuretone Builders and counts Bertelsmann and the Jewish Community Center as occupants.

Another TCN company, TCN Metro, has released a regional report stating that subleases are still only creating equilibrium in the Midtown office market. For Downtown, however, leasing activity is down 80% since this time last year, and vacancy rates are steadily climbing upward. Prices in both markets are remaining steady.

Year-end 2000 closed with negative sublet absorption of 2 million sf of space. The report predicts that while the decreased leasing activity trend will continue, asking rents should hold steady and leasing activity should absorb sublease space.

TCN Metro is comprised of Chase Commercial of Stamford, CT; Sutton & Edwards of Long Island; the Schultz Organization of northern and central New Jersey; and Murray Hill Properties of New York City.