Florham Park, NJ Kushner Cos CB Richard Ellis Goldman Sachs

The firm's decision reflects a shift in its business strategy to focus on a growing portfolio of commercial properties, which includes more than 6.5 million sf of office, industrial, hotel and retail space. The properties include 666 Fifth Ave. in New York City, which it recently purchased for $1.8 billion.

"We have made a strategic decision to shift our real estate focus in a meaningful way to concentrate on significant asset investments, particularly in New York City," stated Jared Kushner, a principal of the company. "We have assembled a comprehensive portfolio of apartment complexes throughout the New Jersey and Pennsylvania area. This transaction will allow a new owner to automatically become one of the largest multifamily owner operators in New Jersey, which has the highest median household income in the United States."

While Kushner owns and manages all of the units on the block, it has interests in partnerships that own another 6,500 units in the area. However, the firm is intent on its plan to become a major player in the New York City office market, according to a spokesperson for Kushner. "They've been in the MF business for a long time and felt that now is the right time to get out of it and simplify their assets," he says. "They feel that they're at the point in their history where they want to take a new direction and they feel that this will allow them to do so. The sale of their multifamily properties will generate capital to direct into major investments."