JEMB Realty Refinances Herald Towers

(Read more on the debt and equity markets and more on the multifamily market.)

Herald Towers

NEW YORK CITY-Locally based JEMB Realty refinanced Herald Towers, the trio of 25-story towers at 50 W. 34th St., for $250 million. Structured Real Estate Finance Group at M&T Bank arranged the three-year short-term financing.

“We are delighted to continue to maximize the value of Herald Towers, one of the city’s premier residential rental properties in Midtown,” notes Joseph Jerome, principal of JEMB. He explains that the refinancing will simultaneously free up substantial equity to grow and enhance JEMB Realty’s presence in the North American real estate marketplace and expand its asset base.

Jerome

Built in 1913 as a hotel and long known as the McAlpin House, this historic property was acquired by JEMB Realty in 1999 for $150 million, in a transaction also financed by M&T Bank. Through hands-on asset management, a multimillion-dollar capital improvement program and contributions to the Herald Square neighborhood’s renaissance, JEMB has transformed Herald Towers into a residential rental property, according to the company.

“As home to a variety of national retailers and approximately 693 residential tenants, the asset has increased in value significantly,” explains Peter D’Arcy, group manager of the Structured Real Estate Finance Group at M&T Bank in New York City. “The ownership sought to capitalize on an increase in equity.”