NEW YORK CITY-When GlobeSt.com caught up with development veteran Dan Hollander in early 2010, he had just launched Daniel Hollander & Associates, a consultancy that emphasized strategic advisory and real estate investment, among other areas. And Hollander himself emphasized the opportunities he saw in distressed assets. "The kinds of projects I’ve been focusing on have been development deals that are in distress in one form or another," Hollander told GlobeSt.com at that time. "These projects are coming into the marketplace sooner than many others."
Fast forward to late 2012, and things are different. Hollander recently launched a new company focused on development and investment, DHA Capital LLC. Instead of distress in the multifamily sector, the former senior managing director at Clarett Partners says he’s seeing sellers by choice and opportunities for development or redevelopment. Hollander himself developed or acquired more than two million square feet of residential and mixed-use properties while at Clarett.
“Very few of the properties I’m seeing now are what you’d properly term distress,” he tells GlobeSt.com. “Over the past year or 18 months, I’ve seen a lot of voluntary selling, and market prices have recovered pretty well.”
In the near term, DHA plans to spend upwards of $250 million on new acquisitions. “We’re looking for great or emerging neighborhoods, someplace where we can add value through development or redevelopment," Hollander says. Hollander and DHA principal Josh Schuster are seeing “a fair number of those. They’re not always easy to find, but we do see a lot of potential in that business plan right now.”
With regard to finding those neighborhoods, “We like Manhattan and Brooklyn,” says Hollander. “We did a deal in Harlem, so that’s on our radar, but the West Side of Manhattan, the Downtown neighborhoods in Manhattan, Williamsburg—we like those areas a lot We think they’re changing now for the better.”
On the question of whether DHA is emphasizing rental or for-sale multifamily, Hollander says it’s very much on a case-by-case basis. “We’re going to make some announcements in the near future related to both for renal and for-sale,” he says. “We like them both; we think both markets are healthy.”
To date, DHA’s deals have ranged from Williamsburg to Harlem. At 53 Pitt St. on the Lower East Side, DHA created 14 rental lofts, which it’s now marketing. In Brooklyn, DHA purchased a 200,000-square-foot development site at 88 Richardson St. The property, which had been approved for 230 rental units, was sold by DHA this past July. The firm also acquired and sold a stalled luxury co-op in Harlem for repositioning as a rental.
Among Hollander’s notable developments while with Clarett were Sky House, Chelsea House and 200 West End Ave., all in Manhattan. He also developed the Brooklyner, a 493-unit luxury rental in downtown Brooklyn. Schuster was a lead member on the redevelopment team for 184 Kent Ave., the Cass Gilbert-designed warehouse in Williamsburg that was converted into 340 luxury rentals.
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Paul Bubny
Paul Bubny is managing editor of Real Estate Forum and GlobeSt.com. He has been reporting on business since 1988 and on commercial real estate since 2007. He is based at ALM Real Estate Media Group's offices in New York City.
