A pair of Midtown office buildings have sold for just over $40 million — a whopping $116 million less than they last traded for eight years ago, records show.
A joint venture between global asset management firm Investcorp and Greenwich, Connecticut-based real estate company Brickman has offloaded the two properties, at 229 W. 36th St. and 256 W. 38th St., for a combined $40.8 million, according to the two deeds, which hit city records Tuesday. The partnership, through entities named after each of the addresses, acquired both buildings, between Seventh and Eighth avenues, for $156.8 million in 2017, records show.
Herbert Myers, Investcorp’s global co-head of real assets, signed both deeds on behalf of the seller, records show. Investcorp did not return a request for comment by press time.
The buyer was Midtown-based Empire Capital Holdings, which was co-founded by Arash “Josh” Rahmani and Ebi Khalili. The equity for the acquisitions was provided by two other real estate firms. Chelsea-based Cayre Equities provided the capital for 229 W. 36th St., and Midtown-based Hakimian Organization provided funding for 256 W. 38th St., according to city records and information confirmed by Doug Middleton, one of the brokers from CBRE involved in the transaction.
The 12-story building on West 36th Street, completed in 1921, is currently 53.7% leased, according to information from CoStar. Its tenants include coworking company WeWork, medical clinic Mobile Health and appellate services provider Record Press. The 14-story building on West 38th Street, completed three years later, is about a five-minute walk away. Its current tenants include graphic media company Spandex, investment service Dominion Capital and the nonprofit group Physicians for Human Rights, according to CoStar, yielding a 75% occupancy rate in the building. Rents in the buildings range between $32 and $44 per square foot, according to CoStar.
Harry Adjmi signed both deeds on behalf of the buyer, records show, although his connection to the two acquisitions is unclear. Adjmi is a founder of A&H Acquisitions, a landlord that owns retail properties in the Meatpacking District, SoHo and Harlem. A&H is not affiliated with the Hakimian Organization or Cayre Equities, but both the Adjmis and the Cayres have been big donors to Gov. Kathy Hochul in the past and have been involved together on real estate projects, including 241 Atlantic Ave. in Boerum Hill, where they are facing foreclosure, Crain’s reported earlier this year.
Neither Empire Capital Holdings, the Hakimian Organization nor Cayre Equities responded to requests for comment by press time, citing their observance of the Jewish holiday Shavuot.
