The deal includes four properties, with tenants such as Patagonia and high-end fashion brand Amiri, signalling renewed confidence in New York’s retail sector.
The Real Deal reported that properties, currently owned by ASB Real Estate Investments, were purchased between 2012 and 2016 for a combined $204 million (AUD $311 million).
Some retail leases are below market rates, and Blackstone sees an opportunity to lift rents in a market that has been recovering steadily.
The portfolio also includes office space, accounting for more than half the total square footage.
Elena Clarfield, a senior associate at Blackstone Real Estate, said the deal reflects the firm’s ability to “play offense in today’s market” and capitalise on prime-location opportunities.
ASB CEO Robert Bellinger noted the sale aligns with the firm’s strategy of shifting away from office holdings in favour of industrial, apartment, and self-storage investments.
Since 2021, ASB has offloaded $870 million (AUD $1.3 billion) in office properties and is continuing a broader $1 billion (AUD $1.52 billion) asset sale.
The transaction, negotiated by a Newmark team led by Adam Spies and Josh King, is the largest since Aurora Capital Associates’ $192 million (AUD $293 million) retail condo purchase at 530 Fifth Avenue in 2021.
Soho’s retail market has seen significant improvement, particularly along Broadway, where rents have surged 35% year-over-year to $679 (AUD $1,036) per square foot.
CBRE reports that availability is tightening, pushing pricing levels back to figures not seen since 2017.
