Truffles Tribeca is now 450 Washington and apartments are for sale

The rental building that was Truffles Tribeca is coming on the market this fall as co-ops in what is being called 450 Washington. Related bought the building in 2018 and put hundreds of millions into it to create 176 bigger units (Truffles had 291), with open-plan studios up to four-bedrooms and prices ranging from $1 to $10 million.

(For the record, Related said it is calling the building a “cond-op,” but as far as I know, that refers to a residential coop with commercial condo units on the ground floor…)

The building, which is a full city block through to West Street and from Desbrosses to Watts, is already a bit smarter looking than before, though it could certainly not have gotten worse. The developers have replaced the windows and are creating a private-entry courtyard (similar to their building next door, 70 Vestry) and are coating the entire structure in French limestone plaster.

The architect is Roger Ferris + Partners, completing their first residential development in the city (they are also working on 70 Hudson Yards), and the landscape architect is Hollander Design.

Truffles, which used the address 34 Desbrosses, was built in 2009 and designed by Handel Architects with many of the features still there — a roof deck, private terraces and two towers on a six-story base with ground-floor apartments that opened onto an interior courtyard.

Reps for Related had no word yet on the commercial spaces on Washington, only confirming that The Greek/Greca continues to have the north corner.

Related developed 70 Vestry immediately to the south as a luxury condo in 2017, and 456 Washington immediately to the north as a luxury rental in 2016. James explained in a recent comment that since the new 450 Washington is on leased land (it is still owned by Ponte Equities, from my quick search on Acris, just to confirm) it can not be a condo.

 

12 Comments

  1. Disclaimer from their website:

    “IF THE OFFERING PLAN IS ACCEPTED FOR FILING BY THE NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF LAW, THE SPONSOR WILL OFFER COOPERATIVE APARTMENTS TO PURCHASERS RATHER THAN CONDOMINIUM UNITS. THE SPONSOR’S OWNERSHIP INTEREST IN THE LAND UNDERLYING THE COOPERATIVE WILL EXPIRE IN 2105; SIMILARLY, IF THE SPONSOR TRANSFERS ANY APARTMENTS TO PURCHASERS, SUCH PURCHASERS’ OWNERSHIP INTEREST IN THE LAND UNDERLYING THE COOPERATIVE ALSO WILL EXPIRE IN 2105. THIS NON-CONVENTIONAL OWNERSHIP STRUCTURE MAY HAVE A NEGATIVE IMPACT ON THE VALUE OF APARTMENTS IN THIS COOPERATIVE; ACCORDINGLY, THE ATTORNEY GENERAL STRONGLY ENCOURAGES PROSPECTIVE PURCHASERS TO CONSULT WITH THEIR ATTORNEY(S) REGARDING THE CONSEQUENCES OF PURCHASING AN APARTMENT IN THIS COOPERATIVE.“

    • Yeah I mean so 80 years? I havent dealt with this in a resi sense so wondering if the prices start to drop/ value drops, what, 40 years out?

      • The issues start right away, in exchange for the discounted price.

        For a land-lease co-op, the monthly maintenance is much higher (30% or more) than comps, because they have to cover the ground rent, with increases in same. Tenant-shareholders are exposed to significant ground-rent risk due to market appraisals.

        For a ground lease with a private landlord, the land is reappraised every decade. Even with smaller intermediate ground rent increases, after 10 years the ground rent is then reset back to say 6-7% of the appraised value of the land. When the value of land goes up in Manhattan, as is usually the case, the ground rent will jump and tenant-shareholders’ maintenance will likewise jump. Not only will their monthly nut go up, but sales prices will drop for tenant shareholders looking to sell.

        If the sponsor is keeping the retail units, then that rental/sale/maintenance income is also unavailable to the co-op.

        Since land-lease co-ops are built on leased land and not owned property, they pay no real estate taxes. So, tenant-shareholders of land-lease co-ops have limited access to property tax deductions. (Further, this building’s 421A tax abatement expired in 2021 IIRC. )

        Good advice to prospective buyers: ask to have your attorney read the ground lease!

    • Pretty surprised that a 2009 rental building is already getting hit renovated and converted to condos.

      Any inside scoop as to why?

      • From March 2018:

        “[…] He launched his namesake firm, the Jack Parker Construction Corporation, [in 1955] and soon tackled three colossal projects in Queens that cemented his name within the real estate industry.

        “Although he died in 2007, his family-led firm – eventually known as the Jack Parker Corporation – has continued to make the occasional real estate play while quietly sitting on a mountain of valuable properties. But it may be the end of an era as the company now looks to unload seven properties across three states, including a multifamily component of more than 2,000 New York City apartments. That package, which just recently hit the market under the moniker the ‘Parker portfolio,’ is said to be worth a total of $1.5 billion. A good chunk of the package could be reborn as pricey condominium conversions.

        “The Real Deal first reported on the multifamily component, which consists of the Parker Towers, Truffles Tribeca and the Biltmore. The portfolio also includes the 729-key Le Parker Meridien in Midtown; the 144-room Parker Palm Springs Resort in California; the 309,000-square-foot Parker Plaza office building in Fort Lee, New Jersey; and a 16,000-square-foot medical office condo unit on the Upper East Side, according to Real Estate Alert.

        “If the portfolio sells, the Jack Parker Corporation will be parting with all of its U.S. real estate – and nearly everything it owns. (The company also owns a 175-acre master-planned community in Costa Rica in addition to Burger Joint, a small chain with locations in Le Parker Meridien and Industry City, as well as in Dubai, Singapore and Brazil.) […]”

        https://therealdeal.com/2018/03/09/whos-jack-parker-meet-the-development-firm-looking-to-sell-all-its-nyc-real-estate/

        • The build was flooded during hurricane Sandy, was never maintained post Sandy as it had crooked ownership and management. You can see by the yelp reviews – and insiders like me who lived in that rundown building.

  2. Chances are the area will be underwater by the time the lease runs out anyway.

  3. The risks of buying in a building with a ground lease would keep me from buying there. There are many horror stories of the financial burden incurred when/if the ground lease owner decides to sell the land to the co-op.

  4. Condop is Coop with Condo rules, and absolutely not what you came up with. Also there is only one tower in that building not two towers as you describe it

    • I’ve lived in a Tribeca condop for more than 40 years. The residential part is a coop, the commercial a condo.

      The residential portion operates under co-op rules.

      The overall building as a condo, but the Board of Managers meets very rarely.

    • It’s actually two towers connected by a covered multilevel walkway. Any google search will show you that.

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