Here are Manhattan’s 10 best home loans in February

After years of legal wrangling, Gary Barnett’s Extell Development is moving forward with its planned condo tower near Lincoln Center. And it has a new lender to prove it: OZK Bank has taken over the project’s senior debt with $212 million in new proceeds.

The prolific Little Rock, Arkansas lender also took over construction debt for the Ritz-Carlton Hotel and Residences from Nomad and a hotel and condominium at 5 Beekman Street in the Financial District.

Elsewhere, the Chetrits refinanced the former Standard Oil building downtown and Larry Silverstein secured the financing for his company’s acquisition of a 400-unit apartment building in the Financial District for $248 million.

Below are more details on the 10 largest home loans recorded in Manhattan in February, which totaled $1.6 billion – more than double the amount recorded in February 2021, but less than half of the 3.6 billions of dollars from January.

1. OZK Bank takes over | $400 million

Gary Barnett’s Extell Development received a $400 million loan from OZK Bank, including $212 million in new debt, for its condo tower at 50 West 66th Street on the Upper West Side. Total funding for the 775-foot tower stands at $967 million, the Commercial Observer reported. OZK bank will replace the French bank Natixis as the main lender of the project.

2. Standard Loot | $290 million

The Chetrit organization received a $290 million loan, including $70 million in new debt, to refinance its 19th-century office building at 26 Broadway. The total financial package, led by Bank of Montreal and Starwood Mortgage Capital, will be sold to CMBS investors in the form of bonds and amounts to $330 million. The 840,000 square foot building was built for John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil Trust in 1885.

3. Big like the Ritz | $200 million

OZK Bank also took over construction debt for the Ritz-Carlton Hotel and Residences at 1185 Broadway from NoMad with a $200 million refinance loan. Atalaya Capital Management launched construction loans in 2018. Singapore’s United Overseas Bank holds the senior debt. Paul Kanavos’ Flag Luxury Group developed the hotel.

4. Empire Mindset | $183 million

The Empire State Realty Trust received a $183 million loan for its $307 million purchase of two apartment buildings: the Victory at 561 10th Avenue and 345 East 94th Street. The properties have a total of 625 units. The seller, Fetner Properties, retains a 10% interest in the properties. The New York State Housing Finance Agency holds the debt.

5. Wet the Beekman | $130 million

OZK Bank resumed lending to a hotel and condominium at 5 Beekman Street in the Financial District with a $130 million loan to GFI Capital Resources Group. The loan includes $5 million in new debt. M&T Bank was the previous lender.

6. Silver Lining | $130 million

A subsidiary of insurance giant AIG has taken over lending at 116 John Street with a $130 million refinance loan as part of Larry Silverstein’s $248 million purchase of the 400-apartment building in the financial district. The loan replaced debt held by Brookfield Property Partners.

7. All Gucci | $68.5 million

German lender Deutsche Pfandbriefbank issued a $68.5 million refinance loan, including $6.4 million in new debt, to an overseas buyer who bought 375 West Broadway in Soho for $130 million. The building houses a 10,000 square foot Gucci store under 60,000 square feet of office space. The loan replaces debt held by North Carolina-based Truist Bank.

8. Stock Bridge Capital | $61.4 million

Ofer Yardeni’s Stonehenge Partners used a $61.4 million loan from San Francisco-based Stockbridge Capital Group to buy the Cole, a 163-unit building at 354 East 91st Street on the Upper East Side, for $128.2 million. The Stockbridge loan will repay a $64.1 million CMBS loan issued in 2017.

9. Note | $60.2 million

Bank of Montreal issued $60.2 million in loan proceeds to consolidate $79 million in debt on a condominium building with a checkered financial history at 45 John Street in the financial district and a shopping center in 120,000 square feet at 2109-2127 Emmons Avenue in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn. The loan replaces debt held by Loancore Capital and Signature Bank, respectively. Documents link ownership of the properties to real estate investor Alexander Levin.

10. Please check | $60 million

Hubb Properties received a $60 million loan, including $15.9 million in new debt, from Metlife Real Estate Lending to refinance its recent acquisition: a 141-unit rental and commercial building at 56 West 125th Street in South Harlem. Hubb bought the building from developer Jay Group last September for $105 million.