Trevor Davis, the developer of the glass-clad apartment building at 1055 Park Avenue on the southeast corner at 87th Street, filed for personal bankruptcy protection last month and a few weeks ago the Bank of America sued him to foreclose on his 5623-square-foot apartment at the Empire condominium on East 78th Street, according to an article Saturday at wsj.com by Josh Barbanel.
The article said that the first of the five apartments in the building has just gone into contract at what brokers say was a distressed price for the prime location - less than $1,850 a square foot, the article said, adding that "The contract price totaled just under $4 million..., less than half the original asking price of $9.3 million a few years ago."
Claims against Mr. Trevor have been put on hold because of the bankruptcy filing.
Mr. Davis, the article continued, said that he had "a substantial investment" in the Park Avenue project, and would take some losses on it. "Given the market conditions," he said, "unless they change dramatically, there will be less than full recovery."
Mr. Davis said that the market was "extremely challenging and I am not the only one experiencing it," adding that "the good thing is the building has been completed and is now ready for occupancy. That is a big deal."
A marketing campaign for sales at a second condominium with a glass facade and limestone details is about to begin a few blocks south on Park Avenue, just below East 82nd Street.
At that building, at 949 Park Ave., the duplex apartments are smaller, and are priced at or above the current asking price per square foot at 1055 Park. A lower-floor two-bedroom is listed for $4.68 million, or $2,350 per square foot.
Mr. Davis bought his site for $12 million in 2005, the article said, adding that "in a court filing, he said that in 2007 he borrowed $15 million for building and project loans on the development. But, in a dispute the lender stopped funding the project in 2009, and the project stalled for 10 months. In court documents, he said he then put $4 million of his own money into the project and in March obtained a second loan for $6 million that gave the new lender the rights to seize his ownership in the project in the event of default. The new owners moved to do just that in November, and Mr. Davis filed for a bankruptcy reorganization in December to block that move. The price for the apartment under contract is about $1 million below the minimum sale price set in mortgage documents signed last year, and lawyers said can't close unless the lenders go along."
Mr. Davis said several other buyers had made offers. "The building has momentum," he said, "and we are doing what we are supposed to do. Try and close sales."
The article said that the first of the five apartments in the building has just gone into contract at what brokers say was a distressed price for the prime location - less than $1,850 a square foot, the article said, adding that "The contract price totaled just under $4 million..., less than half the original asking price of $9.3 million a few years ago."
Claims against Mr. Trevor have been put on hold because of the bankruptcy filing.
Mr. Davis, the article continued, said that he had "a substantial investment" in the Park Avenue project, and would take some losses on it. "Given the market conditions," he said, "unless they change dramatically, there will be less than full recovery."
Mr. Davis said that the market was "extremely challenging and I am not the only one experiencing it," adding that "the good thing is the building has been completed and is now ready for occupancy. That is a big deal."
A marketing campaign for sales at a second condominium with a glass facade and limestone details is about to begin a few blocks south on Park Avenue, just below East 82nd Street.
At that building, at 949 Park Ave., the duplex apartments are smaller, and are priced at or above the current asking price per square foot at 1055 Park. A lower-floor two-bedroom is listed for $4.68 million, or $2,350 per square foot.
Mr. Davis bought his site for $12 million in 2005, the article said, adding that "in a court filing, he said that in 2007 he borrowed $15 million for building and project loans on the development. But, in a dispute the lender stopped funding the project in 2009, and the project stalled for 10 months. In court documents, he said he then put $4 million of his own money into the project and in March obtained a second loan for $6 million that gave the new lender the rights to seize his ownership in the project in the event of default. The new owners moved to do just that in November, and Mr. Davis filed for a bankruptcy reorganization in December to block that move. The price for the apartment under contract is about $1 million below the minimum sale price set in mortgage documents signed last year, and lawyers said can't close unless the lenders go along."
Mr. Davis said several other buyers had made offers. "The building has momentum," he said, "and we are doing what we are supposed to do. Try and close sales."
Architecture Critic
Carter Horsley
Since 1997, Carter B. Horsley has been the editorial director of CityRealty. He began his journalistic career at The New York Times in 1961 where he spent 26 years as a reporter specializing in real estate & architectural news. In 1987, he became the architecture critic and real estate editor of The New York Post.
6sqft delivers the latest on real estate, architecture, and design, straight from New York City.
