DeCheser of Massey Knakal arranges sale of three Manhattan properties for $27 million

Massey Knakal Realty Services completed the sale of three buildings at 57, 59-63, and 65-67 Orchard St., located between Grand and Broome Sts. on Manhattan's Lower East Side. The properties were sold in an all-cash transaction valued at $27 million. These contiguous properties comprise two block-through buildings from Orchard to Allen Sts. and the architecturally significant corner building on the southwest corner of Orchard and Grand Sts., which was recently designated a landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. 59-63 and 65-67 Orchard St. are five-story loft style buildings, while 57 Orchard St. is a two-story commercial building. This unique location benefits from 320 feet of frontage on three streets, which are Allen, Grand, and Orchard. The combined footprint of all three lots is 12,083 s/f. The two five-story buildings are in a C6-2G zone, and the two-story building is in a C6-2 zone. Residential conversion in a G designation requires a special permit. The two-story building is outside of the G designation. The floor-to-area ratio is 6, which equates to maximum of 72,500 buildable s/f. The buildings total 54,985 s/f, which leaves 17,515 s/f of air rights. The buildings are fully occupied, and the leases are either short term or carry six month cancellation clauses. The retail and commercial rents are below market and provide a significant amount of short-term upside potential. "Loft buildings are incredibly rare in the Lower East Side, let alone ones with 320 feet of frontage in a transitioning retail location, such as the area surrounding 57, 59-63, and 65-67 Orchard St.," said Michael DeCheser, first VP of sales, who exclusively handled this transaction. The buildings were purchased by Waterbridge Capital and the Jangana family.