Newmark Knight Frank arranges $483 million loan for Sotheby’s

Manhattan, NY On behalf of Sotheby’s, Newmark Knight Frank has arranged a $483 million floating rate senior loan for the refinancing of 1334 York Ave., located on the Upper East Side neighborhood. The Newmark Knight Frank team was led by Dustin Stolly and Jordan Roeschlaub, vice chairmen and co-heads of the New York Debt & Structured Finance team, along with Chris Kramer, Nick Scribani, and Dominick Calisto. The five-year loan was provided by Barclays.

1334 York Ave. is a 506,000 s/f, 10-story, glass and granite office building that has served as Sotheby’s headquarters since 1980. The property is a 100% owner-occupied building tailored to the auction nuances, intricacies, and processes Sotheby’s has developed over its 276 years of existence. As the home to Sotheby’s sole North American auction salesroom, principal North American exhibition space, and Sotheby’s Financial Services, the property features distinguished and state of the art gallery, auction, and office space throughout. Ground floor retail includes Sotheby’s Wine and Sant Ambroeus Coffee Bar.

“Sotheby’s is a world-renowned brand representing the gold standard in its business. The building is of trophy quality. Its proximity to several hospital systems nearby offers unique additional demand for medical and life science use. We were able to clearly illustrate this to lenders which helped mortgage and mezzanine lenders feel especially comfortable with the investment in the post-Covid world.” Stolly said.

Roeschlaub said, “Seeing this deal through during the challenging environment is a testament to the perseverance of the Sotheby’s, Barclays and Newmark teams, respectively. We expect to have the mezzanine portion of the financing close in the near term as well.”

After a full-scale redevelopment of the property in 2000, adding six stories and completely redesigning and gut-renovating the interior, Sotheby’s engaged in a sale leaseback with RFR in 2003. Sotheby’s regained control in 2009 and recently, engaged in an enhancement program to create new state of the art galleries, as well as new public and client exhibition spaces, solidifying their commitment to the Property for years to come.