3,800 More City Apartments Go to Tishman-Speyer

Yesterday, it was announced Tishman-Speyer, the real estate firm that bought Stuyvesant Town for $5.4 billion, along with Lehman Brothers would buy real estate investment trust Archstone Smith in a $22.2 billion deal; the Observer calls it the "largest public-to-private acquisition ever among apartment REIT’s." Archstone Smith has over over 85,000 rentals nationally and almost 3,800 in NYC, which would given Tishman-Speyer over 15,000 apartments for its portfolio.

According to Crain's, there's been more interest in the rental market as "the condominium market softens and rental rates are on the upswing" to the tune of at least 12% and up to 20% in chic neighborhoods. Here's the Archstone Smith website for rentals - they own 101 West End Avenue , 800 6th Avenue (Archstone Chelsea), 180 Montague Street (Archstone Brooklyn Heights) and many more. Rents are in the high $2,000's for studios, start in the mid $3,000's for one bedrooms, and go up to the mid $6,000's for some two bedrooms - no rent-regulated tenants to snoop on here.

What's interesting is that while the Archstone deal is big, the NY Times suggests that many think it isn't big enough, because "it did not account for the high caliber of its management, its innovative computerized leasing system and its $4.4 billion development pipeline." Tishman Speyer's other NYC properties include the Chrysler Building, the MetLife Building, and Rockefeller Center.