Benko buys the Chrysler Building in New York

Vienna / New York. The Tyrolean investor Rene Benko confirmed the purchase of the New York Chrysler Building together with the US real estate developer RFR on Friday. The purchase price of 150 million dollars (133 million euros) is added to the high renovation costs for the architectural icon from the 1930s. According to the “Handelsblatt”, industry experts put this at 150 to 250 million dollars.

The annual rent for the land on which the skyscraper stands has just been almost quadrupled by the Cooper Union architecture school, as the landowner, from 7.8 million to 32.5 million dollars per year, writes the German newspaper in its Friday edition. In 2028 a further increase to 41 million dollars is in the pipeline, in 2038 to 55 million dollars. Operating costs are reported to be an estimated $ 15 million annually.

$ 150 million bargain

The acquisition is still considered a “bargain”: After all, the previous owner, the Abu Dhabi Investment Council, put down $ 800 million for a 90 percent stake in the building in 2008 just before the financial crisis. 10 percent stayed with the real estate company Tishman Speyer. In 1997, they paid an estimated $ 210 million to $ 250 million for the entire building, the report goes on to say.

“We are acquiring a legend – for us this is more than just a first, strategically important step into the US real estate market: It is a milestone,” said Signa Group CEO Jürgen Fenk on Friday. The legendary Chrysler Building fits perfectly into the portfolio of historic buildings in the very best downtown locations.

“We are very proud to now be the owners of this unique building – together we want to keep the Chrysler Building in the long term and develop it again into one of the top addresses in Manhattan,” said RFR co-founder Aby Rosen, who comes from Germany.

Is the Signa Hotel coming?

Many skyscraper fans still romanticize the 77-story building as one of the most beautiful skyscrapers. In the New York real estate market, the “old stars” served more of a niche. Small and medium-sized companies are more likely to be found as tenants than large corporations. Because the square meter prices there are significantly cheaper than in the new buildings.

The Chrysler Building has relatively small windows, (currently) little space and is partially a listed building. The square meter price is on average only 540 dollars, in “Hudson Yards”, a completely new district in New York, it is about twice as high, said Ruth Colp-Harber from the real estate company Wharton Property Advisors to the “Handelsblatt”.

The Austrian Signa group around Benko and the US real estate company under managing director Rosen could completely or partially convert the world-famous skyscraper into a hotel, writes the “Handelsblatt”, citing the Bloomberg news agency.

The founder of the Chrysler car company, Walter Chrysler, had the building intentionally built near Grand Central Station in the late 1920s in order to benefit from the new traffic artery. The Chrysler Building was the headquarters of the automaker for more than 20 years. In 1953 Chrysler’s heirs sold it and the company moved out. There are still hidden references to the auto industry: the gargoyles are modeled on hood ornaments and the arches at the top are intended to remind of the hubcaps of the Plymouth brand, which once belonged to Chrysler.

When it opened in 1930, the Chrysler Building was 319 meters high – including the 56-meter spire – the tallest building in the world for several months. Then came the Empire State Building, 62 meters higher. Built from around four million bricks, however, Benko’s skyscraper is still considered the tallest brick building in the world. (apa, dpa)

–