NEW YORK, NY – July 28, 2016 – More than 250 real estate professionals joined Ariel Property Advisors Thursday for the firm’s Coffee & Cap Rates networking breakfast featuring a panel of real estate executives whose projects exemplify the event’s theme on Institutional Real Estate Capital.

Shimon Shkury, President of Ariel Property Advisors, kicked off the event at Club 101 with a presentation on the rise in New York City investment property sales in 2016 while referencing the firm’s newly released mid-year and submarket research reports. Michael Stoler, Managing Director at Madison Realty Capital and Executive Producer of “The Stoler Report- New York’s Business Report” moderated the discussion with questions focused on the rent regulated multifamily area, the affordability of the booming condo space, millennials and the changing landscape of the office space, as well as interesting projects for the foreseeable future in Brooklyn, which included the Watchtower deal and the prospect of Dumbo Heights.

Panelists Ben Curtiss, the Vice President of Acquisitions & Capital Markets at Kushner Companies, and Jason Hart, the Managing Director at the Carlyle Group, highlighted their recent residential and commercial development projects. They also discussed the current state of the hospitality and retail markets as well as its growing supply being a potential concern for New York.

Mr. Qahir Madhany of Blackstone continues to be bullish on multifamily assets as he explained Blackstone’s recent success with Stuyvesant town. According to Madhany, multifamily continues to be an attractive business to be in especially with the new supply coming in, which tends to lean higher end. Mr. Jason Hart of the Carlyle Group referenced trends he is seeing of office tenants in Midtown South moving to Brooklyn because they can get similar rental space for better pricing. He used the example of millennials frequently jumping from job to job in various cities. “If you think of the WeWork offices of the world, there’s a lot of demand there,” Mr. Hart said during the discussion.

Mr. Curtiss spoke of his company’s involvement in Brooklyn’s multifamily and office sectors, specifically in Dumbo Heights. Mr. Curtiss also spoke about the hospitality market and how New York City supply is a concern with all the new construction coming online and the influx from Airbnb. Mr. Madhany of Blackstone also discussed his businesses perspectives on growth market opportunities specifically in Flushing Queens and lower Manhattan with the office market and a 24/7 environment feel. “Tenants really want to be there, supply is growing,” said Mr. Madhany.

The program began with a presentation, given by Mr. Shkury, about trends and overall performance of the New York City investment sales market in the first half of 2016. Mr. Shkury provided a snapshot of Ariel Property Advisors’ newly released sales reports from each New York City borough. Mr. Shkury discussed where the market is today and discussed the leading drivers in each borough.

Dollar volume decreased in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, but increased in Northern Manhattan, according to Ariel Property Advisors’ 2016 Mid-Year Sales Reports, which Mr. Shkury summarized during his presentation.

Mr. Shkury remains optimistic about pricing and sales volume for the balance of year. “Pricing will continue to appreciate, but at perhaps a slower pace than we have been seeing. Dollar volume will be lower in 2015, but we expect it to remain strong relative to other years,” said Mr. Shkury.

For capital markets in 2016, Mr. Shkury pointed to shifts in the market which included: traditional lenders being more conservative, relationships becoming more critical and screening is much more cautious than last year. Many lenders have already met their maximum exposure in development and are not issuing any more debt. Because of more conservative lending, Mr. Shkury explained that debt funds are becoming more opportunistic. Additionally, private investors are stepping onto the lending world with mezzanine and preferred equity.

All proceeds from Ariel Property Advisors’ Coffee & Cap Rates were donated to nonprofit Legal Outreach. At the event, James O’Neal, Executive Director of the Legal Outreach, shared the goals and objectives of his organization, which helps young people from underserved New York City communities gain admission to the country’s most competitive colleges and universities.

Ariel Property Advisors presents Coffee & Cap Rates semi-annually to share the latest trends in the investment sales market with clients and contacts. More than 300 real estate professionals attended the previous Coffee & Cap Rate event on February 4th 2016.