Edge, HSBC Get 100% Ownership in Times Square’s 1540 Broadway

September 30, 2011
By Nicholas Ziegler, News Editor

Midtown remains one of the most active real estate areas in the country, and the new transaction at 1540 Broadway in New York City’s Midtown is just another notch in the belt. Edge Fund Advisors and HSBC Alternative Investments, Ltd., known as HAIL, have together achieved 100 percent ownership in the building.

Edge, which acquired a 49 percent stake in the property last year for a $254.8 million investment, has paired with HAIL to acquire the remaining 51 percent interest in the 907,000-square-foot office tower after closing on a refi through Metropolitan Life Insurance Co.

1540 Broadway stands 42 stories tall in the heart of Times Square. In addition to its coveted location, the property also stands out for its ground-level retail space owned by Vornado Realty Trust and occupied by Disney, which, in late 2010, opened its largest U.S. store in a 24,400 square-foot space. The building is currently 92 percent leased, 7 percent higher than when the November 2010 deal was signed, to tenants including Viacom International Inc., Yahoo Inc. and the Chinese media company Xinhua News Agency.

As co-investor, Edge will oversee CB Richard Ellis, which has been retained to provide property-management and leasing services for the building.

“Our purchase of the 100% ownership interest in 1540 Broadway represents HAIL and Edge’s further commitment to acquire trophy office properties in New York City on behalf of the HSBC ‘Club Programme,’” Mark Keller, CEO of Edge, said.

Previously, the office portion of 1540 Broadway sold for a heavily discounted price — rumored to be around $355 million — in early 2009.