Hard Times for Big Apple Real Estate --- Commercial Market Activity At Near-Standstill
It's no secret that New York City real estate is in the doldrums, but to understand just how bad things have gotten, consider the case of Howard Ronson.</br></br>When Mr. Ronson's HRO International started investing in New York City real estate in 1979, it led a charge of foreign buyers who were convinced the city's best days were ahead of it.</br></br>Over the next 10 years, the British-born builder became one of the city's most lionized real estate men, developing a half dozen office projects that included the headquarters for the now defunct securities firm Thomson McKinnon Inc. Most of HRO's projects were in prime midtown and downtown locations; many were preleased.</br></br>Last December, one of Mr. Ronson's midtown properties filed for bankruptcy protection, the victim of a soft rental market. Then early this month, an HRO-led partnership that owned a 30-story downtown tower with views of New York harbor filed for bankruptcy protection. The next day, the million-square-foot building that once housed Thomson McKinnon filed for bankruptcy protection as well. Mr. Ronson, presumably, forfeited whatever equity stake he had in the three buildings.</br></br>"He's a first class developer but he got caught in a terrible market," said one of Mr. Ronson's lenders. An HRO spokesman declined to comment.