David Werner Real Estate Investments and MetroLoft, led by Nathan Berman, have secured 231 million dollars in construction financing. The funds are earmarked to convert the office building at 675 Third Avenue in Midtown Manhattan into a residential complex with 450 units. The loan was provided by Ran Eliasaf's Northwind Group.
The new financing replaces the existing acquisition loan and funds the fit-out works that are already underway. No broker was involved in the transaction. Northwind had previously provided the ownership partnership with a 90 million dollar acquisition loan after it purchased the property from the Durst Organization in April 2025 for 100 million dollars.
Key details of the Midtown conversion project
The scheme comprises a complete interior redesign of a building spanning the entire blockfront of Third Avenue between 42nd Street and 43rd Street, close to Grand Central Terminal. According to Ran Eliasaf, the project requires no structural interventions to the building fabric, significantly reducing risk compared to more complex vertical extensions.
- —Planned completion of 450 rental apartments in Midtown Manhattan
- —Designation of 25 per cent of the residential units as affordable housing under the 467-m programme
- —Use of existing load-bearing structures without expanding the gross floor area
- —Financing volume of 231 million dollars by Northwind to refinance the prior loan and fund completion
Confidence in the developers' expertise
The developers initially pushed forward the preliminary works using their own equity before Northwind stepped in with additional capital. Ran Eliasaf emphasised that Nathan Berman is among the most distinguished experts in office-to-residential conversions in New York City, and that the structure of the building provides optimal conditions for swift execution.
The provision of the loan comes just a few months after a structural incident at another project managed by MetroLoft and David Werner. In early July, structural settlement and collapsing pillars occurred at the former Pfizer headquarters at 235 East 42nd Street and 219 East 42nd Street, where an eleven-storey vertical addition for 1,600 flats is being constructed. Eliasaf stated that this incident represented an isolated mishap on that building project and in no way affects confidence in the partnership at 675 Third Avenue.
