The iconic Manhattan skyline might be subject to a change of ownership in the coming year—New York City’s famed Chrysler Building is officially up for sale. According to Darcy Stacom, chairman of CBRE’s New York City capital markets group, the owners, developer Tishman Speyer and an Abu Dhabi government fund, have hired CBRE Group Inc. to market the 1930 art deco office tower.
Estimates for the value of the property range all over the charts, but real-estate investors believe the Chrysler Building might not make back the $800 million the Abu Dhabi Investment Council once paid for a 90% stake in the property before real-estate prices plummeted due to the financial crisis.
The building, a landmark of Manhattan’s East Side, is competing for tenants with more contemporary structures with modern amenities. The cost of upkeep could also weigh heavily on sale prices. The downside to owning a prewar building is that when things break, it takes significantly longer to fix them.
The 77-story skyscraper was designed by William van Alen and built between 1928 and 1930 in a bid to become the world’s tallest building.