The city’s two dozen most exclusive office buildings are racking up higher rents.

According to a new Hedge Fund Index compiled by a JLL team led by Cynthia Wasserberger, rents in half the buildings that attract financial and hedge funds have trended higher over the last six months.

Solow’s 9 W. 57th St. remains the priciest tower, with rents of $225 per square foot, with Leonard Stern’s 667 Madison next at $195 per square foot. RFR’s Seagram Tower at 375 Park and Lever House at 390 Park have asks of $170 per square foot.

But 280 Park Ave., co-owned by Vornado Realty Trust and SL Green Realty Corp., and TF Cornerstone’s Carnegie Hall Tower at 157 W. 57th St. had significant rent hikes.

All the buildings had a high asking rent of more than $100 per square foot except 510 Madison, which has an asking rent of $98 per square foot. The overall low asking rent is $88.93, just a 78 cents less than six months ago, while the overall high asking rent averages $142.74 per foot, a 4 percent increase from last year at this time.

Tenants willing to sublease, however, are able to gain entry to these so-called Country Club buildings at a 66 percent discount in some cases.


Hotelier Sean MacPherson and his wife Rachelle Hruska have just purchased a small five-story building at 44 Horatio St.

It is unclear what the nightlife magnate will do with the former two-family residence that was sold in March by Susan E. Rubin, a cancer survivor and playwright in Los Angeles, for $6,250,000 to an entity called Horatio House. The MacPhersons paid the same amount, but the documents now show the building as a one-family. Rubin paid up more than $31,350 in late property taxes prior to the sale.

The deal between Horatio House and the MacPhersons was signed in February and closed in early May, documents show, with their LLC as “Horatio Home.”

Wife Rachelle is the founder of the popular social-event invite and news site, Guest of a Guest.

MacPherson owns another home at 95 Jane St. at Washington St. Last year, he increased his mortgage from $1 million to $5 million. That home was purchased at the end of 2002 for $1,650,000 and has been turned into a showplace. In January 2014, he sold another townhouse at 38 E. 4th St. to partner Eric Goode for $3,337,586.

The nightlife impresarios own several hotels, including the Maritime, along with Richard Born, the Bowery Hotel and the Jane.

MacPherson’s attorney declined to comment and calls and e-mails to Rachelle and Sean were not returned. Rubin declined comment.


The loft building at 13-17 Laight St. in Tribeca that was the home of the Tribeca Cinema is on the market and could be transformed into all residential or all office.

The Cushman & Wakefield team of James Nelson, Will Suarez and David Shalom has the assignment to sell the six-story building with views from its entire blockfront between St. John’s Lane and Varick St.

Its 117,000 square feet is currently a mix of office and residential, some of which is newly renovated, and can be delivered nearly vacant.

Nelson said the early thinking was that it would turn all residential as nearby penthouses are trading for more than $4,000 a square foot. Now office brokers say offices could lease for upwards of $90 a square foot, while a hotel operator could slice it into 99 rooms.

“We think it will trade for over $120 million,” said Nelson. “It has high ceilings and is great loft space — it’s what Tribeca is all about.” Your move.