In the Press

In the press sub title

01/12 2015
95 Evergreen – Savanna JV Acquires Former Schlitz Brewery

NEW YORK CITY—Locally-based Savanna and joint venture partners Hornig Capital Partners and Chelsea Village Associates have acquired the former Schlitz Brewery in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn. The new ownership plan an extensive capital improvement program to convert the industrial building into office and retail space. A spokesperson for Savanna, a private real estate equity

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01/05 2015
The Real Deal – Market braces for rising interest rates

Most observers last year predicted that interest rates would rise in 2014 as the Federal Reserve removed its stimulus, but the exact opposite happened. Rates are lower now than they were at the beginning of last year, offering borrowers even cheaper capital. But 2015 may be the year when rates do gradually march upward from

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12/29 2014
NYREJ Year in Review – Lee Silpe, Berko & Associates

What was the best thing that happened to you or your firm in 2014? The best thing that happened to Berko & Associates is 2014 was our extraordinary growth in both our associates as well as our deals. We are set to transact $300 million in sales and finance this year, a 100% increase from

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12/29 2014
Letter of Intent – Brooklyn’s Office Excitement

Brooklyn has long been a “second choice” for commercial development, as residential developers can achieve north of $65 per s/f and commercial developers can only recoup around $40 per s/f on average. In 2004, Downtown Brooklyn was rezoned to include 4,500,000 s/f of commercial space, yet only 300,000 s/f of that amount has actually been

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12/29 2014
Letter of Intent – Retail Expansion

The retail sector is has seen a new awakening at the hands of rising tourism and consumer confidence. New retail construction and renovations throughout the boroughs have actually not caused in increase in absorption or vacancy rates, in fact, quite the opposite. As retailers have grown their businesses online, they have also now begun to

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12/29 2014
Silpe of Berko & Associates: Young COO helps takes company to the next level

Name: Lee Silpe Title: COO | Senior Analyst Company/firm: Berko & Associates Year Company was founded: 2005 Years with company/firm: 4 Years in field: 4 Years in real estate industry: 4 Address: 18 East 41st St, New York, NY Telephone: 212-687-0777 Email: Lsilpe@berkoassociates.com URL: www.berkoassociates.com Twitter: @leesilpe Which project, deal or transaction was the “game

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12/29 2014
Letter of Intent – The New Focus for Office

As worlds collide in New York City and suits brush up against dressed down start-up professionals and technology companies, office owners both here and Brooklyn are taking advantage of the movement, and creating space within their buildings specifically tailored to this new breed of tenant. The tech boom in New York is clearly visible, and

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12/29 2014
Letter of Intent – Downtown Retail Boom

Downtown retail is the new “must-have,” with titans of real estate scrambling for a piece of the action. One major driving force behind retail acquisition is the rejuvenated Financial District, with luxury shopping center Brookfield Place and the Westfield Group’s World Trade Center drawing excitement and super high end retailers to the area (Hérmes, headed

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12/29 2014
Letter of Intent – Office market continues to heat up

Sales of investment grade properties in N.Y.C. for the trailing 12 months totaled $34 billion across all commercial asset classes. This amount represents an increase of 35% year-over-year. The key contributors to the flourishing N.Y.C. sales market: the lack of properties available, and the steady access to capital from both domestic and international lenders. The

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12/29 2014
Letter of Intent – Changing the Skyline

Residential developers are scrambling for a piece of the action, looking to stake their claim to what is seemingly a “crazy” market, since when questioned, that seems to be the first reaction to any question regarding the state of the market. Development sites in the most desirable neighborhood have reached the $1,200 per buildable s/f

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