By Al Barbarino 1/08 12:34pm

Sales Beat

Toll Brothers' The Touraine in Lenox Hill

Toll Brothers Pays $64M for Residential Development Site

It looks like luxury home builder Toll Brothers may have yet another New York City residential development project on the drawing board after scooping up a financially troubled and stalled development site – once dubbed the Oliver – from Alexico Group for $64 million, The Commercial Observer has learned.

Owner of the high-end boutique condominium building The Touraine in Lenox Hill, Toll Brothers purchased 953, 957, 959 and 961 First Avenue (or 953-961 First Avenue) in Midtown East after years of financial turmoil bogged down and eventually killed Alexico Group’s original plans to build a 161-unit luxury rental building at the site. Read More

By Al Barbarino 12/13/12 5:19pm

What's in a Name?

Howard Lorber and Dottie Herman

Douglas Elliman Makes Another Plea on Name Change

Dear Google, please refresh your cache:  the city’s largest residential brokerage has dropped “Prudential” from its name.

The former Prudential Douglas Elliman returned to its roots as Douglas Elliman last month after it was reportedly unable to strike a new licensing agreement for the name “Prudential.”

The Douglas Elliman name, originated along with the firm in 1911, has been adopted by all of the company’s businesses, including its commercial real estate arm, and the firm redistributed a statement today saying so, perhaps as a rebuttal to multiple media failings to follow suit on the change. Read More