After Value Craters, Times Square West Sells for Healthy Profit

A partnership between Blake Partners, JAM Real Estate Partners and the Straus Group sold the Times Square West complex at 300 West 43rd Street and 303 West 42nd Street to a subsidiary of Xin Capital for $62 million, just nine months after it acquired the properties for $48 million.

The adjoining mixed-use buildings — which are connected at the lower level and operate as a single property — total 144,500 square feet, including 127,000 square feet of newly renovated office space and 17,500 square feet of retail. 

White Oak Real Estate Capital provided a $51 million senior secured loan to the buyer, according to a release from the firm.

It is unclear who brokered the deal.

KRW Realty Advisors, a former owner of the buildings, spent around $80 million in 2019 to convert them from industrial to office and fit them with modern lobbies, new elevators and HVAC systems, a rooftop terrace and seven retail storefronts.  

But the buildings, which the owner initially branded as The Hive, gave the lie to the adage, “If you build it, they will come,” as office tenants did not. The current sellers, along with developer Gary Podell, according to reporting at the time in Commercial Observer, purchased the buildings from KRW in November 2024 for $48 million.

The retail space is 100 percent leased with long-term deals, according to the White Oak release. Tenants include Chick-fil-A, Smashburger, 7-Eleven, Dunkin’ and Little Italy Pizza.  

Thanks to the new owner, the office space is now also fully leased, as Xin has “secured a long-term master lease with a global food and beverage operator for 100 percent of the rentable space,” according to the White Oak release.

“We are thrilled to collaborate with Xin to facilitate the acquisition of this property and to bridge them through the transformation of the vacant office space into a dynamic, high-traffic destination for world-class food and retail experiences,” Eric Tanjeloff, managing principal at White Oak Real Estate Capital, said in the release. “The property’s strong cash flows and prime tenancies provide a compelling opportunity for our investors.”

Blake Partners, Xin Capital and Podell could not be reached for comment.

Larry Getlen can be reached at lgetlen@commercialobserver.com.