Francis Greenburger

Tell us about a deal that did NOT go through this year and why it didn’t happen?

There was a five-center shopping center portfolio that TEI submitted bids for, but it ultimately fell through because of the bid and ask gap — an ongoing trend that we’ve seen in the market because buyers are thinking about today’s interest rates and sellers are thinking about yesterday’s prices. Ultimately, the seller sold three and came back to us on the remaining two at acceptable pricing.

Have you refinanced anything in 2022? How difficult/easy was it?

In any given month, we’re in the middle of refinancing three to five loans at varied stages, something we’ve been able to do successfully, but it wasn’t without adjustments or retrades to loan terms or heightened requirements by lenders. With the amount of movement in the market and because TEI is a preferred borrower, we tend to have more availability than others. Some borrowers are having trouble finding lenders.

There’s a lot of Class B and C office in NYC. If you could lay your hands on them at a really great price, what would you do with them?

One of the obvious possibilities would be converting to residential if zoning allowed for it. The other option is office condominiums, which we’ve done in the past, and although it seems counter-intuitive, the market is sensitive to aggressive pricing. Another easy approach is to acquire at low prices and hold for better times.

What market outside of NYC do you like and why?

As long-term national and international buyers, we have a unique perspective. In our approach, we’re not always defining a good market by how attractive it is today, but rather a combination of taking advantage of opportunistic pricing and then waiting for things to improve over time.

There’s a midterm election this year. How closely are you following, and do you think the national political climate will have an effect in New York?

I am very interested in the local political situation. Anything that occurs on a national level will ultimately affect New York. The real question is regarding the congressional majority and whether there’s going to be a shift. Between the extremist candidates that Trump promoted and the turnover of Roe v. Wade, we’re seeing the Republican Party lose its edge.

How many days per week are you in the office?

Four days.

How many days per week are your tenants in the office?

Don’t have an exact count, but, based off what I see while at the office, it’s likely similar.

NYC apartment rents have reached never seen levels. How much further can it go? How does the housing squeeze play out?

We’re already seeing an abatement and don’t foresee prices advancing beyond this point. We’re noticing slower movement in certain apartments and renters negotiating more in certain markets more than in others, parts of Florida included. Rents have plateaued and so has pricing in other realms like oil.

ESG: fad or fixture?

A fixture. We are in the middle of an energy revolution, as we need to be. TEI has entered the renewable business with the launch of TEI Renewable Energy, so we’re seeing it firsthand in our day-to-day transactions. Between the number of ESG projects across the country, the fact that most automobile companies have introduced their own electric vehicles, the presence of solar and more — it’s not unimaginable that 10 years from now we’ll have transformed our energy sources from primarily fossil fuels to renewable electricity.

Class quote

“When the runner approaches the finish line, do they speed up or slow down?” — that’s meant for me.