Jay A. Neveloff and Elise Wagner

For attorneys Jay A. Neveloff and Elise Wagner, the last year has seen a continuation of their high-profile client work against a background of a stabilizing, but still challenging, commercial real estate market.

“The past year has been a year of transition,” said Neveloff. “We’re coming out of COVID and into an environment where you’re able to underwrite transactions better because interest rates have stabilized, but maybe not as low as we’d like.”

Office buildings with high vacancies, combined with stalled deals due to looming maturing loans, have added to what Neveloff sees as the types of services he provides his clients. “Now everything is converging,” he said. “There’s a lot of money on the sidelines waiting to invest. That confluence of factors has put me in a position where, more than a technician, I’m a counselor and a business adviser, talking to clients about when and how to transact, whether it’s a recapitalization, a sale or a purchase.

“In the past few days, for example, I’ve gotten two major acquisitions that have come in, and I think that’s a sign of the times. There’s a new norm, and I think you can underwrite deals. We’re going to see a lot of transactions.”

From Wagner’s position as co-chair of the land use practice, she is equally positive about her current and future work.

“One exciting thing for me is that I managed to get a special permit for Madison Square Garden to continue doing what it’s doing for another five years, which was certainly challenging and interesting,” she said. 

The last year also saw Wagner working for the Related Companies and Wynn Las Vegas on their proposal for a casino at Hudson Yards.

“Also, this is a time when as a land use lawyer, I’m really poised to collaborate with the city on its primary goal: producing housing,” said Wagner. “We’ve seen unprecedented cooperation from the city on projects that we brought to them, and they are just starting a public review process on a major rezoning to provide housing.”