BEST & FINAL

Best & Final: Two Casinos Hold and Two Casinos Fold

In today’s Best & Final, Jordan Shea unpacks the dramatic committee votes that killed two of the remaining four Manhattan casino proposals, the financial strain gripping affordable housing, the mixed signals coming from the office market, and the latest deals and developments shaping New York real estate.

Best & Final: One High Line Complex Now Complete... 9 Years Later (September 15, 2025)

Chelsea welcomes a new public plaza at One High Line, Midtown gears up for one of the city’s largest office leases, and Louis Vuitton plans an ambitious new Fifth Avenue flagship. We’ll also cover strategic acquisitions in NoHo and Lenox Hill, industrial refinancing across the outer boroughs, and Greenwich’s luxury housing market surging to record highs.

Best & Final: CMBS Distress Peaks (September 12, 2025)

Commercial real estate distress is climbing to record highs, while New York’s housing pipeline slows and political battles heat up ahead of the mayoral race. In this episode of Best & Final, we break down the pressures in the CMBS market, Extell and Vornado’s billion-dollar development strategies, and the latest snapshots from Tribeca, East Harlem, and the Manhattan office market. Distress, debate, and development — all shaping the city’s future.

Best & Final: Major Tax Plans and Minor Transactions (September 8, 2025)

Today’s briefing covers a cleared East Village site awaiting its next chapter, investor David Shapiro’s recent purchases in Chelsea and the Lower East Side, and Aya New York’s $54.7 million acquisition of the Cassa Hotel. We also dive into the mayoral race, where competing tax proposals could reshape the city’s real estate landscape, and close with Douglas Elliman’s Michael Lorber Team expanding to Westchester and Connecticut.

Best & Final: OneLIC Gets the Green Light (September 5, 2025)

The city’s largest residential rezoning in decades just cleared its first hurdle — the OneLIC Neighborhood Plan has been approved, paving the way for nearly 15,000 new homes in Long Island City. We’ll unpack what this means for housing, affordability, and infrastructure, then shift to billion-dollar refinancing in Midtown, distressed asset plays, and a headline-grabbing brokerage move. Finally, we close with the latest political maneuvering that could reshape both City Hall and New York real estate’s future. For more info, contact Jordan Shea or visit JordanShea.com.

Best & Final: 2025's Home Stretch

In today’s episode of Best & Final, we take stock of New York City’s real estate market at mid-year. From nearly a thousand new building permits and Manhattan’s office market rebound to the surge in office-to-residential conversions, major investment deals, and the policy fight shaping future development — this is the momentum driving 2025’s home stretch.

Best & Final: Greenpoint's Next Chapter

Developers LMXD and Domain are reshaping Brooklyn’s waterfront with a billion-dollar vision, delivering over 1,000 new rentals and a major public park. Alloy pushes the limits of sustainable design with the world’s tallest Passive House, while Manhattan sees key acquisitions and campus sales, Penn Station and citywide greenways gain momentum, and real estate power plays spill directly into New York’s elections.

Best & Final: Episode 100!

Vornado Realty Trust is reshaping Midtown with a $218 million acquisition at 623 Fifth Avenue while also locking in fresh financing in Greenwich Village. In this 100th episode of Best & Final, we also track the final stages of two major Manhattan developments — One Times Square and JPMorgan Chase’s new supertall HQ — alongside a series of sales, refinancings, and defaults that show both strength and stress in today’s market.

Best & Final: Amazon Expanding, Hudson Yards Contracting (August 25, 2025)

In today’s Best & Final, Amazon makes another major move in Midtown, expanding to control most of 1440 Broadway, while Hudson Yards sees an office tower sell at a steep discount. We cover the city’s latest development and conversion projects — from storage in the Garment District to new condos in Midtown East and Cobble Hill — and examine NYCHA’s push for private partnerships. Plus, we break down the latest legal and political headlines, including Trump’s civil fraud case and new corruption charges tied to City Hall.

Best & Final: The Second Avenue Subway Gets Its Second Phase (August 20, 2025)

New York City moves forward with its largest tunneling contract ever as the Second Avenue Subway heads into Phase 2, extending the Q line to 125th Street. Today’s episode also covers new developments in Harlem and the Financial District, high-profile sales in Chelsea, SoHo, and Greenwich Village, major refinancing activity, and the mounting challenges facing office owners and distressed portfolios across Manhattan.