New York & Tri-State + Downtown New York + Office | March 23, 2023

The landmarked Flatiron Building in Manhattan has sold at auction to a surprise bidder from Virginia after its owners reached an impasse over a dispute

Landmarked Flatiron Building Fetches $190M in Court-Ordered Auction

The historic Flatiron Building has sold for $190 million to a surprise bidder at auction, according to published reports. The winning bid was placed by Jacob Garlick, managing director of Virginia-based Abraham Trust.

The landmarked office property has been vacant since 2019, when MacMillan Publishers, a full-building tenant, moved out. A State Supreme Court judge ordered the auction earlier this year after its owners failed to resolve a dispute over renovations, reported CNBC.

Previously, the Flatiron Building was majority owned by GFP Real Estate, Newmark, ABS Real Estate Partners and the Sorgente Group. A fifth partner, Nathan Silverstein, owned the remaining 25%.

CNBC reported that the majority partners sued Silverstein in 2021 to force a sale of their stakes after alleging that his business decisions were keeping the Flatiron Building empty. Silverstein then countersued.

GFP chairman Jeffrey Gural was among the bidders at the March 22 auction, NY1 reported.

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About Paul Bubny

Paul Bubny serves as Senior Content Director for Connect Commercial Real Estate, a role to which he brings 13-plus years’ experience covering the commercial real estate industry and 30-plus years in business-to-business journalism. In this capacity, he oversees daily operations while also reporting on both local/regional markets and national trends, covering individual transactions across all property types, as well as delving into broader subject matter. He produces 15-20 daily news stories per day and works with the Connect team and clients to develop longer-form content, ranging from Q&As to thought-leadership pieces. Prior to joining Connect, Paul was Managing Editor for both Real Estate Forum and GlobeSt.com at American Lawyer Media, where he oversaw operations at both publications while also producing daily news and feature-length articles. His tenure in B2B publishing stretches back into the print era, and he has served as Editor in Chief on four national trade publications. Since 1999, Paul has volunteered as the newsletter editor of passenger rail advocacy groups (one national, one local).

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