770 Second Ave Lands a $108M Loan
A major financing package has been secured for 770 Second Avenue. A $108 million construction loan will fund an office-to-residential conversion in Manhattan’s Murray Hill neighborhood.
SCALE Lending, a joint lending company of Slate Property Group, provided the financing. Arrow Real Estate Advisors arranged the deal through brokers Morris Betesh, Morris Dabbah, and Louis Halperin. Similar to other repositioning efforts, investors continue to favor assets with strong office demand and long-term growth potential.
The borrower, CSC Real Estate, acquired the property in April 2025 for $52 million from David Werner. The building is also known as 300 East 42nd Street. The project will create 140 new apartments, including 35 affordable units.
The financing reflects continued market demand for conversion projects as owners reposition older offices. It also highlights how zoning impacts remain central in Manhattan redevelopment, shaping feasibility, timelines, and lender confidence.
Commercial Observer reported the transaction on April 17, 2026, alongside Arrow’s announcement and other industry coverage.
What CSC Plans at 770 Second Ave
CSC Real Estate plans to remake 770 Second Avenue into a 140-unit luxury residential property. The office-to-residential conversion would significantly reshape the 25-story Murray Hill tower and carries a projected total cost of $133 million.
The Murray Hill building, also known as 300 East 42nd Street, was acquired in April 2025 for $52 million. That price reflected a steep discount to its prior basis and supports the project’s positioning in a competitive Midtown East luxury market.
Expanded Residential Scope
Initial filings called for 77 apartments. Revised plans filed on August 12, 2025 increased the count to 140 units.
CSC is emphasizing luxury amenities while retaining a portion of office space. The result would be a mixed-use redevelopment in a prime Midtown location.
The redevelopment follows the recent sale of an office condo unit within the property. Similar big-ticket deals elsewhere in Manhattan, including a Lower East Side sale that reached $56 million, underscore how redevelopment potential is driving investor interest.
Who Financed the 770 Second Ave Conversion
In a major vote of confidence for the Murray Hill redevelopment, SCALE Lending provided a $108 million construction loan for the office-to-residential conversion of 770 Second Avenue.
The property is also known as 300 East 42nd Street.
The institutional lender, a joint lending company of Slate Property Group, backed CSC Real Estate’s redevelopment of the site.
The financing places SCALE among notable private investors and lenders pursuing Murray Hill conversion opportunities.
| Party | Role | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| SCALE Lending | Lender | Provided $108 million |
| CSC Real Estate | Borrower | Redevelopment sponsor |
| Slate Property Group | Affiliate | Joint lending company |
| Arrow advisors | Brokers | Facilitated financing |
| private investors | Market context | Active in conversions |
CSC, a New York-based redevelopment firm, secured the loan after acquiring the building for $52 million in April 2025.
How the 770 Second Ave Loan Was Arranged
Arrangement of the $108 million construction loan was led by Morris Betesh, Morris Dabbah, and Louis Halperin of Arrow Real Estate Advisors. They secured SCALE Lending as the financing source for CSC Real Estate’s office-to-residential conversion at 770 Second Avenue, also known as 300 East 42nd Street.
The deal reflected targeted broker negotiations and a tailored lending structure for a Manhattan redevelopment borrower.
Arrow’s team represented the financing effort. SCALE Lending provided the construction loan.
CSC Real Estate is a New York redevelopment specialist. The loan supports the Murray Hill conversion plan.
CSC acquired the property in April 2025 for $52 million from David Werner. Werner had purchased it two months earlier for the same price from Fortress Investment Group.
Commercial Observer reported the completed financing package.
What This Means for Manhattan Conversions
Against that backdrop, the 770 Second Ave loan underscores how office-to-residential conversions have moved from isolated restructurings to a central Manhattan redevelopment strategy.
The broader numbers show why. Annual converted space climbed from under 1.2 million square feet before 2020 to 4.1 million square feet by August 2025.
An 8.8 million-square-foot pipeline across 25 properties points to continued activity into 2026.
Midtown Becomes the Center
Midtown dynamics now define the market. The district holds 54.8 percent of post-2020 conversion activity.
Class A buildings also represent a growing share of both completed and proposed projects. Falling office values and elevated vacancies have made repositioning more practical.
Policy Drives Scale
Conversion incentives have widened the field. Tax benefits, zoning reforms, and the lifted FAR cap support thousands of apartments.
Together, those changes are pushing conversions into the mainstream.
Assessment
The $108 million loan at 770 Second Ave underscores the growing scale and complexity of Manhattan office-to-residential conversions.
CSC’s financing package, arranged with Madison Realty Capital, reflects sustained lender confidence in well-located repositioning projects despite pressure across the office sector.
The deal also signals that large adaptive reuse transactions remain a critical part of the city’s real estate pipeline.
Capital continues to back conversions viewed as viable responses to shifting market conditions.
