Deutsche Bank pushes back foreclosure sale for 521 Fifth Avenue again
Deutsche Bank just delayed a foreclosure sale for 521 Fifth Avenue by 90 days.
The short version
- The lender and the owner are trying to sell the big tower together instead.
- A $265 million deal recently fell apart after a due diligence period.
- The property holds an Urban Outfitters and an Equinox gym.
Deutsche Bank, the big German bank, just pushed back a foreclosure sale for 521 Fifth Avenue by another 90 days. The lender and the owner, Savanna, are trying to sell the 496,000-square-foot property together instead of fighting over an auction. The tower near Bryant Park has been through three extensions in the last six months to stave off a forced sale.
A recent $265 million listing was pulled off the market after a buyer walked away during due diligence, according to a credit alert from KBRA cited by the Commercial Observer. Trouble started in November 2024 when Wells Fargo, which acts as a trustee for bondholders, filed a preforeclosure suit claiming the borrower was past due on a $242 million loan.
That debt matured back in June 2021, and the total ballooned to $259 million with interest by the time a default judgment was issued in August. The loan originally helped finance Savanna's $381 million purchase of the building from SL Green in 2019.
Occupancy at the 39-story property has dropped to 67 percent from 90 percent in 2020, with an Urban Outfitters store and an Equinox gym sitting on the lower levels alongside empty office floors. Neither side wants to hand the keys over to the bank just yet, but finding a buyer willing to pay the price is proving harder than expected.
