Between Fifth and Sixth Avenues in the Flatiron District, private family-office buyers have quietly become the clearing house for pre-war loft buildings trading at a third off their 2018 prices. Sioni Group picked up the 12-story, 44,800-square-foot Beaux-Arts loft building at 36 West 20th Street for $22.4 million—an exact $500-a-foot basis that marks a 35.1 percent haircut from its $34.5 million 2018 deed. When the deed closed on February 12, 2026, Sioni Group (Raymond Gindi and Bardiaikkia) had officially taken down 36 West 20th Street from Kaufman Organization Affiliate for $22.4 million, with Avison Young brokering the trade.

Look past the headline figure and the story is all about the basis reset. The 44,800-square-foot building last traded in September 2018 for $34.5 million. Stepping in at $500 a square foot shaves 35.1 percent off that prior valuation, giving Sioni Group (Raymond Gindi and Bardiaikkia) a margin of safety that would have been unthinkable at the top of the cycle. Even better for the buyers, the in-place rent roll hands them a verified 7.00 percent going-in cap rate from day one.

Valley National Bank Backs the $500-a-Foot Reset

The real tell in any Manhattan closing sits on the debt side of the ledger. To fund the purchase, Sioni Group (Raymond Gindi and Bardiaikkia) locked in a $14 million regional bank senior acquisition mortgage from Valley National Bank at 62.5 percent loan-to-value.

That loan commitment meant the buyers only needed to write a $8.4 million equity check to control a 12-story, 1912-vintage Flatiron District asset. Credit committees aren't stretching to 75 percent leverage anymore, but when a sponsor brings $8.4 million of real cash equity and a basis of $500 a square foot, lenders like Valley National Bank are wide open for business.

From Our Desk

When we look at 36 West 20th Street on our placement desk at Light Tower Group, the lesson for New York sponsors comes down to the marriage of entry basis and lender selection. Sioni Group (Raymond Gindi and Bardiaikkia) didn't try to fight the tape—they bought Flatiron District footage at $500 a square foot and paired it with the exact lender bucket built for this business plan. Regional banks haven't left the Manhattan office market—they simply require a $500-a-foot basis, a 7.0 percent going-in debt yield, and cash-rich family-office guarantors.