Ever wanted to own a piece of the Big Apple? Now might be your big chance, it seems.
Empire State Realty Trust, the group that owns New York’s iconic Empire State Building, has filed to sell up to $1 billion of its Class A common stock, giving ordinary investors a chance to own a piece of the historic building.
The tower, which was once the tallest in the world, has been fought over by several billionaires, including the likes of the Malkin family, tycoon Donald Trump, and real estate heiress Leona Helmsley.
The Malkin family purchased the property in 2002 and, after battling back and forth, took 100 percent control of the 102-story building in 2010.
In November, Malkin Holdings had said it would probably file to become a publicly traded real estate investment trust within three months.
The company will feature two classes of stock, class A shares being sold to the general public worth one vote and class B shares with 50 votes each. That setup gives significant control to the Malkin family.
The proceeds will be used to pay existing stakeholders in the buildings who elected to receive cash in exchange for their interests, and also to repay debt.
The REIT plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “ESB.”
A REIT is a real estate-linked company that can avoid paying corporate income taxes in the U.S. if it distributes at least 90 percent of its taxable income to shareholders.
The amount of money a company says it plans to raise in its first initial public offering filing is used to calculate registration fees. The final size of the IPO can be different.
So what do you think? Ready to own a piece of the Empire State Building?
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