Newmark has been named the exclusive leasing agent for a high‑profile SoHo office property in New York. The assignment follows Empire State Realty Trust’s recent acquisition of the building.
Empire State Realty, parent of the Empire State Building, in December purchased the property at 130 Mercer St. for $386 million from children’s book publisher Scholastic. The U.S. “Harry Potter” publisher sold the property, also with an address at 555-557 Broadway, as part of a broader effort to cut costs. Scholastic remains based there in a sale-leaseback transaction.
The SoHo deal marks another step in Empire State Realty’s strategy to focus exclusively on New York assets after selling its final suburban office property to own a 100% New York City portfolio.
Located between Spring and Prince streets with frontage along both Mercer and Broadway, the property has been overhauled to include a 290-person town hall; updated lobby spaces; a terrace; and a forthcoming gym.
The building has a 112,600-square-foot contiguous block spanning three full floors, with oversized windows and exposed brick, which Newmark said represents “a rare opportunity in one of Manhattan’s most supply-constrained office markets.”
Built in 1900, the 396,000-square-foot property has a vacancy rate of about 65% compared with the SoHo average of close to 15%, according to CoStar data. As New York has outpaced other U.S. office markets in recovering from the pandemic, demand in SoHo “improved considerably” last year, according to a CoStar analysis.
SoHo in 2025 saw 264,000 square feet more move-ins than move-outs, reaching its first positive net absorption since 2022, the CoStar report said. New leasing activity rose to 1.2 million square feet, a new all-time high and the first time leasing topped the 1 million milestone since 2018.
“The building’s amenities will speak directly to what today’s users prioritize — performance-driven space, modern infrastructure and environments that support recruitment, retention and day-to-day productivity, all within an iconic SoHo setting,” Newmark’s David Falk, president of the New York tristate region, said in the statement.
For the record
Besides Falk, Newmark Vice Chairman Peter Shimkin, Executive Managing Director Daniel Levine and Director Dylan Weisman will be on the leasing team for the property.