A Second Report Confirms the $231 Million Loan Behind a Third Avenue Office Conversion

A 230,000-square-foot office-to-residential conversion at 675 Third Avenue in Midtown Manhattan has secured a $231 million loan, Multifamily Housing News reported, financing already covered on this desk when the deal first surfaced through Commercial Observer's reporting on Northwind, MetroLoft and David Werner.

Multifamily Housing News's account adds detail beyond that earlier report: the loan backs conversion work converting the former office tower into residential units, with Northwind Group listed as the lender and MetroLoft and David Werner as the ownership team behind the project, according to the outlet.

Hoodline's separate write-up the same week confirms the $231 million figure and the Third Avenue address, citing the deal as one of the larger office-to-residential conversion loans to close in Manhattan this year.

The project is one of at least two Midtown office-to-residential conversions this lending team has now backed within weeks of each other — this desk reported on October 31 that the same conversion lender backed a second Midtown office tower near its first, underscoring that this is a program for the lender, not a one-off deal.

For contractors, an office-to-residential conversion loan closing is the signal that the construction contract is close behind — gut renovation, new mechanical risers, egress reconfiguration and residential-grade finishes are the scopes that follow a conversion financing close, typically within weeks to a few months.

What to do next

If you do conversion work — demolition, MEP risers, window replacement, residential finish-out — 675 Third Avenue is now financed and should be generating bid packages soon. Reach out to MetroLoft or David Werner's project team directly rather than waiting for a public bid posting; conversion GCs are typically selected well before any subcontractor solicitation becomes public.

Track this lender's other Midtown deals — if they've backed two conversions in two weeks, there are likely more in the pipeline worth asking about now, before the trade gets crowded.