75 Prospect St. in East Orange — Courtesy: Gebroe-Hammer Associates
By Joshua Burd
A veteran East Orange investor has acquired a 44-unit luxury apartment building in the city, in an $11.25 million deal brokered by Gebroe-Hammer Associates.
The brokerage firm said the property, 75 Prospect St., set a new, all-time-high price-per-unit benchmark in the East Orange submarket. The purchase price for what’s known as the Castle on Prospect translated to $250,000 per unit.
David Oropeza, managing director with Livingston-based Gebroe-Hammer and the firm’s urban market specialist, exclusively represented the seller and procured the buyer. The firm identified the purchasers as a longtime client and veteran East Orange investor.
“Renters and investors have discovered New Jersey’s newest crown jewel — East Orange, where almost three-quarters of the population are renters and about 80 (percent) of the housing stock is comprised of small, mid- and high-rise apartment buildings,” Oropeza said. “Comprised of 19 constituent neighborhoods, each of which has its own character and aesthetic landscape, East Orange is a city of service providers, sales and office workers and executives who appreciate the wide range of residential living options, a walkable lifestyle and immediate access to mass- and vehicle-transit options.”
Built in the late 1920s, the Castle is a classic Art Deco-era building with hand-painted tile in the lobby, vaulted ceilings, large windows with abundant natural light and views of New York City and South Mountain Reservation, Gebroe-Hammer said in a news release. The property, which last sold in 2013, has a mix of units ranging up to five bedrooms, with updated kitchens and high-end finishes.
The 10-story brick building sits at the crossroads of the Garden State Parkway and Interstate 280. It is just two blocks from the Brick Church train station, which offers a less than 30-minute ride into New York Penn Station.
“Long recognized as a grand, striking fixture on the East Orange skyline, the Castle has both old-world charm and modern amenities that appeal to the city’s diverse age demographic, from established, young professionals to empty-nesters and retirees,” Oropeza said. “The Castle offers a lifestyle like no other in the city and symbolizes East Orange’s past as well as its now-underway resurgence.”
