Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation

This week's Manhattan Transfers profiles the 78-year-old Broadway legend Hal Prince's two big real-estate deals so far this year.

And yet another deed surfaced on Wednesday afternoon in public records. Late last month, Mr. Prince and son Charles sold their duplex at 222 Central Park South (called the Gainsborough Studios) for $1.311 million. The buyer is Donald W. Denton.

A snapshot above--which we ingeniously doubled--is taken from the listing with Coldwell Banker Hunt Kennedy broker Edward Joseph:

This artistic loft-like apartment has a 20 foot double height living room with beamed ceiling and oversized windows facing South. This grand living area with woodburning fireplace is perfect for entertaining and formal or relaxed dining. Both bedrooms are generous...

The elder Mr. Prince would be a good entertainer: His Broadway credits as a director and/or producer include Damn Yankees, West Side Story, Fiddler on the Roof, and Cabaret.

- Max Abelson

• Moody's believes that 20 American metro areas "could experience a 'crash.'" (The word is even scarier when it's put in quotation marks, isn't it?) On the national scale, the 2007 forecast is for a decline in home prices. The last time that happened was a doozy called The Great Depression. (CNN/Money)
• "There is nothing sexy" about running the monolithic Realogy--the mother company of Coldwell Banker, Century 21, Sotheby's and Corcoran. Since being spun off by Cendant this July, Realogy shares are down 10%. Blame it on the Depression! (NY Times)
• Who knew gargantuan law firms had gargantuan funds for trophy Manhattan real estate? Dechert just grabbed 234,000 square feet at 1095 Avenue of the Americas--for 15 short years and $300 tall millions. One Bryant Park is in on the fun too (Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feldsigned will have 200,000sf there). But the shiniest trophy of the lawyerly set is Renzo Piano's New York Times Building, where Covington & Burling and Seyfarth Shaw have leased 160,000 and 100,000 square feet. (Globe St.)
• How can you tell that Chinatown is enjoying a post-9/11 (or maybe it's post-post-9/11) resuscitation? Community activism is always a good sign, but the surest sign is community activism against Hollywood infiltrators (i.e. the crew of Law & Order: Criminal Intent, but also Wong Kar-wai). (City Limits)
- Max Abelson
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Just a few days after Barbara's big going away party, Cendant Corp. announced it it is splitting the company into four parts. Shares fell nearly 5 percent since word got out this morning.

The company's real-estate division, NRT, bought the Corcoran Group in 2001 for $70 million. It recently combined it with the Sunshine Group, which had been purchased 15 years earlier. The real estate powerhouse also owns Century 21, Coldwell Banker, and ERA.  read more »

-Michael Calderone