Brookfield Secures $800M Refinancing for 225 Liberty Street, Injects $172.5M in Fresh Equity

Brookfield Properties has completed an $800 million refinancing of 225 Liberty Street, a 44-story, 2.4-million-square-foot Class A office tower in Lower Manhattan's Battery Park City — one of the largest single-asset office refinancings in the post-pandemic era.

Loan Terms

The new five-year, fixed-rate, interest-only CMBS mortgage carries an interest rate of approximately 5.9%, up from the 4.7% rate on the prior loan. Citi Real Estate Funding, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of Nova Scotia, and Wells Fargo originated the debt.

Brookfield contributed $172.5 million in fresh equity as part of the transaction — a significant cash injection that signals the company's long-term commitment to its flagship office complex. The loan replaces a $900 million CMBS mortgage originated in 2016 that was set to mature on February 7.

The securitization has been designated LBTY 2026-225L and received preliminary ratings from KBRA.

Brookfield Place: The Crown Jewel

225 Liberty is one of four towers in the Brookfield Place campus, which Brookfield values at $4 billion — calling it the firm's "most valuable office holding globally." The property was appraised at $1.3 billion as part of the refinancing.

The building is 90.1% occupied as of November, with Brookfield Properties itself as the largest tenant at over 535,000 square feet. Other tenants include Saks Global, which occupies 233,000 square feet, though the retailer filed for bankruptcy and is reportedly delinquent on rent. The Saks space was treated as vacant in the loan underwriting analysis.

Market Signal

The deal is a notable data point for Manhattan's office capital markets. The size of the loan and the caliber of the lending group suggest institutional confidence in prime Lower Manhattan office product, even as the sector continues to work through elevated vacancy and refinancing challenges across the broader market.

The $100 million reduction from the prior loan balance, combined with Brookfield's substantial equity contribution, reflects the tighter lending standards and higher debt costs that have defined the post-rate-hike environment.