A view of the top of the Chrysler Building
© AFP/File Timothy A. Clary

NEW YORK (AFP) - Despite a sharp downturn in the US housing market in recent years, bidding for landmark New York properties has remained sky-high, showing investors still covet prestigious Manhattan properties.

The deal's price tag means the Middle East fund paid over 10 million dollars for each floor of the iconic 77-story Art Deco skyscraper which is situated in "Midtown" opposite Grand Central station.

Media reports had said the Abu Dhabi Investment Council, an investment fund based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), had been holding negotiations with a subsidiary of Prudential Financial Inc. over its 75 percent stake in the Chrysler Building.

"We have sold our stake of 75 percent on Tuesday," Prudential spokeswoman Theresa Miller told AFP.

The remaining 25 percent stake in the skyscraper is owned by Tishman Speyer Properties, a privately held New York real estate firm.

"It's certainly a very healthy sign for the commercial real estate market in the US," said Dan Fasulo, a property analyst at Real Capital Analytics.

"Many of the oil-rich nations in the Middle East who (are) just flushed with capital from their oil profit are targeting or looking at our trophy real estate assets," Fasulo said.

The Abu Dhabi Investment Council is intensely secretive about its operations, but investment analysts say it controls over 800 billion dollars of assets and is one of the world's biggest so-called sovereign wealth funds.

The fund made a 7.5-billion-dollar investment in Citigroup, one of America's largest financial institutions, last November. It is managed by the biggest emirate in the oil-rich UAE.

The investment giant does not typically publicize its operations, but UAE media reports say it recently reformed itself into the Abu Dhabi Investment Council having previously operated as the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.

Its latest investment foray sees it acquire the major stake in a storied New York landmark.

The Chrysler Building was designed by the architect William Van Alen and erected between 1928 and 1930.

The skyscraper was briefly New York's tallest building until its skyward reach was surpassed by the Empire State Building shortly after its construction.

Declared a historic monument in 1976, the skyscraper was built for the Chrysler car company.

It is considered a design classic by many architects, and is topped by "terraced arches" and a graceful soaring spire. Many of the building's facets also reflect features from period Chrysler automobiles including eagles and replicas of Chrysler hood ornaments.

Deep-pocketed investment funds based in the Middle East have purchased and sold a number of high profile New York buildings in recent years.

Investors from Dubai, Kuwait and Qatar bought the General Motors building, which is located on Fifth Avenue, last month for 2.8 billion dollars.

©AFP