Sony Corporation of America will soon part with their New York City headquarters. Real Estate entity The Chetrit Group has purchased the Madison Avenue property for $1.1 billion.
The building is home to Sony Music Entertainment and Sony Pictures Entertainment, and both divisions will continue to work at 550 Madison for up to three more years under a leaseback agreement with the building's buyer. In a statement released this morning, Sony said the sale was to "strengthen its financial foundation and business competitiveness."
"Given the opportunities and challenges in the current economic and real estate landscape, selling 550 Madison now is a timely and logical strategic move," said Sony Corp. of America president Nicole Seligman in a statement given to Bloomberg.
The sale is expected to earn Sony close to $770 million, once it has paid all of the taxes, fees, and debts remaining on the property. Damn. If Sony is feeling the pinch financially, what chance do the rest of us have?
