Olshan is one of the only law firms with a dedicated New York City air rights practice. Experienced in all aspects of these transferable development rights, our real estate lawyers apply a clear understanding of the potential pitfalls, applicable laws, and zoning and land use restrictions, crafting strategies to overcome hurdles to get air rights deals done.
Transferable Development Rights in New York City
With a paucity of available space in New York City, real property is at a premium. Property owners, real estate developers and investors seeking to expand their buildings look to their neighbors’ airspace for the square footage needed to increase their building size or operating area. We help them assemble and combine these properties’ square footage to make a particular development financeable and achievable.
Transferable development rights (TDRs), or air rights, were created in 1961 by the New York City Zoning Resolution. The law permits a property owner to increase the development potential of its lot by purchasing buildable square footage from adjacent lots, lots with landmarked buildings and lots within certain designated areas such as New York’s theater and High Line districts.
Handling Every Aspect of Air Rights Law
Our real estate lawyers have broad and extensive experience in air rights conveyances, including negotiating, structuring and closing acquisition and sales contracts, zoning lot mergers and zoning lot development agreements.
We advise developers, property owners and investors on the acquisition, development and sale of air rights and knowledgeably work with the client’s architects and zoning and other experts to address permitting, zoning, environmental and other land use-related issues. We know the market and the industry experts, and our depth of experience enables us to warn clients of potential issues.
Our team has facilitated numerous complex transactions, assisting both buyers and sellers of air rights in assembling teams, from surveyors to measure building envelopes to code consultants, to accomplish their goals and get deals done.
Through every phase, we work with the client’s architects and zoning and other experts to ensure developers can use newly acquired rights as planned and that sellers understand the limitations on their properties going forward.
