The 168-unit 50 Rector Park rental — the first market-rate residential high-rise constructed in Newark, NJ, since 1962 — opened last Saturday. The 23-story building has a roof deck with cabanas, a residents’ lounge and units (from $1,800 for a studio) with floor-to-ceiling windows. But residents also get another perk: a home backed by a celebrity turned real estate developer in their second acts.
Basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal, who is a Newark native, teamed up with New Brunswick, NJ-based Boraie Development on 50 Rector Park — and 777 McCarter Highway, another rental nearby that will begin construction in 2020.
“[O’Neal] actually sought us out 15 years ago to start developing in the city,” says Wasseem Boraie, principal of Boraie Development.“It was really his idea. I had always been interested in Newark. I just didn’t know the landscape of the city.”
In the New York area, celebrity landlords are a growing trend. In early June, retired Yankee Alex Rodriguez announced he partnered with “Shark Tank” personality — and real-estate industry veteran — Barbara Corcoran to purchase a 21-unit rental building, whose address they declined to disclose, in Manhattan’s East Village.
The two, who declined comment for this story, plan on amassing a portfolio of multi-family properties across the city, with a focus on misused land, undermanaged buildings and undervalued neighborhoods. “Our first investment was a sweetheart deal, and we jumped at it,” Corcoran told The Post earlier this month, adding that she got to know Rodriguez on the “Shark Tank” set. “It took almost six months to negotiate, but Alex is incredible with this stuff. I thought he just hit balls, but he runs numbers.”
Also in the mix, and also in Newark: Queen Latifah. The rapper and actress, whose rep didn’t respond to requests for comment, was also born there. Reports say that as co-president of BlueSugar Corporation, she is working on a $14 million project at Springfield Avenue and South 17th Street that will include 20 three-family townhouses and a separate mixed-use building that houses 16 units. The townhouse units will be market rate (from $1,800/month); the building units will be priced based on income.
A spokesperson for Latifah’s development partner, GonSosa, told NJ.com in February that both companies hope to fill a need for affordable housing. “They understand how difficult it is to make ends meet for many residents and want to be part of the solution,” the rep, Cristina Pinzon, said.
Surprisingly, celebrity involvement in real-estate development isn’t a marketing tactic. Adds Boraie, “That’s a gimmick that doesn’t work.”