The Weekly Take from CBRE This Is How We Do It: The playbook for office-to-residential conversions
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Mar 30, 2026 Brian Steinwurzel, Co-CEO of GFP Real Estate and lead of the huge 25 Water Street conversion, explains the playbook for turning offices into homes. He describes engineering moves like light wells and added floors. He covers finance, tax incentives, rapid 25-month delivery, amenity strategies for large residential communities, and which buildings make good conversion candidates.
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Massive Retrofit Delivered New‑Build Efficiency
- Converting 25 Water Street required carving two massive light wells and replacing almost the entire facade to reach 85% efficiency.
- GFP added ten stories using recovered floor area and achieved near–new‑build efficiency for 1,320 apartments.
Use Incentives To Make Conversions Work
- Opt into targeted tax incentive programs when the math supports it to create affordable units and improve returns.
- GFP switched from 100% market to 75% market/25% affordable by joining New York's 467M program for significant tax abatements.
Speed Cuts Risk In Inflationary Markets
- Fast execution dramatically reduces risk and carrying costs in high‑inflation, high‑rate environments.
- GFP closed late 2022 and finished in 25 months, beating a 30‑month plan and preserving contingency amid rising costs.