Waterton last year bought 88 Leonard in Tribeca, its first and only Manhattan apartment building, for about $207 million from Africa Israel USA, which at the time was working to restructure and refinance more than $1.5 billion in debt. Waterton, which agreed to assume Africa Israel's mortgage on the property and pay off its mezzanine loan, acquired the building at a cap rate of 4.6 percent, according to Real Capital.
"The distress is at the tail end," Schwartz said. "Things are being priced at full retail at this point."