Empire State Building IPO Would Let You Buy A Share Of World Famous Building (VIDEO)

IPO Would Sell Empire State Building To The Public

You, yes you, could soon have the opportunity to buy a piece of the Empire State Building.

Malkin Properties-- who bought the iconic skyscraper in 1961 and created a group of some 2,800 owners-- is heading a push to put ownership of the building into a Real Estate Investment Trust with 18 other New York City buildings, and then sell shares to the public, ABC News reports.

In order to land what would be a one billion dollar public offering, the Malkin family needs 80 percent of the current owners to approve the plan. Last week, The Real Deal reports, Malkin told investors they'd secured 94 percent of the votes needed. A March deadline for voting was extended.

The Malkins have previously argued the deal, according to ABC, would "deliver needed liquidity, aid capital appreciation, increase distribution and render management more accountable and more transparent."

Those against the IPO say it will give too great a chunk of the new company to the Malkin family.

Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated "the plan would offer up 13 million shares in the REIT, at 10 to 12 dollars per share." Those numbers apply to the public offering for Fairway market, not the proposed Empire State Building REIT. You can read their SEC filing here.

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A Tour of the Empire State Building

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