Belfonti Capital Partners and The Carlyle Group to Sell 485 Fifth Avenue to Global Hyatt Corporation

New York, NY – Belfonti Capital Partners and The Carlyle Group today announced that they have agreed to sell 485 Fifth Avenue to an affiliate of Global Hyatt Corporation. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2006. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Michael Belfonti, the Chairman of Belfonti Capital Partners, LLC, said, "We exceeded our condo sales targets with nearly half of the 104 units sold when only one-third of the building had been completed. The building’s location, luxury and amenities gave us great momentum, but it was designer Peter Som’s involvement that truly created the intense interest in the property. Peter’s creativity and unique vision for this asset not only marked the first time that fashion and architecture were combined so extensively in a condo project but also helped to add significant value to the condo sales."

Belfonti added, "Hyatt has a fantastic plan for the asset, which will take advantage of the positive hotel fundamentals including ADR and occupancy not achieved since the historical peak in 2000. Manhattan’s hotel market has strong barriers to entry, limited new supply and increased demand, which should result in strong results for the next few years."

In 2005, Belfonti and Carlyle entered into a joint venture agreement to convert 485 Fifth Avenue, which was an office building, into a for-sale residential condominium building.

Based in New York City, Belfonti Capital Partners, LLC is a venture capital firm focused on acquiring real estate development and investment opportunities throughout the United States and internationally. The company aligns its private and institutional capital to aggressively pursue real estate opportunities in excess of $300 million dollars. The equity partners of the company have included The Carlyle Group, Credit Suisse First Boston, Morgan Stanley, and JP Morgan. The partners have also closed transactions with the following lenders: Wachovia, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, Citigroup, GMAC, and Wells Fargo. www.belfonti.com/