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The city's real estate recession has ruined scores of owners, developers and lenders.
But for Martin F. Schacker and his partners, the downturn has allowed them to start their own investment bank.
The group considered entrepreneurship for years, while working at D.H. Blair & Co. This year, as downtown rents dropped lower and lower, they took the plunge.
"We cut the best deal in Wall Street in the last 15 years," says Mr. Schacker, chairman of the firm, M.S. Farrell & Co.
The venture subleased 8,000 square feet in 67 Wall St. "It enabled us to put together a very large firm, as opposed to a very conservative operation," he observes.
The sharp decline in rents has been a blessing for hundreds of city businesses that have signed new leases. By obtaining more and better space for less money, they have improved their competitiveness.
The flip side to this, of course, is businesses that signed top-dollar leases before the slump are struggling to compete.
SERVICE BUSINESSES VULNERABLE
"Especially in service businesses, as one large player reduces its overhead, others are forced to follow or be at a disadvantage when it comes to pricing their services," says Gregg Lorberbaum, senior vice president at Peter R. Friedman Ltd.
On the whole, economists agree that the benefits of lower rents have profound positive ramifications for the city's economy. Companies that would have relocated are staying....