Apple backs off Madison deal.

Apple has backed off of a possible deal to take a floor in 510 Madison Avenue, a source has told rew-online.com.

Rew-online.com had reported that the computer and electronics giant, whose beloved products like the iPod and iPhone have become icons of pop culture, was poking around for office space in the high-end boutique tower, currently being developed by Macklowe Properties. The well-known company is one among a handful of tenants that have looked into taking space in the 350,000 square foot building, which will offer full floor offices for smaller space users and the kind of country club atmosphere snobby but deep-pocketed tenants crave.

But as the building's completion date nears (it is supposed to be ready for occupancy next year) only one tenant so far has actually ponied up and committed to space, the investment firm Jay Goldman & Company, who took an 11,500 square foot floor in December 2007 for rents around $150 per square foot. The Manhattan office market has slowed and the demand for hugely expensive offices may have cooled given that the boutique financial companies that usually take them are undoubtedly struggling with the same economic tumult that has prompted major financial firms to begin unleashing blocks of space.

Strains, though not widespread, have been evident. Brokers say that iStar Financial, a lending REIT, has recently sweetened the terms of a block of high priced space it is giving up at 1095 Avenue of the Americas, offering to provide money so that the tenant can build out its space.