Can 3D renderings market a rental before it is finished?

Yes. The Willow, a six-residence rental conversion at 84 University Place in Greenwich Village, was marketed off the renderings while the homes were still being built. The visuals carried the pre-leasing campaign for Douglas Elliman, and the two top-floor residences are now in contract at $26,000 and $35,000 a month.

How do you reposition a historic building without losing its character?

By modeling the existing 1890s Romanesque Revival shell honestly, then designing the interiors to sit inside it. For The Willow we kept the building’s authentic exterior and oversized original windows while visualizing refined modern interiors, oak millwork, herringbone floors, and a roof deck, so renters could picture a contemporary home without losing the loft’s history.

How many renderings does a project like this need?

The Willow used around ten interior and exterior renderings, covering the building exterior and entry, the lobby, the kitchen and living spaces, the primary and secondary bedrooms, the bathrooms, and the roof deck. The count is chosen to show the rooms a renter actually decides on, not every corner of the building.

Case study

The Willow

84 University Place · Manhattan

The brief

An Elevated Story.

When GD Capital Group acquired 84 University Place, a seven-story Romanesque Revival loft built in the 1890s, the goal was more than a simple renovation. They wanted to reposition the property as a boutique rental of six full-floor residences that renters could clearly understand and feel confident about, well before the homes were finished.

GD Capital specializes in repositioning underutilized assets and bringing them to market at full value, and the vision here was a modern classic: historic character preserved, refined interiors and lifestyle-driven amenities introduced. In Manhattan, where buildings come with history and strong character, the challenge was to modernize the property without losing what made it feel authentic.

Architectural visualization became the tool that allowed this vision to be tested, refined, and communicated clearly to the leasing team and future residents.

3D exterior rendering of The Willow, a slender seven-story limestone and stone residential building at 84 University Place in Manhattan, set between two brick neighbors with ground-floor retail glazing.

Project at a glance

Repositioning an 1890s Greenwich Village landmark as a boutique rental of six full-floor residences, visualized so renters could understand the homes before leasing began.

Developer: GD Capital Group
Building type: Boutique rental, six full-floor residences
Location: 84 University Place, Greenwich Village, Manhattan
Architecture: 1890s Romanesque Revival loft by Louis Korn
Interiors: Alchemy Studios
Marketing: Douglas Elliman
Acquisition: $11.2 million, 2024
Scope: Around ten interior and exterior renderings
Purpose: Pre-leasing and long-term marketing

3D interior rendering of the main kitchen at The Willow in Manhattan, with oak cabinetry, a Calacatta marble backsplash and waterfall island with blue veining, brass fixtures, globe pendant lights, and a herringbone floor. — Main kitchen, with oak cabinetry and a veined marble island

The approach

Designed Around Daily Life, Not a Floor Plan.

From the outset, our role was both strategic and interpretive. Rather than producing technical views in isolation, we focused on how the spaces would be experienced, how light would move through rooms, how sequences would unfold, and where moments of pause and intimacy should exist.

Early white-model studies came first, used to:

01 Understand how the spaces connect and flow.
02 Identify the most effective viewpoints for telling the story of the home.
03 See how natural light would move through the interiors throughout the day.

These studies allowed the team to discuss intent without distraction, focusing on proportion, openness, and flow before materials were introduced.

We approached the interiors with the understanding that renters are not just evaluating floor plans, they are imagining daily life in the space. The scenes were designed to feel warm, comfortable, and lived-in, without being overstyled.

3D interior rendering of the living and dining area at The Willow in Manhattan, with a light oak dining table and chairs, boucle lounge seating, a wall-mounted television, a herringbone floor, and large grid windows looking onto the facing building. — Living and dining area, framed by tall grid windows

Art direction

Believable, Not Brand-Driven.

Furniture, artwork, and décor were chosen to feel natural and believable rather than brand-driven or overly designed. Material choices focused on finishes that would remain appealing over time, avoiding anything trendy or short-lived.

Lighting, color, and contrast were used to make the spaces feel natural and inviting rather than overly polished or artificial. Warm daylight showed how the interiors would feel at different times of day, while the rooftop scenes carried small details, soft lighting and a sense of movement, to make the spaces feel occupied and real.

Camera angles were selected to show the true size and proportions of the spaces, make layouts easy to understand at a glance, and include glimpses of the surrounding city without distracting from the interiors. Throughout the project, the goal was simple: the images needed to help people imagine living there, not just document the architecture.

3D interior rendering of the primary bedroom at The Willow in Manhattan, with a grey upholstered bed, a large abstract canvas above the headboard, twin nightstands with brass lamps, a fiddle-leaf plant, and tall windows with city views. — Primary bedroom, lit to feel warm and lived-in rather than staged

The arrival

Making Manhattan Feel Intimate.

For the exterior visuals, the goal was to show how The Willow fits naturally into its Manhattan surroundings while still feeling welcoming and approachable. A custom black metal entry gate carries brass The Willow signage, soft landscape lighting creates a clear sense of arrival in the evening, and the street-level views were informed by real neighborhood photography so the setting reads as accurate and familiar.

These visuals were created to feel realistic and relatable, helping renters picture themselves at the address rather than viewing it as a stylized marketing image.

3D interior rendering of the lobby at The Willow in Manhattan, with a brass-faced elevator in a marble surround, a walnut wood-panelled feature wall hung with black-and-white abstract artworks, and a mosaic marble floor. — Lobby, with walnut panelling, marble, and a curated art wall

3D rendering of the roof deck at The Willow in Manhattan at dusk, with an outdoor dining table, lounge seating, a grill under a pergola strung with lights, a wood privacy screen, and surrounding rooftops.

On the roof

An Evening, Not a Square Footage.

For the rooftop, the focus was on how the space would actually be used rather than how much of it there is. Communal dining and lounge areas, a grill under a pergola strung with lights, and subtle lighting suitable for evening use frame the surrounding rooftops in a natural, realistic way, so a renter pictures the dinner, not the dimensions.

3D interior rendering of a secondary bedroom at The Willow in Manhattan, with a low bed dressed in a caramel throw, an oak nightstand, woven wall art, a plant, and tall windows looking onto the neighboring brick facade. — Secondary bedroom, kept calm, neutral, and naturally lit

3D interior rendering of the powder room at The Willow in Manhattan, with a backlit oval mirror, a Calacatta marble vanity with gold veining, brass fixtures, a wall-hung toilet, and a checkerboard floor. — Powder room, with a backlit mirror and veined marble vanity

The outcome

In Contract at the Top of the Building.

The final visuals were used as practical working tools, not just marketing images. GD Capital and its brokers relied on them to anchor the pre-leasing campaign run with Douglas Elliman, communicate the repositioning strategy clearly, and help prospective residents understand what living at The Willow would actually feel like.

The feedback confirmed that the renderings accurately reflected both the design intent and the overall character of the project, and conversations continued after delivery around adding short animations and VR to support future leasing. The same images were built to serve both the live pre-leasing push and long-term marketing, delivered for digital listings and large-format print.

The Willow shows how well-executed CGI can carry a pre-leasing campaign and build renter confidence. By combining accurate architectural representation with a clear, approachable visual style, the renderings helped reposition a historic Manhattan building as a modern residential offering, and the two top-floor residences have since gone into contract at $26,000 and $35,000 a month.

Questions

Repositioning a Historic Building

Can 3D renderings market a rental before it is finished?: Yes. The Willow, a six-residence rental conversion at 84 University Place in Greenwich Village, was marketed off the renderings while the homes were still being built. The visuals carried the pre-leasing campaign for Douglas Elliman, and the two top-floor residences are now in contract at $26,000 and $35,000 a month.
How do you reposition a historic building without losing its character?: By modeling the existing 1890s Romanesque Revival shell honestly, then designing the interiors to sit inside it. For The Willow we kept the building’s authentic exterior and oversized original windows while visualizing refined modern interiors, oak millwork, herringbone floors, and a roof deck, so renters could picture a contemporary home without losing the loft’s history.
How many renderings does a project like this need?: The Willow used around ten interior and exterior renderings, covering the building exterior and entry, the lobby, the kitchen and living spaces, the primary and secondary bedrooms, the bathrooms, and the roof deck. The count is chosen to show the rooms a renter actually decides on, not every corner of the building.

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