$25M pre-foreclosure filed at 142-unit Bay Ridge rental, WSJ cited owner in “extinction” article

Flagstar Bank filed a $25.2 million foreclosure action on May 13, 2026, against the owner of a 142-unit residential building in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, according to records filed with the Kings County New York State Supreme Court. The lawsuit targets 8801 Shore Road Building Corporation, the entity that owns the six-story elevator apartment building at 8801 Shore Road, also known as 8802 Narrows Avenue. Howard Poret and Barbara Poret are named as defendants in their capacity as personal guarantors of the debt. The complex takes up nearly an entire city block facing the Verrazzano Narrows.

Court records represent the position of one party and are not necessarily accurate or complete.
Case LINK

The filing highlights the intensifying financial pressure on small-to-mid-sized legacy landlords in New York City who are grappling with high interest rates and the rising costs of maintaining rent-regulated portfolios. The Wall Street Journal previously identified Howard Poret in its article “Mamdani’s Rental Plan Risks Pushing Small Landlords Toward Extinction,” as an example of a small landlord facing significant operational headwinds under the state’s restrictive 2019 rent laws. While this is a large building, PincusCo could not identify another building Poret owned. These pressures are increasingly manifesting as debt service failures for multi-generational owners who have historically maintained low leverage but now find themselves unable to refinance or meet escalating tax and maintenance obligations.

The dispute stems from a $26.5 million consolidated mortgage originally issued by New York Community Bank in September 2015. Flagstar, which became the successor lender by merger, alleges that the borrower defaulted on monthly principal and interest payments as well as real estate tax escrow requirements starting in early 2025. A formal notice of default was issued on March 6, 2025.

In an attempt to resolve the arrears, the Porets entered into a forbearance agreement with Flagstar effective May 2, 2025. Under the terms of that agreement, the bank temporarily stayed its exercise of remedies to allow the borrower time to stabilize the property’s finances. However, that forbearance period expired on October 1, 2025, without a full payoff or cure of the underlying defaults. Flagstar now seeks the full accelerated balance of $25,220,404.46, which includes approximately $23.7 million in principal, $698,732 in interest, and various late charges and escrow deficiencies.

The property at the center of the foreclosure, located at the corner of 88th Street and Narrows Avenue, was built in 1936 and consists entirely of residential units.

Legal representation for Flagstar is being handled by Jerry A. Montag of Seyfarth Shaw LLP.

The property

The elevator building with 142 residential units in Bay Ridge has 186,000 square feet of built space and 29,645 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 215,600 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has two buildings with frontage of 306 feet and is 212 feet deep with a total lot size of 53,900 square feet. The lot is irregular. The zoning is R7A which allows for up to 4 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential with inclusionary housing. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $9.8 million.

Prior sales, articles and revenue

The 186,000-square-foot property generated revenue of $2.7 million or $15 per square foot, according to the most recent income and expense figures.

Violations and lawsuits

According to city public data, the property has received two DOB violations, $2,500 in ECB penalties, four housing violations, and $2,525 in OATH penalties in the last year.

There were no lawsuits or bankruptcies filed against the property for the past 24 months.

The neighborhood

In Bay Ridge, The bulk, or 30 percent of the 21 million square feet of commercial built space are elevator buildings, with walkup buildings next occupying 28 percent of the space. In sales, Bay Ridge has near average sales volume among other neighborhoods with $314.6 million in sales volume in the last two years and is the 25th highest in Brooklyn. For development, Bay Ridge has near average amount of major developments among other neighborhoods and is the 37th highest in Brooklyn. It had 212,492 square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 1 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.

The block

On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owner of the one commercial property that spans that spans 186,000 square feet on the block. The identified owner is Howard Poret. There are no active new building construction projects on this tax block.

The owner

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Howard Poret owned at least one commercial property with 142 residential units in New York City with 186,000 square feet and a city-determined market value of $10.3 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio consists of at least a single elevator property. It is located in Brooklyn.

The owners according to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development includes Howard Poret, head officer and Barbara Poret, officer. The business entity is Corporation.

The surrounding

This is the first commercial real estate event of interest identified within the 400-foot radius of 28 88 Street in the past 24 months.

Direct link to the property’s ACRIS page and link to DOB NOW portal.