Abraham Biller pays $3.2M to Michael Karantinidis for three development parcels in Claremont Village
Abraham Biller through the entity 1527 Morris Realty L.P. paid $3.2 million to Michael Karantinidis through the entity Hephaistos Developing LLC for the development building (V0) at 1521 Morris Avenue in Claremont Village, Bronx, development building (V0) at 1527 Morris Avenue in Claremont Village, Bronx, and development building (V0) at N/A Morris Avenue in Claremont Village, Bronx.
The deal closed on January 5, 2024 and was recorded on January 25, 2024. The three properties have zero square feet of built space and 17,802 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 17,802 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The sale price per buildable square foot is $179 per the PincusCo analysis. (The price per square foot analysis is the transaction price divided by square feet as reported in public records and assumes no air rights have been sold.)
The signatory for Michael Karantinidis was Michael Karantinidis. The signatory for Abraham Biller was Abraham Biller. The contract date was November 22, 2023.
Because multiple properties have been transacted, some of the following sections will follow the property with the largest assessed value, which in this case, is the property on 1521 Morris Avenue.
Prior sales and revenue
Prior to this transaction, PincusCo has no record that the buyer Abraham Biller had purchased any other properties and has no record it sold any properties over the past 24 months.
The property
The parcel has frontage of 29 feet and is 96 feet deep with a total lot size of 2,833 square feet. The zoning is R7-1 which allows for up to 3.44 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $164,000.
Violations and lawsuits
There were no lawsuits or bankruptcies filed against the properties for the past 24 months. In addition, according to city public data, the properties have not received any significant violations in the last year.
Development
There are no active new building construction projects or major alteration projects with initial costs more than $1 million on this tax lot.
The neighborhood
In Claremont Village, The bulk, or 42 percent of the 7.2 million square feet of commercial built space are elevator buildings, with walkup buildings next occupying 33 percent of the space. In sales, Claremont Village has the 24th highest sale turnover among other neighborhoods in Bronx with $53 million in sales volume in the last two years. For development, Claremont Village has had very little major development activity relative to other neighborhoods.It had 308,422 square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 4 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.
The block
On the tax block of 1521 Morris Avenue, PincusCo has identified the owners of six of the 15 commercial properties representing 296,755 square feet of the 296,755 square feet. The largest owner is Zalmen Management, followed by Usher Anshul and then Joel Friedman.
There are no active new building construction projects on this tax block.
The majority, or 92 percent of the 296,755 square feet of built space are elevator buildings, with walkup buildings next occupying 8 percent of the space.
The buyer
The PincusCo database currently indicates that Abraham Biller owned at least three commercial properties with 88 residential units in New York City with 43,415 square feet and a city-determined market value of $6.1 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $46 million in debt, with top three lenders as Orange Bank & Trust Company, Greystone & Co., and Northeast Community Bank respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 99 percent of the 43,415 square feet of built space are elevator properties, with specialty properties next occupying 1 percent of the space. They are all located in Bronx.
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