Blackstone files pre-foreclosures: $45M at RFR retail, $10M at Flatiron District commercial
188 East 78th Street (Credit - Cyclomedia)
Blackstone Group through the entity SIG CRE 2023 Venture LLC filed two pre-foreclosure actions yesterday in New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan, alleging in the first that a $45 million loan given to RFR Holding and secured by retail condominiums units at 188 East 78th Street in Lenox Hill was in default, and that a $10 million loan given to a different property investor in 2015 and secured by a leasehold on two buildings in the Flatiron District, 23 and 25 West 24th Street, was in default.
Court filings represent the position of one party and are not necessarily accurate or complete.
In the larger, Blackstone Group filed a $45 million pre-foreclosure suit against RFR Holding and its principals, Aby Rosen and Michael Fuchs secured by the two retail condo units. The larger, Retail Unit 1, has 13,054 square feet between the cellar, first and second floor. The second is 8,527 square feet on the first and second floors. This is at least the seventh pre-foreclosure action Blackstone has filed against RFR this year.
According to the complaint, “The Condominium Units in the building known as The Empire Condominium, 188 East 78th Street, Retail Unit No. 1 and Retail Unit No. 2…On or about March 20, 2014, Borrower duly executed, acknowledged and delivered to Signature Bank (“Original Lender”) a Consolidated, Amended and Restated Note (the “Note”) for the purpose of evidencing an indebtedness in the amount of $45,000,000… Borrower was obligated to pay the Lender monthly installments of interest accrued on the unpaid Principal Balance of the Loan on the first (1st) day of each calendar month through March 20, 2024, the extended maturity date of the Loan. Borrower failed to timely pay the monthly installments required under the Note beginning on April 3, 2023 and continuing on each monthly payment date thereafter…”
The property
The condo building with 72 residential units in Lenox Hill has 197,442 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has two buildings with frontage of 120 feet and is 204 feet deep with a total lot size of 17,304 square feet. The lot is irregular. The zoning is C1-9 which allows for up to 2 times floor area ratio (FAR) for commercial and up to 10 times FAR for residential with inclusionary housing.
Direct link to the property’s ACRIS page
In the second Blackstone action filed yesterday, the lender alleges leasehold owner Oz Levy is in default on a $10 million loan originally provided in 2015.
Blackstone Group through the entity SIG CRE 2023 Venture LLC filed the $10 million pre-foreclosure suit alleging the mortgage secured by a leasehold on 23 West 24th Street and 25 West 24th Street was in default. The fee is owned in a 50-50 tenant-in-common structure between Gary Barnett’s Extell Development and Oz Levy (also spelled Oz Levi) signed in 2015. The landlord TIC signed a 99-year lease with Oz Levy in 2015.
According to the complaint, “Under the September 2023 Modification, the Maturity Date, as amended from time to time, was June 30, 2024 (“Extended Maturity Date… Borrowers failed to comply with the terms, covenants and conditions of the Loan Documents by failing to make payments when due commencing on April 10, 2024, and all subsequent payments due thereafter…On November 1, 2024, Plaintiff, through its counsel, Holland and Knight LLP, notified Borrowers and Guarantor of Borrowers’ Maturity Default and Misappropriation Default under the Loan Documents.” Oz Levy used the spelling “Oz Levi” on the deed and ground lease documents, and “Oz Levy” on the loan documents.
The building 25 West 24th Street with 3 residential units in Flatiron District has 10,985 square feet of built space and 13,702 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 24,690 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 25 feet and is 98 feet deep with a total lot size of 2,469 square feet. The zoning is M1-6 which allows for up to 10 times floor area ratio (FAR) for manufacturing. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $1.2 million.
The retail building 23 West 24th Street in Flatiron District has 2,454 square feet of built space and 22,272 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 24,720 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 25 feet and is 98 feet deep with a total lot size of 2,472 square feet. The zoning is M1-6 which allows for up to 10 times floor area ratio (FAR) for manufacturing. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $1.3 million.
Direct link to the property’s ACRIS page