Abraham Brach signs $27M refi with Cirrus for 24-unit project in Williamsburg, bankruptcy ends

UPDATED, 11:37 a.m., January 16, 2024: Abraham Brach through the entity 425 Marcy Avenue LLC as borrower signed a refi loan with lender Cirrus Real Estate Partners through the entity Crecf I 425 Marcy Construction Lender LP valued at $27 million for the 24-unit residential elevator building project (D6) at 427 Marcy Avenue in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, also known as 415 Marcy Avenue and 425 Marcy Avenue. This financing was part of the resolution of the 2023 bankruptcy case.
The deal closed on December 31, 2024 and was recorded on January 15, 2025. The prior lender was Cirrus Real Estate Partners which held debt that had an original loan amount of $25 million. The property has 60,928 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The loan price per built square foot is $443 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 Abraham Brach was Abraham Brach. This property was subject to a bankruptcy filing, in the Eastern District of New York, 1:23-bk-40118.. Cirrus bought the $25 million note from DW Partners secured by Ezra Unger and Aron Lebovits’s building at 415 Marcy Avenue with an alternate address of 425 Marcy Avenue in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Former owner Ezra Unger is no longer involved in the project, following the bankruptcy resolution.

Violations and lawsuits

There were no lawsuits or bankruptcies filed against the property for the past 24 months. In addition, according to city public data, the property has received three DOB violations, $3,125 in ECB penalties, and $3,125 in OATH penalties in the last year.

Development

On the lot, there are two active new building construction projects and major alteration projects with initial costs more than $5 million, totaling 75,843 square feet. The largest, 321276445, is a new building project for a 23-unit, 47,351 square-foot R-2 building submitted by Ezra Unger and filed by Zevi Chaskelson with plans filed November 20, 2015 and permitted December 22, 2015. The second largest, 321269845, is a new building project for a 31-unit, 28,492 square-foot R-2 building submitted by Ezra Unger with plans filed November 9, 2015 and permitted December 22, 2015, but that project was withdrawn in 2020. On the tax lot, the most recent condominium plan was filed by 425 MARCY AVENUE LLC to create 24 residential units and 1 commercial units in a building at 415 Marcy Avenue in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, called 427 Marcy Avenue Condominium that had a $42.8 million sellout, according to an January 04, 2021 submission to the New York State Attorney General. The principal of the sponsor, 425 MARCY AVENUE LLC, was Ezra Unger.

The block

On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of three of the seven commercial properties representing 131,413 square feet of the 146,833 square feet. The two identified owners are Heyme Bleier and Aron Lebovits.
On the tax block, there were two new building construction projects totaling 75,843 square feet. The largest is a 23-unit, 47,351 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Ezra Unger and filed by Zevi Chaskelson with plans filed November 20, 2015 and permitted December 22, 2015. The second largest is a 31-unit, 28,492 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Ezra Unger with plans filed November 9, 2015 and permitted December 22, 2015.

The majority, or 89 percent of the 146,833 square feet of built space are elevator buildings, with industrial buildings next occupying 11 percent of the space.

The borrower

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Abraham Brach owned at least seven commercial properties with 162 residential units in New York City with 233,838 square feet and a city-determined market value of $20.7 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $163.1 million in debt, with top three lenders as G4 Capital Partners, BridgeCity Capital, and Blue Foundry Bank respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 83 percent of the 233,838 square feet of built space are elevator properties, with walkup properties next occupying 14 percent of the space. They are all located in Brooklyn.
The PincusCo database currently indicates that Ezra Unger owned at least one commercial property with 24 residential units in New York City with 60,928 square feet and a city-determined market value of $6.6 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.

Correction: A prior version of this post identified Ezra Unger as remaining an owner of the property, but that is not the case, according to people familiar with the ownership.

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