Chung Lam signs $21.4M refi for 80-unit rental in Jamaica

Chung Lam through the entity Hillside 168 Inc. as borrower signed a refi loan with lender Man Lam through the entity Ligom LLC valued at $21.4 million for the 80-unit residential elevator building (D6) at 148-18 Hillside Avenue in Jamaica, Queens.
On the lot, there is one active new building construction project, 421532755, for an 80-unit, 79,480 square-foot residential (R-2) building. The project was submitted by Chung Lam with plans filed September 1, 2017 and permitted January 22, 2024.
The deal closed on December 31, 2024 and was recorded on January 17, 2025. The prior lender was Popular Bank which held debt that had an original loan amount of $21.4 million.The property has 81,186 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The loan price per built square foot is $264 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 owner bought the property on October 14, 2015, for $6 million. The signatory for Chung Lam was Chung Lam. The signatory for Man Lam was Man Lam.

The property

The residential elevator building with 80 residential units in Jamaica has 81,186 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 125 feet and is 138 feet deep with a total lot size of 17,450 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 $1 million. The most recent loan totaled $21.4 million and was provided by Popular Bank on March 28, 2022.

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 one DOB violation, $21,150 in ECB penalties, and $21,580 in OATH penalties in the last year.

The block

On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of three of the 15 commercial properties representing 171,987 square feet of the 276,385 square feet. The largest owner is Century Development Group, followed by Friedman Management and then Chung Lam.
On the tax block, there were two new building construction projects totaling 96,262 square feet. The largest is a 80-unit, 79,480 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Chung Lam with plans filed September 1, 2017 and permitted January 22, 2024. The second largest is a 16,782 square-foot business (B) building submitted by George Xu with plans filed July 16, 2014 and permitted December 30, 2021.

The majority, or 62 percent of the 276,385 square feet of built space are elevator buildings, with walkup buildings next occupying 20 percent of the space.

The borrower

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Chung Lam owned at least two commercial properties with 80 residential units in New York City with 23,095 square feet and a city-determined market value of $3.7 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $50.4 million in debt, with top three lenders as Man Lam, Popular Bank, and CTBC Bank respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 100 percent of the 23,095 square feet of built space are industrial properties, with development properties next occupying 0 percent of the space. They are all located in Queens.

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