Flagstar files $48.95M pre-foreclosure on 4-building Manhattan, Queens portfolio

Flagstar Bank filed a $48.95 million pre-foreclosure action alleging payment defaults on a four-building portfolio composed of 65 Seaman Avenue, 144 Sherman Avenue, and 40 Arden Street in Manhattan and 119-20 Union Turnpike in Queens.

Case LINK

Court filings represent the position of one party and are not necessarily accurate or complete. The complaint identified Alexander Hajibay and Michael Aryeh as guarantors.
Alexander Hajibay through the entity Leagem Partners LLC as borrower signed a loan agreement with lender New York Community Bank valued at $48.95 million for the parcels, including the tax class multifamily, over six families without stores (C1) and containing 214 residential units at 65 Seaman Avenue, 119-20 Union Turnpike, 144 Sherman Avenue, 40 Arden Street in Manhattan and Queens. The deal closed on August 3, 2020 and was recorded on August 11, 2020. The property has 192,515 square feet of built space and available development rights. The average loan per unit is $228,762.
The financing includes a $9.5 million gap loan.

According to the complaint, “Borrower failed to comply with the terms and provisions of the Loan Documents, specifically including the Note and Mortgage, by failing to pay in full the required monthly installment payments due under the Note for April 1, 2024 and thereafter…”
Henry Yabroudy signed the complaint on behalf of the bank.

The property

The walkup building with 46 residential units in Inwood has 37,460 square feet of built space and 2,500 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 40,000 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 100 feet and is 100 feet deep with a total lot size of 10,000 square feet. 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 $2.6 million. The most recent loan totaled $49 million and was provided by New York Community Bank on August 3, 2020.

Prior sales and revenue

This property was sold for $13 million on November 9, 2017.

The 37,460-square-foot property generated revenue of $731,526 or $20 per square foot, according to the most recent income and expense figures.

Development

Over the past five years, there has been no NYC Department of Buildings new building, demolition, or alteration permit application valued at more than $20,000 filed for this parcel.

Violations and lawsuits

According to city public data, the property has received 59 housing violations, $2,830 in OATH penalties, and two housing litigations in the last year.

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

The neighborhood

In Inwood, The bulk, or 43 percent of the 15 million square feet of commercial built space are walkup buildings, with elevator buildings next occupying 34 percent of the space. In sales, Inwood has near average sales volume among other neighborhoods with $108.2 million in sales volume in the last two years and is the 35th highest in Manhattan. For development, Inwood has near average amount of major developments among other neighborhoods and is the 22nd highest in Manhattan. It had 1.5 million square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 10 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.

The block

On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of nine of the 11 commercial properties representing 330,494 square feet of the 369,586 square feet. The largest owner is Alexander Hajibay, followed by Gilman Management and then Lemle & Wolff. There are no active new building construction projects on this tax block.

The owner

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Alexander Hajibay owned at least four commercial properties with 214 residential units in New York City with 189,815 square feet and a city-determined market value of $13.1 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $49 million in debt, borrowed from New York Community Bank. Within the portfolio, all identified are walkup properties. The bulk, or 71 percent of the built space, is in Manhattan, with Queens next at 29 percent of the space.

The owners according to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development includes Brian Newman, head officer and Alex Hajibay, officer. The business entity is Leagem Partners LLC.

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