Griffon Ventures pays $3M to HK Organization for three properties in Morrisania

Griffon Ventures through the entity 988-992 GV LLC paid $3 million to HK Organization through the entity Boston Properties I, L.P. for the 15-unit residential walkup building (C1) at 988 Boston Road in Morrisania, Bronx, 16-unit residential walkup building (C1) at 992 Boston Road in Morrisania, Bronx, and development building (V3) at 585 East 164th Street in Morrisania, Bronx.
The deal closed on September 14, 2023 and was recorded on September 22, 2023. The three properties have 27,349 square feet of built space and 9,187 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 27,371 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The sale price per built square foot is $109 and the price per buildable square foot is $109 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 HK Organization was Harry Kotowitz. The signatory for Griffon Ventures was Yitzchok Weinberg. The contract date was July 12, 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 992 Boston Road.

Prior sales and revenue

Prior to this transaction, PincusCo has records that the buyer Griffon Ventures purchased three properties in three transactions for a total of $10.6 million and has no record it sold any properties over the past 24 months.
The seller HK Organization had not purchased any other properties and sold two properties in one transactions for a total of $12.2 million over the same time period. The former owners according to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development includes Perry Finkelman, head officer and Mark Engel, officer. The business entities are Langsam Property Services Corp and Boston Properties I LP. Out of the three properties, two with a total of 27,349 square feet of built space generated revenue of $315,997 per year.

The property

The residential walkup building with 16 residential units in Morrisania has 27,349 square feet of built space and 9,187 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 27,371 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 39 feet and is 94 feet deep with a total lot size of 3,726 square feet. The zoning is R6 which allows for up to 2.43 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential. The property has a J-51 exemption that started in 1997 and expires in 2031. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $473,000.

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 received 32 housing violations and $1,550 in OATH penalties 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 block

On the tax block of 992 Boston Road, PincusCo has identified the owners of seven of the 13 commercial properties representing 158,487 square feet of the 180,243 square feet. The largest owner is Workforce Housing Group, followed by Settlement Housing Fund and then Sandra Erickson Real Estate.
On the tax block, there was one new building construction project filed totaling 2,755 square feet. It is a two-unit, 2,755 square-foot residential (R-3) building submitted by Bruhim Itamar with plans filed October 29, 2019 and it has not been permitted yet.

The majority, or 88 percent of the 180,243 square feet of built space are walkup buildings, with elevator buildings next occupying 12 percent of the space.

The seller

The PincusCo database currently indicates that HK Organization owned at least seven commercial properties with 111 residential units in New York City with 334,202 square feet and a city-determined market value of $44.9 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 61 percent of the 334,202 square feet of built space are industrial properties, with elevator properties next occupying 33 percent of the space. The bulk, or 93 percent of the built space, is in Brooklyn, with Bronx next at 7 percent of the space.

The buyer

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Griffon Ventures owned at least three commercial properties with 103 residential units in New York City with 84,905 square feet and a city-determined market value of $4.7 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) Within the portfolio, all identified are walkup properties. The bulk, or 68 percent of the built space, is in Bronx, with Manhattan next at 32 percent of the space.

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