Iris Holdings Group pays $18.9M to LeFrak for rental in Rego Park, part of larger affordable sale

Iris Holdings Group, an affiliate of of Black Iris Capital, through the entity State Preservation Housing Development Fund Corp paid $18.9 million to LeFrak through the entity Washington Leasing Limited Partnership for the 129-unit residential elevator building (D1) at 63-60 98th Street in Rego Park, Queens. The expected use is cash flowing.
The deal closed on October 31, 2025 and was recorded on November 10, 2025. The property has 125,610 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The sale price per built square foot is $150 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 LeFrak was Arnold S. Lehman . The contract date was April 24, 2025.
According to a document of a City Council resolution approving a partial article XI tax exemption for this and related properties, “[State Preservation is composes of] nine buildings located in the Queens neighborhoods of Rego Park, Forest Hills, Kew Gardens, and Briarwood. In total, the Project contains 753 residential units, one commercial space, and 236 parking spaces with tenant priority parking. Of the 753 residential units, there are 99 studios, 336 one bedrooms (one of which is reserved for the super), 316 two-bedrooms (three of which are reserved for the supers), and two three-bedrooms. Of the 753 units, 82 are currently vacant… The buildings were constructed between 1941 and1962 by Lefrak Corporation, which has owned them since their construction. Iris Holdings Group (“Sponsor”) expects to purchase the buildings from Lefrak in late October 2025. Of the 753 units, 671 are rent-stabilized and 78 are market-rate units… There are currently 672 units that are rent stabilized and 77 market units that will become rent stabilized and restricted after closing.”

Prior sales and revenue

Prior to this transaction, PincusCo has records that the buyer Iris Holdings Group purchased four properties in four transactions for a total of $71.5 million and has no record it sold any properties over the past 24 months.
The seller LeFrak had not purchased any other properties and sold 13 properties in six transactions for a total of $114.4 million over the same time period. The former owners according to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development includes David Bernhardt, head officer and Margaret Broda, officer. The business entities are Estates Ny Real Estate Services Llc and Washington Leasing Lp.

The property

The residential elevator building with 129 residential units in Rego Park has 125,610 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 200 feet and is 180 feet deep with a total lot size of 34,000 square feet. The lot is irregular. The zoning is R7-1 which allows for up to 3.44 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $11 million. The property has 110 rent regulated units according to city tax records from 2023.

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 $10,000 in ECB penalties, 42 housing violations, $10,050 in OATH penalties, and one housing litigation 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 this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of four of the seven commercial properties representing 237,030 square feet of the 255,701 square feet. The largest owner is Lefrak, followed by Pinnacle Group and then Bldg Management.
There are no active new building construction projects on this tax block.

The majority, or 87 percent of the 255,701 square feet of built space are elevator buildings, with retail buildings next occupying 7 percent of the space.

The seller

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Lefrak owned at least 59 commercial properties with 9,662 residential units in New York City with 10,841,828 square feet and a city-determined market value of $1.6 billion. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 89 percent of the 10,841,828 square feet of built space are elevator properties, with office properties next occupying 10 percent of the space. The bulk, or 62 percent of the built space, is in Queens, with Manhattan next at 33 percent of the space.

The buyer

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Iris Holdings Group owned at least 20 commercial properties with 1,048 residential units in New York City with 985,982 square feet and a city-determined market value of $73.7 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $219.2 million in debt, with top three lenders as MF1 Capital, National Equity Fund, and KeyBank respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 53 percent of the 985,982 square feet of built space are elevator properties, with walkup properties next occupying 47 percent of the space. The bulk, or 58 percent of the built space, is in Queens, with Brooklyn next at 42 percent of the space.

Direct link to Acris document. link