Joel, Leah Waldman obtain $27M refi with Citibank for 81-unit rental in Mt Hope

Joel Waldman and Leah Waldman through the entity 53 E 177 Holdings LLC as borrower obatained a refi loan with lender Citibank through the entity Citi Real Estate Funding Inc. valued at $27 million for the 81-unit residential elevator building (D7) at 53 East 177th Street in Mt Hope, Bronx.
The deal closed on January 10, 2025 and was recorded on January 16, 2025. The prior lender was Castle Lanterra which held debt that had an original loan amount of $24 million.The property has 50,291 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The loan price per built square foot is $536 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 May 9, 2022, for $4.1 million. The signatory for Joel Waldman and Leah Waldman was Leah Waldman. The signatory for Citibank was Jonathan Misher.

The property

The residential elevator building with 81 residential units in Mt Hope has 50,291 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 75 feet and is 100 feet deep with a total lot size of 7,500 square feet. The zoning is R8 which allows for up to 6.02 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $170,000. The most recent loan totaled $24 million and was provided by Castle Lanterra on March 25, 2024.

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 four housing violations, $4,660 in OATH penalties, and one housing litigation in the last year.

Development

On the lot, there is one active new building construction project, X00718144, for a 81-unit, 50,520 square-foot R-2 building. The project was submitted by Mike Schwartz and filed by Mike Schwartz with plans filed April 14, 2022 and permitted May 31, 2022.

The block

On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of four of the 11 commercial properties representing 117,850 square feet of the 262,581 square feet. The largest owner is Morris Weinberg, followed by Fordham Bedford Housing Corporation and then Skyward Developers.
On the tax block, there was one new building construction project filed totaling 50,520 square feet. It is a 81-unit, 50,520 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Mike Schwartz and filed by Mike Schwartz with plans filed April 14, 2022 and permitted May 31, 2022.

The majority, or 61 percent of the 262,581 square feet of built space are elevator buildings, with walkup buildings next occupying 33 percent of the space.

The borrower

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Joel Waldman owned at least 15 commercial properties with 195 residential units in New York City with 94,981 square feet and a city-determined market value of $12.3 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $46.2 million in debt, with top three lenders as Vernon Capital Funding, Tideway Capital Group, and NorthEast Community Bank respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 57 percent of the 94,981 square feet of built space are walkup properties, with development properties next occupying 27 percent of the space. The bulk, or 63 percent of the built space, is in Brooklyn, with Bronx next at 37 percent of the space.
The PincusCo database currently indicates that Leah Waldman owned at least 11 commercial properties with 181 residential units in New York City with 103,794 square feet and a city-determined market value of $13 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $26.6 million in debt, with top three lenders as Hanover Community Bank, Grasshopper Bank, and Signature Bank respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 31 percent of the 103,794 square feet of built space are retail properties, with walkup properties next occupying 25 percent of the space. The bulk, or 69 percent of the built space, is in Brooklyn, with Bronx next at 31 percent of the space.

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