Joel Rubin pays $4.4M for dev site in Boerum Hill

Joel Rubin through the entity 3 Ave Holdings LLC paid $4.4 million to James Fong through the entity 46 Third LLC for the three parcel development site in Boerum Hill, Brooklyn, at 518 Atlantic Avenue,  46 3rd Avenue and 48 3rd Avenue. The expected use is ground up development.

On these lots, there is one active new building construction project, B01138620, for a five-unit, 10,173 square-foot R-2 building. The project was submitted by James Fong and filed by James Fong with plans filed November 12, 2024 and it has not been permitted yet.
The deal closed on June 15, 2026 and was recorded on June 24, 2026. The three properties have 4,480 square feet of built space and 5,720 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 10,200 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The sale price per built square foot is $982 and the price per buildable square foot is $431 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 James Fong was James Fong. The signatory for Joel Rubin was Joel Rubin. The contract date was February 25, 2026.

Prior sales, articles and revenue

Prior to this transaction, PincusCo has records that the buyer Joel Rubin purchased two properties in two transactions for a total of $7 million and has no record it sold any properties over the past 24 months.
The seller James Fong had not purchased any other properties and had not sold any properties over the same time period. Out of the three properties, one with a total of 4,480 square feet of built space generated revenue of $87,780 per year.

The property

The zoning is R6A which allows for up to 3 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential with inclusionary housing.

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 $1,000 in ECB penalties and $1,050 in OATH penalties in the last year.

The neighborhood

In Boerum Hill, The bulk, or 32 percent of the 9 million square feet of commercial built space are elevator buildings, with mixed-use buildings next occupying 16 percent of the space. In sales, Boerum Hill has 2 times the average sales volume among other neighborhoods with $729.7 million in sales volume in the last two years and is the 10th highest in Brooklyn. For development, Boerum Hill has 1.7 times the average amount of major developments relative to other neighborhoods and is the 5th highest in Brooklyn. It had 2.7 million square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 30 percent of the neighborhood’s built space. There were 129 pre-foreclosure suit filed among other mixed-use buildings in the past 12 months.

The block

On the tax block of 46 3rd Avenue, PincusCo has identified the owners of eight of the 18 commercial properties representing 40,507 square feet of the 146,461 square feet. The largest owner is Hira Baljeet K. Of Baljeet Hira, followed by Hira Baljeet K. Of Baljeethira and then JOSEPH KHALILI .
On the tax block, there was one new building construction project filed totaling 10,173 square feet. It is a five-unit, 10,173 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by James Fong and filed by James Fong with plans filed November 12, 2024 and it has not been permitted yet.

The majority, or 53 percent of the 146,461 square feet of built space are specialty buildings, with mixed-use buildings next occupying 28 percent of the space.

The seller

The PincusCo database currently indicates that James Fong owned at least four commercial properties with 16 residential units in New York City with 25,093 square feet and a PincusCo-determined asset value of $11 million. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 43 percent of the 25,093 square feet of built space are elevator properties, with mixed-use properties next occupying 39 percent of the space. The bulk, or 56 percent of the built space, is in Brooklyn, with Manhattan next at 43 percent of the space.

The buyer

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Joel Rubin owned at least eight commercial properties with 92 residential units in New York City with 65,194 square feet and a PincusCo-determined asset value of $53 million. The portfolio has $49.8 million in debt, with top three lenders as Spencer Savings Bank , Arbor Realty Trust, and NorthEast Community Bank respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 51 percent of the 65,194 square feet of built space are walkup properties, with elevator properties next occupying 41 percent of the space.

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