Joel Schwartz pays $8.4M for 25-unit dev site in Williamsburg

Joel Schwartz through the entity 680 Lorimer Usa LLC paid $8.4 million to Jonathan Babakhanov through the entity 680 Lorimer Street LLC for the development parcels (V1) at 680 Lorimer Street and 676 Lorimer Street in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The expected use is ground up development.

On these lots, there is one active new building construction project, 321588091, for a 25-unit, 25,743 square-foot residential (R-2) building. The project was submitted by Cheskie Weiss of CW Realty Group with plans filed January 17, 2020 and permitted April 18, 2024.
The deal closed on February 20, 2026 and was recorded on March 9, 2026. The two properties have 4,820 square feet of built space and 10,828 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 10,828 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The sale price per built square foot is $1,735 and the price per buildable square foot is $772 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 Jonathan Babakhanov was Jonathan Babakhanov. The signatory for Joel Schwartz was Joel Schwartz. The contract date was February 20, 2026.

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 680 Lorimer Street.

Prior sales, articles and revenue

Prior to this transaction, PincusCo has records that the buyer Joel Schwartz purchased 10 properties in eight transactions for a total of $42 million and sold five properties in five transactions for a total of $17 million over the past 24 months.
The seller Jonathan Babakhanov had not purchased any other properties and had not sold any properties over the same time period.

The property

The development building in Williamsburg has 4,820 square feet of built space and 10,828 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 10,828 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 25 feet and is 100 feet deep with a total lot size of 2,500 square feet. The zoning is M1-2/R6 which allows for up to 2 times floor area ratio (FAR) for manufacturing and up to 2.43 times FAR for residential. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $640,000.

Violations and lawsuits

The properties were involved in two lawsuits and zero bankruptcies over the past two years. The highest value suit was a $7.5 million money judgment concerning a contract filed on June 16, 2025, by CW Realty Group, Cheskie Weisz, and Perl Weisz against Jonathan Babakhanov and Maverick Real Estate Partners. In addition, according to city public data, the properties have received $28,500 in ECB penalties and $30,400 in OATH penalties in the last year.

The neighborhood

In Williamsburg, The bulk, or 39 percent of the 50.4 million square feet of commercial built space are elevator buildings, with walkup buildings next occupying 25 percent of the space. In sales, Williamsburg has the 6th highest sale turnover among other neighborhoods in the city with $2 billion in sales volume in the last two years. For development, Williamsburg is the 2nd most active neighborhood among other neighborhoods. It had 41.9 million square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 83 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.

The block

On the tax block of 680 Lorimer Street, PincusCo has identified the owners of four of the seven commercial properties representing 16,489 square feet of the 23,629 square feet. The largest owner is Joel Fried, followed by Alexander Beer and then Carmine Infante.
On the tax block, there was one new building construction project filed totaling 25,743 square feet. It is a 25-unit, 25,743 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Cheskie Weiss with plans filed January 17, 2020 and permitted April 18, 2024.

The majority, or 59 percent of the 23,629 square feet of built space are walkup buildings, with mixed-use buildings next occupying 21 percent of the space.

The seller

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Jonathan Babakhanov owned at least two commercial properties in New York City with 4,820 square feet and a city-determined market value of $2.2 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $5 million in debt, borrowed from Hanover Community Bank and Maverick Real Estate Partners. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 52 percent of the 4,820 square feet of built space are office properties, with V1 properties next occupying 48 percent of the space. They are all located in Brooklyn.

The buyer

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Joel Schwartz owned at least 106 commercial properties with 1,685 residential units in New York City with 1,121,781 square feet and a city-determined market value of $188.9 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $1.7 billion in debt, with top three lenders as BridgeCity Capital, Citibank, and Popular Bank respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 54 percent of the 1,121,781 square feet of built space are elevator properties, with walkup properties next occupying 15 percent of the space. They are all located in Brooklyn.

Direct link to Acris document. link