Loketch Group signs $23.8M construction loan with iCross for 32 units in Crown Heights

Loketch Group through the entity Prospect Grand Holdings LLC as borrower signed a new construction loan with lender iCross Capital through the entity Elite United LLC valued at $23.8 million for the development site at 630 Grand Avenue in Crown Heights, Brooklyn.
There is a new building project for a 32-unit, 34,654 square-foot R-2 building submitted by Loketch Group and filed by Moishe Loketch with plans filed May 1, 2023 and it has not been permitted yet.
The deal closed on September 1, 2023 and was recorded on September 14, 2023. The prior lender was Charles D. Miele which held debt that had an original loan amount of $950,000. The three properties have 5,690 square feet of built space and 33,386 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 39,062 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The loan price per built square foot is $4,173 and the price per buildable square foot is $608 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 Loketch Group was Pinchos C. Loketch. The signatory for iCross Capital was Daniel Cohen.

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 $330 in OATH penalties in the last year.

The neighborhood

In Crown Heights, The bulk, or 39 percent of the 46.5 million square feet of commercial built space are walkup buildings, with elevator buildings next occupying 36 percent of the space. In sales, Crown Heights has 1.5 times the average sales volume among other neighborhoods with $535.1 million in sales volume in the last two years and is the 13th highest in Brooklyn. For development, Crown Heights has 3.2 times the average amount of major developments relative to other neighborhoods and is the 6th highest in Brooklyn. It had 3.2 million square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 7 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.

The block

On the tax block of 630 Grand Avenue, PincusCo has identified the owners of four of the 10 commercial properties representing 14,750 square feet of the 38,560 square feet. The two identified owners are Loketch Group and Brooklyn Neighborhood Improvement Association.
On the tax block, there were two new building construction projects totaling 39,867 square feet. The largest is a 32-unit, 34,654 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Loketch Group and filed by Moishe Loketch with plans filed May 1, 2023 and it has not been permitted yet. The second largest is a five-unit, 5,213 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Matt Schneider with plans filed December 11, 2015 and it has not been permitted yet.

The majority, or 38 percent of the 38,560 square feet of built space are retail buildings, with walkup buildings next occupying 31 percent of the space.

The borrower

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Loketch Group owned at least 18 commercial properties with 187 residential units in New York City with 300,803 square feet and a city-determined market value of $52.9 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $133.3 million in debt, with top three lenders as Societe Generale, Maxim Capital Group, and BridgeCity Capital respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 68 percent of the 300,803 square feet of built space are elevator properties, with office properties next occupying 17 percent of the space. They are all located in Brooklyn.

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