Maverick files $34.4M pre-foreclosure in Flushing 9 months after origination

Lender Maverick Real Estate Partners filed a $34.4 million pre-foreclosure action in Flushing against Xin Development Group International just nine months after originating the loan for the property 135-35 Northern Boulevard, the former RKO Keith’s Theater. Maverick filed the complaint 714953/2023 yesterday in Queens County Supreme Court.

Maverick is one of the city’s most active note buyers and plaintiffs in foreclosure actions. The firm has filed at least 23 pre-foreclosure actions totaling $237 million in New York City since January 2021, according to PincusCo records of court filings.

In October 2022, Xin Development Group International through the entity Queens Theater Owner LLC as borrower signed a refi loan with lender Maverick Real Estate Partners through the entity RKO Flushing Development LLC valued at $34.4 million for the specialty building (J9) at 135-35 Northern Boulevard in Flushing, Queens.

Court filings represent the position of one party and are not necessarily accurate or complete.

According to the complaint, “Borrower defaulted under the Loan Documents by, among other things, (i) failing to pay real estate taxes due on January 1, 2023 (the “Jan 2023 Tax Default”); (ii) failing to pay real estate taxes due on July 1, 2023 (the “July 2023 Tax Default”); (iii) failing to bond or discharge that certain mechanic’s lien docketed against the Property by Socotec, Inc. on January 17, 2023 (the “Socotec Lien”) within forty-five (45) days of Borrower having received notice (the “Mechanic’s Lien Default”); (iv) failing to pay the monthly debt service payment within five (5) days of when it became due on March 1, 2023 (the “March 2023 Payment Default”); (v) failing to pay the monthly debt service payment within five (5) days of when it became due on April 1, 2023 (the “April 2023 Payment Default”); and (vi) failing to pay the monthly debt service payment within five (5) days of when it became due on May 1, 2023…”

Xin Development affiliates bought the property on July 29, 2016, for $65.8 million. The signatory for Xinyuan Real Estate Co. and Xin Development Group International was Jane Weng, Xin’s CFO. The signatory for Maverick Real Estate Partners was Thomas Hooker. The Real Deal reported in 2017 about a shakeup at Xinyuan at the time.

The block

On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of four of the 22 commercial properties representing 111,789 square feet of the 259,631 square feet. The largest owner is Chien Hua Corp., followed by Kin Chau Cheng and then Sunlight Development Group. On the tax block, there was one new building construction project filed totaling 96,536 square feet. It is a 96,536 square-foot business (B) building submitted by Orrin Feingold with plans filed December 26, 2018 and it has not been permitted yet.

The surrounding

Within a 400-foot radius of 135-35 Northern Boulevard, PincusCo identified four commercial real estate items of interests occurred over the past 24 months. One of those four items was a sale which Kin Chau Cheng bought the 28,728-square-foot, one-unit office building (O9) on 135-25 Northern Boulevard for $8 million from Ken Huang on January 7, 2022. Of those four items, three were loans above $5 million totaling $54.8 million. The most recent of the three was Sunlight Development Group in which borrowed $24.6 million from iCross Capital secured by the 9,257-square-foot, one-unit industrial (E9) on 134-16 Northern Boulevard on July 7, 2023.

Direct link to the property’s ACRIS page and link to DOB NOW portal.