Mendel Kaff pays $169M to FBE Limited for two Bronx rentals

Brooklyn-based operator Mendel Kaff as signatory for two companies paid a total of $169 million to FBE Limited for two Bronx residential buildings, city public records show.

The 355-unit residential elevator building at 2001 Story Avenue in Unionport, Bronx was sold for $105 million and the 200-unit residential elevator building at 883 East 180th Street in West Farms, Bronx was sold for $64 million.

Mendel Kaff signed as the buyer for both buildings, through the entities Story Towers LLC and 2103 Honeywell LLC. Yehoshua Leib Fruchthandler signed for FBE limited through entities including 2001 Story Tower A LLC and 2103 Honeywell LLC.

The deals closed on June 7, 2022 and were recorded on June 21, 2022.

Starwood Mortgage Capital and the Bank of Montreal provided $144.2 million in acquisition funding for the properties. Grace Chiang and Leanne M. Lispi signed for the lenders, respectively.

The acquisition mortgage replaces previous funding from Signature Bank which totaled $101.5 million. Paul Kotronis signed on the mortgage assignment documents for Signature.

The 2001 Story Avenue property has 421,833 square feet of built space and 68,714 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 491,103 square feet according to PincusCo analysis of city data. The sale price per built square foot is $248 and the price per buildable square foot is $213 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 seller bought the property on April 9, 2019, for $87.9 million.

The 883 East 180th Street property has 181,093 square feet of built space and 83,006 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 264,391 square feet according to PincusCo analysis of city data. The sale price per built square foot is $353 and the price per buildable square foot is $242 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 seller bought the property on October 31, 2017, for $44.4 million.

Prior sales and revenue

The former owners of 2001 Story Avenue according to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development includes Ephraim Fruchthandler, head officer and Veli Rusanoki, site manager. The business entity is 2001 Story Llc. The 421,833-square-foot property generated revenue of $8.4 million or $20 per square foot, according to the most recent income and expense figures.

The former owners of 883 East 180th Street according to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development includes Ephraiim Fruchthandler, head officer and Ephraim Fruchthandler, head officer. The business entity is 2103 Honeywell Llc. The 181,093-square-foot property generated revenue of $4.6 million or $26 per square foot, according to the most recent income and expense figures.

The property

The 2001 Story Avenue parcel has frontage of 489 feet and is 266 feet deep with a total lot size of 202,100 square feet. The lot is irregular. The zoning is R6 which allows for up to 2.43 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $21.1 million.

The 883 East 180th Street parcel has frontage of 285 feet and is 269 feet deep with a total lot size of 76,858 square feet. The zoning is R7-1 which allows for up to 3.44 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $16.2 million.The most recent loan totaled $38.5 million and was provided by Signature Bank on May 18, 2020.

Violations and lawsuits

There were no lawsuits or bankruptcies filed against either property since September of 2020.

In addition, according to city public data, the 2001 Story Avenue property has received $1,250 in ECB penalties, 206 housing violations, $3,190 in OATH penalties, and two housing litigations in the last year. The 883 East 180th Street property has received $625 in ECB penalties, 248 housing violations, $800 in OATH penalties, and two housing litigations in the last year.

Development

There are no active new building construction projects or major alteration projects with initial costs more than $5 million on either tax lots.

The neighborhood

In Unionport, the bulk, or 41 percent of the 12.2 million square feet of commercial built space are 1-4 family buildings, with residential elevator buildings next occupying 19 percent of the space. In sales, Unionport has had very little sales volume relative to other neighborhoods with $125.8 million in sales volume in the last two years. For development, Unionport has had very little major development activity relative to other neighborhoods.It had 122,145 square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 1 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.

In West Farms, the majority, or 63 percent of the 7 million square feet of commercial built space are residential elevator buildings, with residential walkup buildings next occupying 15 percent of the space. In sales, West Farms has the 39th highest sale turnover among other neighborhoods in Bronx with $9.4 million in sales volume in the last two years. For development, West Farms has 1.2 times the average amount of major developments relative to other neighborhoods and is the 8th highest in Bronx. It had 1.1 million square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 16 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.

The block

On the 2001 Story Avenue tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of one of the three commercial properties representing 421,833 square feet of the 432,961 square feet. The identified owner is FBE Limited. There are no active new building construction projects on this tax block.

The majority, or 93 percent of the 451,852 square feet of built space are residential elevator buildings, with 1-4 family buildings next occupying 4 percent of the space.

On the 883 East 180th Street tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of four of the 12 commercial properties representing 231,168 square feet of the 240,988 square feet. The largest owner is FBE Limited, followed by Aquinas Housing Corporation and then Prana Investments. There are two active new building construction projects totaling 68,472 square feet. The largest is a 82-unit, 65,940-square-foot R-2 building developed by Michael Pilla with plans filed March 26, 2019 and it has not been permitted yet.The second largest is a two-unit, 2,532-square-foot R-3 building developed by Samuel Shrem with plans filed October 5, 2020 and it has not been permitted yet.

The majority, or 63 percent of the 285,690 square feet of built space are residential elevator buildings, with residential walkup buildings next occupying 21 percent of the space.

Surrounding

Within a 400-foot radius of 2001 Story Avenue, Pincusco identified one commercial real estate item of interests occurred over the past 24 months. It was a loan which Stellar Management borrowed $21.1 million from New York Community Bank secured by the 359,556-square-foot, 331-unit rental (D3) on 2010 Bruckner Boulevard on May 21, 2021.

Within a 400-foot radius of 883 East 180th Street, Pincusco identified three commercial real estate items of interests occurred over the past 24 months. Of those three items, one was in new building development. It was a new building permit application filed on July 9, 2021 for a 42,926-square-foot R-2 building with 69 residential units at 2136 Honeywell Avenue.

Of those three items, two were loans above $5 million totaling $62.8 million. The most recent of the two was Martin Joseph and Hershy Silberstein which borrowed $24 million from Northeast Community Bank secured by the 0-square-foot, three-unit three-family building (C0) on 2136 Honeywell Avenue and five other properties on May 19, 2022.

Direct link to Acris document. link

Direct link to Acris document. link