Mukhtar Chaudhry pays $3.2M for retail in Harlem

Mukhtar Chaudhry through the entity 535 Lenox Ave Corp. paid $3.2 million to the Catanzaro family through the entity 535 Lenox Realty Corp. for the retail building (K4) at 535 Lenox Avenue in Harlem, Manhattan. The expected use is cash flowing.
The deal closed on September 25, 2025 and was recorded on October 6, 2025. The property has 1,713 square feet of built space and 4,826 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 6,536 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The sale price per built square foot is $1,897 and the price per buildable square foot is $497 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 the seller was Laura Catanzaro. The signatory for Mukhtar Chaudhry was Mukhtar Chaudhry. The contract date was February 10, 2025. Mary Catanzaro, the long-time owner, died in 2022.

Prior sales and revenue

Prior to this transaction, PincusCo has no record that the buyer Mukhtar Chaudhry had purchased any other properties and has no record it sold any properties over the past 24 months.
The seller Laura Catanzaro had not purchased any other properties and had not sold any properties over the same time period. The former owners according to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development includes Mark Catanzaro, head officer and Laura Catanzaro, officer. The business entity is 535 Lenox Realty Corp.

The property

The retail building in Harlem has 1,713 square feet of built space and 4,826 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 6,536 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 25 feet and is 75 feet deep with a total lot size of 1,900 square feet. The zoning is R7-2 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 $259,000.

Violations and lawsuits

There were no lawsuits or bankruptcies filed against the property for the past 24 months. In addition, according to city public data, the property has received $50 in OATH penalties in the last year.

Development

There are no active new building construction projects or major alteration projects with initial costs more than $1 million on this tax lot.

The neighborhood

In Harlem, The bulk, or 43 percent of the 81.1 million square feet of commercial built space are elevator buildings, with walkup buildings next occupying 30 percent of the space. In sales, Harlem has 2.5 times the average sales volume among other neighborhoods with $727.7 million in sales volume in the last two years and is the 15th highest in Manhattan. For development, Harlem has 2.7 times the average amount of major developments relative to other neighborhoods and is the 10th highest in Manhattan. It had 3.9 million square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 5 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.

The block

On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of 16 of the 29 commercial properties representing 298,092 square feet of the 356,131 square feet. The largest owner is South Bronx Overall Economic Development Corporation, followed by Tahl Propp Equities and then Michael Daniel.
On the tax block, there was one new building construction project filed totaling 8,591 square feet. It is a 11-unit, 8,591 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Rona Reodica with plans filed May 8, 2020 and it has not been permitted yet.

The majority, or 89 percent of the 356,131 square feet of built space are walkup buildings, with mixed-use buildings next occupying 9 percent of the space.

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