Pre-foreclosure roundup: $29.5M in LES; $26M in Gowanus; $25.4M in Bronx

Flagstar Bank alleges $29.5M payment default at Croman rentals in Lower East Side: Flagstar Bank filed a pre-foreclosure action July 24, 2025, alleging a loan with an original principal of $26.5 million and secured by rental buildings at 195 Stanton Street, 159 Stanton Street and 161 Stanton Street in the Lower East Side of Manhattan was in a payment default. Steven Croman’s Croman Real Estate owns the properties. The bank filed the action in New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan.
Court filings represent the position of one party and are not necessarily accurate or complete.
Case 850329/2025 LINK

The bank alleges a payment default. “Borrower failed to comply with the terms of the Loan Documents, including and especially the Note and the Mortgage, by failing to make the required monthly payments due under the Loan Documents for December 2024 and January 2025 and thereafter, and by failing to make the required late fee payments for October 2020 and thereafter…”

Acris links: 195 Stanton Street, 159 Stanton Street, 161 Stanton Street

Maverick files $26M pre-foreclosure 11 days after buying Gowanus note: Maverick Real Estate Partners filed a pre-foreclosure action July 25, 2025, alleging a maturity default for a loan with an original principal of $26 million, which is secured by the ground leased fee interest in 37 9th Street in Gowanus, Brooklyn. The property owner is Aaron Berger.

Case LINK

On July 14, Maverick Real Estate Partners through the entity Gowanus Industrial LLC bought the note with an original principal of $26 million from Webster Bank secured by Aaron Berger’s fee interest in the industrial building (E1) at 37 9th Street in Gowanus, Brooklyn. The building is ground leased to Industrie Capital Partners, which is not involved in this litigation.
The parcel has 12 buildings with frontage of 348 feet and is 362 feet deep with a total lot size of 126,067 square feet. The zoning is M2-1 which allows for up to 2 times floor area ratio (FAR) for manufacturing. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $14.4 million.

According to the complaint, “The Borrowers defaulted under the Loan Documents by failing to pay the entirety of the indebtedness on or before the Extended Maturity Date (the “Maturity Default” and/or the “Event of Default”)… March 1, 2025 (the “Extended Maturity Date”).”

The note sale closed on July 14, 2025 and was recorded on July 24, 2025. The property has 118,367 square feet of built space and 133,631 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 252,134 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data.
The owner bought the property on December 30, 2010, for $6 million.

Direct link to the property’s ACRIS page

Flagstar Bank files $25.4 million pre-foreclosure on Bronx multifamily owned since 1994: Flagstar Bank filed a pre-foreclosure action July 25, 2025, in New York State Supreme Court in the Bronx alleging a loan with an original principal of $25.4 million was in default. The loan is secured by Bronx multifamily properties including 2080 Grand Avenue, 31 North Street, 51 North Street, 325 East 163rd Street, 2333 Andrews Avenue North and 2357 Davidson Avenue. The owners are entities controlled by Gary J. Zuckerman.
Case LINK

Gary J. Zuckerman acquired the rental buildings between 1989 and 1994. According to the complaint, “As a result of the occurrence of certain Events of Default under the Notes and Mortgages, on or about September 5, 2024 and June 4, 2025, Plaintiff delivered to the Mortgagors a notice of the occurrence and continuation of such Events of Default and by such notice declared all outstanding obligations under the Notes and Mortgages immediately due and payable.”

Acris links: Direct link to the property’s 2080 Grand Avenue, 31 North Street, 51 North Street, 325 East 163rd Street, 2333 Andrews Avenue North, 2357 Davidson Avenue