Prestige Properties signs $44.5M refi with Principal for mixed-use in Jamaica Estates

Sam Shalem’s Prestige Properties & Development through the entity Utopia Center Development, LLC as borrower signed a refi loan with lender Principal Real Estate Investors through the entity Principal Life Insurance Company valued at $44.5 million for the mixed-use building (K4) at 176-60 Union Turnpike in Jamaica Estates, Queens.
The deal closed on May 6, 2025 and was recorded on May 19, 2025. The prior lender was MetLife which held debt that had an original loan amount of $50 million.The property has 178,682 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The loan price per built square foot is $249 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 owner bought the property on May 1, 2015, for $75 million. The signatory for Prestige Properties & Development was Naor Shalem . The signatory for Principal Real Estate Investors was Kelly McVicker and Diane L. Calvert.

Prior sales and revenue

The 178,682-square-foot property generated revenue of $7.8 million or $44 per square foot, according to the most recent income and expense figures.

The property

The mixed-use building in Jamaica Estates has 178,682 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 445 feet and is 126 feet deep with a total lot size of 56,695 square feet. The lot is irregular. The zoning is R2A which allows for up to 0.5 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $38.2 million.

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 $1,100 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 Jamaica Estates, The majority, or 58 percent of the 2.7 million square feet of commercial built space are elevator buildings, with specialty buildings next occupying 14 percent of the space. In sales, Jamaica Estates has the 27th highest sale turnover among other neighborhoods in Queens with $48.8 million in sales volume in the last two years. For development, Jamaica Estates has had very little major development activity relative to other neighborhoods.It had 48,945 square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 2 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.

The block

There are no active new building construction projects on this tax block.

The majority, or 94 percent of the 189,582 square feet of built space are mixed-use buildings, with retail buildings next occupying 4 percent of the space.

The borrower

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Prestige Properties & Development owned at least seven commercial properties in New York City with 685,184 square feet and a city-determined market value of $194.5 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $311 million in debt, borrowed from JPMorgan Chase and BankUnited. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 79 percent of the 685,184 square feet of built space are mixed-use properties, with retail properties next occupying 21 percent of the space. They are all located in Bronx.

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