R.A. Cohen & Associates pays $19.1M to Bronstein Properties for 46-unit rental in Brooklyn Heights

R.A. Cohen & Associates through the entity Aviv 136 Associates LLC paid $19.1 million to Bronstein Properties through the entity Hicks 136 LLC for the 46-unit residential elevator building (D9) at 136 Hicks Street in Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn.
The deal closed on November 29, 2023 and was recorded on December 5, 2023. The property has 48,414 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The sale price per built square foot is $394 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, 2019, for $20.4 million. The signatory for Bronstein Properties was Barry Rudofsky. The signatory for R.A. Cohen & Associates was Ralph Della Cava Jr.. The contract date was September 29, 2023.

Prior sales and revenue

Prior to this transaction, PincusCo has records that the buyer R.A. Cohen & Associates purchased two properties in two transactions for a total of $2.8 million and sold three properties in three transactions for a total of $16.5 million over the past 24 months.
The seller Bronstein Properties had not purchased any other properties and sold seven properties in five transactions for a total of $40.7 million over the same time period. The former owners according to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development includes Barry Rudofsky, head officer and Scott Silverman, officer. The business entities are Bronstein Properties,Llc and Hicks 136, Llc.

The property

The residential elevator building with 46 residential units in Brooklyn Heights has 48,414 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 110 feet and is 100 feet deep with a total lot size of 10,999 square feet. The zoning is R6 which allows for up to 2.43 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential. The property is in the Brooklyn Heights Historic District. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $11.1 million. The most recent loan totaled $14.3 million and was provided by Signature Bank on March 9, 2021.

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 four housing violations and $400 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 block

On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of 10 of the 11 commercial properties representing 126,994 square feet of the 126,994 square feet. The largest owner is Willie Williams, followed by Virginia Dichiara and then Robin Wachtel.
There are no active new building construction projects on this tax block.

The majority, or 57 percent of the 126,994 square feet of built space are elevator buildings, with walkup buildings next occupying 43 percent of the space.

The seller

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Bronstein Properties owned at least 90 commercial properties with 4,602 residential units in New York City with 4,205,458 square feet and a city-determined market value of $465.1 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $475.7 million in debt, with top three lenders as New York Community Bank, Capital One, and Signature Bank respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 66 percent of the 4,205,458 square feet of built space are elevator properties, with walkup properties next occupying 33 percent of the space. The bulk, or 47 percent of the built space, is in Queens, with Manhattan next at 29 percent of the space.

The buyer

The PincusCo database currently indicates that R.A. Cohen & Associates owned at least 12 commercial properties with 233 residential units in New York City with 199,262 square feet and a city-determined market value of $67.6 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $44.6 million in debt, with top three lenders as JPMorgan Chase, First National Bank of Long Island, and Dime Community Bank respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 65 percent of the 199,262 square feet of built space are elevator properties, with walkup properties next occupying 29 percent of the space. The bulk, or 73 percent of the built space, is in Manhattan, with Brooklyn next at 27 percent of the space.

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