Shiya Labin pays $24M to New Start Development for residential elevator in Crown Heights

Shiya Labin through the entity 792 Sterling Holdings LLC paid $24 million to New Start Development through the entity Sterling Place Condo LLC for 82-unit residential elevator building (D1) at 796 Sterling Place in Crown Heights, Brooklyn.
The deal closed on August 9, 2022 and was recorded on August 26, 2022. The property has 61,565 square feet of built space and 20,164 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 81,747 square feet according to PincusCo analysis of city data. The sale price per built square foot is $389 and the price per buildable square foot is $293 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 March 15, 2007, for $4.7 million. The signatory for New Start Development was Alfred Thompson. The signatory for Shiya Labin was Shiya Labin. New Start Development started in the 1990s.

Prior sales and revenue

Prior to this transaction, PincusCo has no record that the buyer Shiya Labin had purchased any other properties and has no record it sold any properties over the past 24 months.
The seller New Start Development had not purchased any other properties and sold one property in one transaction for a total of $10.2 million over the same time period. The former owners according to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development includes Alfred Thompson, head officer and Laquasia Thomas, officer. The business entity is Sterling Place Condo, Llc. The 61,565-square-foot property generated revenue of $1.6 million or $26 per square foot, according to the most recent income and expense figures.

The property

The 796 Sterling Place parcel has frontage of 150 feet and is 155 feet deep with a total lot size of 27,249 square feet. The lot is irregular. The zoning is R6A which allows for up to 3 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential with inclusionary housing. The property has a 421A exemption that started in 2011.0 and expires in 2036.0. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $8.3 million.

Violations and lawsuits

There were no lawsuits or bankruptcies filed against the property since September of 2020. In addition, according to city public data, the property has received three DOB violations, 40 housing violations, $50 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 this tax lot.

The block

On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of 14 of the 34 commercial properties representing 148,453 square feet of the 225,433 square feet. The largest owner is New Start Development, followed by Jacob Fulop and then Albert Meissner.
There are no active new building construction projects on this tax block.

The majority, or 43 percent of the 225,433 square feet of built space are walkup buildings, with elevator buildings next occupying 27 percent of the space.

The seller

The PincusCo database currently indicates that New Start Development owned at least eight commercial properties in New York City with 181,098 square feet and a city-determined market value of $18.4 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 58 percent of the 181,098 square feet of built space are elevator properties, with walkup properties next occupying 42 percent of the space. They are all located in Brooklyn.

The buyer

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Shiya Labin owned at least two commercial properties in New York City with 147,520 square feet and a city-determined market value of $14.6 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $21 million in debt, borrowed from ConnectOne Bank. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 100 percent of the 147,520 square feet of built space are office properties. They are all located in Brooklyn.

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