Wen Du signs $36M refi for 128-unit rental in Kips Bay

Wen Du through the entity MB Grayson LLC as borrower signed a refi loan with lender Industrial and Commercial Bank of China valued at $36 million for the 128-unit residential elevator building (D6) at 247 East 28th Street in Kips Bay, Manhattan.
The deal closed on December 28, 2023 and was recorded on January 12, 2024. The prior lender was Industrial and Commercial Bank of China which held debt that had an original loan amount of $48 million.
The property has 108,614 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The loan price per built square foot is $331 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 February 12, 2014, for $99.8 million. The signatory for Wen Du was Wen Du. The signatory for Industrial and Commercial Bank of China was Amy Tsang-Tong and Teddy Long. The owner is affiliated with May Bao Ltd.

Prior sales and revenue

The owners according to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development includes Ryan Zou, head officer and Jeffrey Tao, agent. The business entities are Starpointe Management, LLC and Mb Grayson LLC.

The property

The residential elevator building with 128 residential units in Kips Bay has 108,614 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 125 feet and is 98 feet deep with a total lot size of 13,914 square feet. The lot is irregular. The zoning is C1-8A which allows for up to 2 times floor area ratio (FAR) for commercial and up to 7.52 times FAR for residential with inclusionary housing. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $38.4 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 $350 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 eight of the 22 commercial properties representing 104,249 square feet of the 345,338 square feet. The largest owner is Witnick Real Estate Partners, followed by Vintage Group and then Martin Baumrind.
There are no active new building construction projects on this tax block.

The majority, or 53 percent of the 345,338 square feet of built space are elevator buildings, with walkup buildings next occupying 31 percent of the space.

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