Yechiel Newhouse pays $16.5M to Lemle & Wolff for two properties in Harlem

Yechiel Newhouse through the entity Azure 144th, LLC paid $16.5 million to Lemle & Wolff Companies through the entity Azure Holdings II, L.P. for the 83-unit residential walkup building (C7) at 259 West 144th Street and the 25-unit residential elevator building (D5) at 226 West 144th Street in Harlem, Manhattan. The expected use is cash flowing.
The deal closed on September 5, 2024 and was recorded on September 13, 2024. The two properties have 109,530 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The sale price per built square foot is $150 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 signatory for Lemle & Wolff Companies was John J. Frezza and Joseph J. Zitolo. The signatory for Yechiel Newhouse was Yechiel Newhouse. The contract date was April 4, 2024.

Because multiple properties have been transacted, some of the following sections will follow the property with the largest assessed value, which in this case, is the property on 259 West 144th Street.

Prior sales and revenue

Prior to this transaction, PincusCo has records that the buyer Yechiel Newhouse purchased six properties in five transactions for a total of $76.1 million and has no record it sold any properties over the past 24 months.
The seller Lemle & Wolff Companies purchased four properties in one transaction for a total of $10.4 million and sold 15 properties in six transactions for a total of $25 million over the same time period. The former owners according to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development includes Joseph Zitolo, head officer and Andrew Kleiman, agent. The business entities are Lemle & Wolff, Inc and Azure Holding II LP.

The property

The property has a J-51 exemption that started in 2005 and expires in 2039. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $6.6 million. The property has 83 rent regulated units according to city tax records from 2022.

Violations and lawsuits

There were no lawsuits or bankruptcies filed against the properties for the past 24 months. In addition, according to city public data, the properties have received one DOB violation, $655 in ECB penalties, 74 housing violations, $1,155 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 $1 million on this tax lot.

The block

On the tax block of 259 West 144th Street, PincusCo has identified the owners of 13 of the 22 commercial properties representing 246,877 square feet of the 368,364 square feet. The largest owner is Lemle & Wolff, followed by Elysee Investment Company.
On the tax block, there was one new building construction project filed totaling 59,305 square feet. It is a 72-unit, 59,305 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Exact Capital and filed by Michael Callaghan with plans filed August 23, 2017 and permitted June 13, 2022.

The majority, or 85 percent of the 368,364 square feet of built space are walkup buildings, with retail buildings next occupying 6 percent of the space.

The seller

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Lemle & Wolff Companies owned at least 13 commercial properties with 436 residential units in New York City with 420,777 square feet and a city-determined market value of $23 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $65.2 million in debt, with top three lenders as Bank of New York Mellon, Bellwether Enterprise, and NYC Housing Development Corporation respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 61 percent of the 420,777 square feet of built space are walkup properties, with elevator properties next occupying 39 percent of the space. The bulk, or 77 percent of the built space, is in Bronx, with Manhattan next at 23 percent of the space.

The buyer

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Yechiel Newhouse owned at least 39 commercial properties with 1,433 residential units in New York City with 1,459,043 square feet and a city-determined market value of $100.2 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $224.3 million in debt, with top three lenders as New York Community Bank, Santander Bank, and JPMorgan Chase respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 66 percent of the 1,459,043 square feet of built space are elevator properties, with walkup properties next occupying 34 percent of the space. The bulk, or 70 percent of the built space, is in Bronx, with Manhattan next at 30 percent of the space.

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