Yitzchok Schwartz pays $45M to Continuum Company for dev site in Crown Heights

Yitzchok Schwartz through the entity Franklin Gardens II LLC paid $45 million to Ian Bruce Eichner’s Continuum Company through the entity Franklin Ave Property Owner LLC for the development building (V1) at 962 Franklin Avenue in Crown Heights, Brooklyn and industrial building (E9) at 972 Franklin Avenue in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. The expected use is ground up development.

On these lots, there is one active new building construction project, B00653731, for a 168-unit, 235,482 square-foot R-2 building. The project was submitted by Continuum Company and filed by Ian Bruce Eichner with plans filed January 5, 2022 and permitted May 9, 2022.
The deal closed on September 16, 2025 and was recorded on September 26, 2025. The two properties have 13,813 square feet of built space and 299,883 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 300,468 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The sale price per buildable square foot is $149 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 Continuum Company was Ian Bruce Eichner . The signatory for Yitzchok Schwartz was Yitzchok Schwartz. The contract date was September 16, 2025.

Prior sales and revenue

Prior to this transaction, PincusCo has records that the buyer Yitzchok Schwartz purchased six properties in four transactions for a total of $75.4 million and has no record it sold any properties over the past 24 months.
The seller Continuum Company purchased five properties in one transaction for a total of $66.2 million and had not sold any properties over the same time period. Out of the two properties, one with a total of 13,813 square feet of built space generated revenue of $17,669 per year.

The property

The industrial building in Crown Heights has 13,813 square feet of built space and 299,883 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 300,468 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 235 feet and is 247 feet deep with a total lot size of 58,431 square feet. The lot is irregular. The zoning is R7D which allows for up to 4.2 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential with inclusionary housing. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $1.8 million. Fortress Investment Group on December 12, 2019 bought a loan with an original principal of from signed by Ian Bruce Eichner, secured by 972 Franklin Avenue, when owned by Continuum Company.

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 not received any significant violations in the last year.

The neighborhood

In Crown Heights, The bulk, or 39 percent of the 46.5 million square feet of commercial built space are walkup buildings, with elevator buildings next occupying 36 percent of the space. In sales, Crown Heights has 2.3 times the average sales volume among other neighborhoods with $672.1 million in sales volume in the last two years and is the 7th highest in Brooklyn. For development, Crown Heights has near average amount of major developments among other neighborhoods and is the 12th highest in Brooklyn. It had 1.3 million square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 3 percent of the neighborhood’s built space. There were three pre-foreclosure suit filed among other industrial buildings in the past 12 months.

The block

On the tax block of 972 Franklin Avenue, PincusCo has identified the owners of 12 of the 13 commercial properties representing 504,701 square feet of the 504,701 square feet. The largest owner is United Management, followed by Yitzchok Schwartz and then GRJ Real Estate.
On the tax block, there were three new building construction projects totaling 471,124 square feet. The largest is a 168-unit, 235,482 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Continuum Companies and filed by Ian Bruce Eichner with plans filed January 5, 2022 and permitted May 9, 2022. The second largest is a 293-unit, 198,310 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Abraham Zev Golombeck and filed by Abraham Zev Golombeck with plans filed June 14, 2022 and permitted August 9, 2024.

The majority, or 65 percent of the 504,701 square feet of built space are elevator buildings, with industrial buildings next occupying 20 percent of the space.

The seller

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Continuum Company owned at least six commercial properties with 32 residential units in New York City with 53,528 square feet and a city-determined market value of $20.4 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $180 million in debt, borrowed from Kriss Capital. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 40 percent of the 53,528 square feet of built space are walkup properties, with M1 properties next occupying 34 percent of the space. The bulk, or 88 percent of the built space, is in Manhattan, with Brooklyn next at 12 percent of the space.

The buyer

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Yitzchok Schwartz owned at least 15 commercial properties with 416 residential units in New York City with 461,695 square feet and a city-determined market value of $69 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $249.3 million in debt, with top three lenders as G4 Capital Partners, Greystone & Co., and Kearny Bank respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 76 percent of the 461,695 square feet of built space are elevator properties, with industrial properties next occupying 19 percent of the space. The bulk, or 87 percent of the built space, is in Brooklyn, with Queens next at 13 percent of the space.

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