Isaac Kassirer’s Emerald Equity Group has secured $189 million in Freddie Mac loans for a chunk of his East Harlem apartment portfolio.
Irvine, California-based Sabal Capital Partners funded the package of loans, calling it the deal “the largest portfolio by loan balance” in the history of Freddie Mac’s Small Balance Loan (SBL) Program.
Sabal said the $189 million encompasses 39 small balance debt transactions for a portfolio of both traditional multifamily as well as mixed-use assets. The total number of apartment units included in the group of transactions is 880, all located in East Harlem. All the properties provide low income renters with affordable homes. It is expected that approximately 52 percent of the units within the portfolio will be enhanced with renovations, said Sabal in a statement.
Kassirer purchased the 1,181-unit Dawnay Day portfolio from Fairstead Capital and E+M Associates for $357.7 million in 2016 with a $300 million acquisition loan from Brookfield Asset Management. The addresses include 233 East 111th Street, 1567 Lexington Avenue, 112-116 East 103rd Street, and 291 Pleasant Avenue (pictured top).
“Demand for affordable housing among lower income renters is strong in East Harlem and the refinance of these properties will help ensure some of that demand is met,” said Kassirer, president of Emerald Equity Group. “Having worked with the teams at Sabal Capital Partners and Freddie Mac on this portfolio and prior notable transactions representing a large number of workforce housing properties in the New York region, we can say with confidence their process is the best in the industry.”
Sabal Capital Partners was one of Freddie Mac’s first lender partners in the agency’s Small Balance Loan program. The SBL program offers financing for qualifying multifamily properties with loans ranging in value from $1 million to $7.5 million.
“I couldn’t be prouder of the work our team put into the East Harlem portfolio, which is now the largest transaction, by loan balance, in the history of our Small Balance Loan Program,” said Steve Johnson, vice president of Freddie Mac Multifamily’s Small Balance Loan business. “It’s incredibly rewarding to work with a highly experienced partner like Sabal when it comes to large and complex executions like this. We’ve developed an outstanding team and together we’ve successfully met the affordable financing needs of borrowers nationwide.”
Meridian Capital Group managing director Marvin Jeremias arranged the financing on behalf of Emerald Equity Group and Jack Miller, founder and principal of Platinum Capital Group, assisted in securing the debt financing for the portfolio transaction.
