Property records reveal family ties in bankruptcy sale of more than 5,000 NYC apartments

The pending, controversial bankruptcy sale of more than 5,000 rent-stabilized apartments owned by real estate firm Pinnacle Group has its losers and Wieners.

Tenants who have attempted for months to slow the sale of their homes are now questioning the close family ties between Pinnacle CEO Joel Wiener and companies connected to the real estate firm Summit Properties USA, which placed a $451 million bid for the Pinnacle buildings last week.

A Gothamist review of property records for 82 apartment buildings listed on the Summit website shows dozens of the deeds and mortgage agreements for the properties were signed by Joel Wiener’s brother, Jonathan Wiener.

But bankruptcy and real estate experts say the links probably won’t have any bearing on the sale, as long as the lender and judge agree to it.

Pinnacle defaulted on its loans and declared bankruptcy last May, prompting a citywide network of tenants to try to find a purchaser who they say would address maintenance problems in their units. Pinnacle has received thousands of housing code violations for mold, vermin infestations, broken floors, collapsing ceilings and a number of other hazards.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani attempted and failed to intervene on the tenants’ behalf before a bankruptcy sale on Thursday, arguing in court that Summit would not have the revenue to address the violations and properly maintain the buildings.

Gothamist found at least 53 of Summit’s current buildings have recent deeds or mortgage agreements signed by Jonathan Wiener. Another 26 had deeds or mortgage agreements signed by other executives at Wiener’s company, Chestnut Holdings. Documents for the remaining buildings were signed by representatives of a third company, Denali Management, which manages Summit and Chestnut buildings.

The properties include a 48-unit complex on West 88th Street in Manhattan, a 52-unit building on University Avenue in the Bronx and a 46-unit structure on Hooper Street in Brooklyn. The property records reflect the often elaborate layers of limited liability companies tied to larger real estate firms that dominate New York City real estate and make identifying true building owners difficult.

Vivian Kuo, a tenant leader at a Pinnacle building in Harlem and member of the citywide Union of Pinnacle Tenants, said residents want the court to verify that there are no direct operational ties between Summit and Pinnacle.

“We would like the court to make clear that this is an arm’s length transaction and how they came to that conclusion,” Kuo said.

At least one resident of a Pinnacle building in Brooklyn, Joseph Lorwin, submitted a letter to the court criticizing what he termed a “nepotistic sale.”

City Hall spokesperson Casey Berkovitz declined on Monday to comment on the extent of the ties between the two companies and whether the administration will raise the issue with the federal judge overseeing the bankruptcy sale. Berkovitz pointed to a previous statement from Deputy Mayor Leila Bozorg who said the city was still “assessing” its options about whether to object to the sale.

The link between Summit and Jonathan Wiener was first reported by real estate news site BisNow. Representatives for Summit, Chestnut and Denali confirmed the links between their companies, but they each say Chestnut, Denali and Jonathan Wiener are not involved in the bid for Pinnacle’s buildings.

Summit spokesperson Jordan Barowitz said Jonathan Wiener is the “operator or partner” of some current Summit buildings but “is not involved in this transaction and will not be managing this portfolio” of Pinnacle buildings.

In a written statement, Summit Chairman Zohar Levy said he and his company are “deeply committed to New York and understand how critical the preservation of affordable housing is to the success of our city.”

The company told Gothamist that the bankruptcy process reduced debt on the buildings by $275 million, freeing up more money to invest in repairs and maintenance across over 5,000 apartments included in the bankruptcy sale.

In an unsigned email, a representative for Chestnut Holdings said the company does not have any business connection to Pinnacle, despite the brothers owning the two companies respectively, and is not involved in Summit’s bid for the Pinnacle buildings. In a separate unsigned email, a Denali representative said the company manages some Summit properties but is not involved with the bid for the Pinnacle portfolio.

Bankruptcy and real estate experts say any family connections between the companies will likely have no impact on the transaction, as long as the federal judge overseeing the sale and Pinnacle’s creditor, Flagstar Bank, agree to the deal.

“If the court’s OK with it, as it was here, that transaction is proper,” said attorney Leo Jacobs, who specializes in bankruptcy law.

Spokespeople for Flagstar did not respond to requests for comment but documents submitted in court late last year show the Summit bid was dependent on Flagstar’s approval.

Seth Glasser, a senior vice president focused on apartment sales at the investment firm Marcus & Millichap, said the bidder and sale plan have likely undergone rigorous vetting.

“There’s a lot of lawyers and I would have a hard time believing a $450 million, very public transaction is not being done legally,” Glasser said,

If anything, he said, the family ties show the small universe of companies financially equipped and willing to purchase rent-stabilized buildings where costs are rising and rents are capped.

“There’s a reason why there are so few substantial players in the market interested in buying these,” Glasser said.

A confirmation hearing for the sale is scheduled for Thursday before Judge David Jones.

The Union of Pinnacle Tenants had attempted to steer the buildings to another purchaser who it says would be a more responsible landlord.

Mamdani’s attempt to intervene would have bought the group another month to try to line up a buyer and financing, but Jones rejected the request, marking an early setback for the new mayor.