CREIF II LP - Bridge Lending Investment with an Alternative

Co-founded by John Salib at the height of the 2008/2009 financial crisis to capitalize on the collapse, Castellan Real Estate Partners is now a full-service real estate investment firm with real estate transactions totaling over $1.3 billion in market value. Castellan Real Estate Partners established the Castellan Real Estate Income Fund II LP to originate secured real estate bridge loans.

Catering to an underserved $30 million and below real estate bridge loan market, the fund originates loans with a floating interest rate typically ranging from 7 to 9 percent, adjusted monthly. Terms range from 12 to 24 months. Investor earnings are projected at a net yield of over 9 percent. Securing the loan is a first mortgage on US real estate assets. In the event of a default, investors have the opportunity to own an attractive real property acquired below or at market value.

Castellan can take over a project in the rare event it's required, as it has a successful track record in real estate investment, construction and development, management, and divestment. One of the many examples of the firm's expertise is a pair of East Flatbush properties in New York City that Castellan bought for $8.6 million. Only five years later, in 2018, the firm sold the rent-stabilized properties for $19.3 million.

NYC's Weatherization Assistance Program

Real estate investment firm Castellan Real Estate Partners leveraged opportunities presented by the 2009 financial crisis to built up an extensive real estate portfolio. Today, the company collaborates with New York City agencies to manage and implement building improvements that reduce net energy consumption and utility costs. Recently, Castellan Real Estate Partners received a $1.7 million grant from the New York State Weatherization Assistance Program to subsidize their efforts.

The New York State Weatherization Assistance Program simultaneously tackles the common urban issues of excessive energy consumption and unaffordable utility costs. WAP identifies and helps low-income families whose homes may benefit from energy-saving measures, such as heating system replacements, roof insulation, and energy efficient upgrades. 

The Weatherization Assistance Program demonstrates the economic benefits of green initiatives, as the program produces hundreds of jobs in the green energy sector. WAP works in collaboration with nonprofits, affordable housing developers, and property managers. First established in 1977, the program has benefited the occupants of over 700,000 homes, who save an average of 20 percent on their utility bills. Governor Andrew M. Cuomo pledged 59 million dollars to the program in 2017.

Go Green Brooklyn Festival Showcases Local Green Initiatives

Castellan Real Estate Partners has become a major adopter of environmentally conscious practices in New York City. Since 2009, the firm has completed more than $875 million in real estate transactions. Under managing partner John Salib, Castellan Real Estate Partners has worked closely with nonprofit organizations, including the Brooklyn office of the Community Environmental Center (CEC). 

The CEC helps New York residents lessen their individual and collective impact on the environment. For more than 20 years, the CEC has offered its construction-industry partners the kind of technical know-how necessary for making buildings “green.” In the two-year period from 2009 to 2011 alone, the CEC’s work led to the improvement of almost 16,000 individual units.

Among the CEC’s best-known sponsored events is the Go Green Brooklyn Festival. For a decade, the festival has promoted sustainability through a slate of cultural programs for the Williamsburg and Greenpoint areas. 

McCarren Park is the venue for the numerous artistic, musical, and culinary activities at the Go Green Brooklyn Festival. Booths offer information on local green vendors as well as educational and volunteer opportunities.

Defining What Makes a Building “Green”

Castellan Real Estate Partners focuses on serving its tenants, investors, and the public as an environmentally forward-thinking company. A major player in the New York real estate market, with more than $875 million in transactions completed since 2009, Castellan Real Estate Partners has made notable purchases and undertaken “green” upgrades of existing multifamily properties in desirable Manhattan neighborhoods.

Buildings can be “green” because their design minimizes pollution and environmental impact and contributes to human health and well-being. They can also be “green” thanks to the development of features meant to reduce impact on natural resources. Throughout its life cycle, a green building will maintain processes that ensure the use of less energy, the most efficient water usage, the healthiest form of waste disposal, and the optimization of all its resources for the benefit of the people who live there.

The basic idea of constructing or renovating buildings to be green is the fact that the types of structures human beings create have been demonstrated to have often profound effects on the world around them, as well as on the people who inhabit them.

Leading New York Bridge Loan And Investment Firm Turns Striking Profit

Castellan Real Estate Partners, led by managing partner John Salib, is headquartered in New York City. With a large amount of private capital under management, John Salib’s Castellan Real Estate Partners is adept at turning profits on prime real estate properties.

Last year, Castellan sold one of its Washington Heights investments to Brooklyn’s Guardian Realty Management at a significant profit, more than doubling the initial investment. Guardian Realty paid $15.4 million for the three multifamily properties consisting of nearly 70 rental units within 10 blocks of each other. Castellan acquired the three properties in 2013 for a total of just $7.6 million, according to city records. 

The properties, all constructed in the 1920s, include 649 West 184th Street, consisting of 20 units encompassing around 18,000 square feet, 325 Wadsworth Avenue, consisting of 25 units at more than 21,000 square feet, and 85 Fairview Avenue, consisting of 24 units at some 15,000 square feet.

Castellan Real Estate Partners Acquires Sought-After Tribeca Property

Cofounded in New York by Paul and John Salib, Castellan Real Estate Partners provides a host of services spanning the acquisition, development, disposition, and management of distressed and transitional properties. In May 2017, Castellan Real Estate Partners purchased a five-story mixed-use property situated in the center of Tribeca at 90 Chambers Street for $10.7 million.

In addition to 2,175 square feet of retail space on the ground floor, the property includes five residential units, three of which are lofts, with the second, third, and fourth floors having one each. A pair of residential units spans the fifth floor. Moreover, the building has approximately 5,000 square feet of air rights.

With the property described as presenting excellent condominium conversion potential, the heavily trafficked location is one of high demand and limited supply. Recent improvements include a new roof, as well as a renovated and freshly painted facade. Additionally, each unit comes with a washer and dryer and an open kitchen with stainless steel appliances.

Emerald Equity Acquires Four Buildings in Harlem for $24.8 Million

With real estate veteran John Salib as managing partner, Castellan Real Estate Partners acquires undervalued real estate properties and renovates them to increase their commercial value. In August 2017, Castellan Real Estate Partners sold a four-building portfolio to Emerald Equity Group for $24.8 million. It had acquired the four buildings in 2013 for $13.5 million. 

The four-building group in New York City included three buildings between First and Second Avenues and another located on 1661 Park Avenue along East 117th Street. The first three properties occupy 42,000 square feet combined and feature over 70 rental units and two commercial premises. These were sold for $15.8 million. The Park Avenue building occupies more than 22,000 square feet and features 34 rental units and one retail unit. It was sold for $9 million.

According to Castellan’s managing director Etan Slomovic, the company was able to realize a significant profit from the sale because of rising property values. These were spurred by higher market activity and both public and private investment in the East Harlem neighborhood. The company’s early acquisition of the buildings four years ago enabled it to fully capitalize on the increased demand in the neighborhood.

NYC Addresses Climate Change through Carbon Challenge Program

Over the past decade, Castellan Real Estate Partners in New York has amassed some $750 million in equity- and debt-related investments. The company’s track record includes the acquisition of under-performing, often historically significant, properties in the city, renovating them in keeping with contemporary tenant-friendly and “green” practices, and reselling them at a substantial profit. Castellan Real Estate Partners’ focus on reducing the carbon footprint of its buildings parallels recent, similar efforts of New York City itself.

The city announced one particularly notable program in early 2017. The NYC Carbon Challenge for Commercial Owners and Tenants originated in Mayor Bill de Blasio’s concern about the damage climate change was inflicting on the city.

The Real Estate Board of New York is among the professional groups to join with the mayor in this effort. Other cooperating bodies include local universities, medical facilities, and hotels. The challenge aims to halt all new waste going into landfills by 2030 and reduce greenhouse gas emission levels throughout the city 80 percent below their levels in 2005 by 2050.

Because about one-third of New York’s greenhouse gas emissions originate with commercial buildings, private-public partnerships in this area are essential. The new Challenge for Commercial Owners and Tenants builds on the initial NYC Carbon Challenge Program effort launched in 2007.

Castellan Sells Washington Heights Residential Properties at Profit

Castellan Real Estate Partners is a New York firm that pursues opportunistic transactions spanning equity investment, development, and property asset management. Among Castellan Real Estate Partners’ noteworthy deals was the July 2016 sale of a trio of residential buildings in Washington Heights for $15.4 million. 

The multifamily properties are situated within a 10-block radius and were described as a perfect buying opportunity within a local investment landscape that combines high demand and an expanding number of competitive financing options. 

Constructed in the 1920s, the three buildings include a 20-unit property at 649 West 184th Street, 25-unit building at 325 Wadsworth Avenue, and 24-unit building at 85 Fairview Avenue. These properties were purchased separately by Castellan between October 2012 and February 2013 for a combined price of $7.6 million, or less than half of what was achieved in the 2016 transaction. The deal, involving the same buying and selling parties, marked the second such transaction in Upper Manhattan within a six-month period.

Weatherization - An Environmental Measure that Benefits Everyone

Castellan Real Estate Partners, headquartered in New York City, serves as a leader in real estate investment. The company purchases, develops, and manages a number of multi-family properties in affordable, sought-after neighborhoods. Over the past decade, Castellan Real Estate Partners has acquired undervalued properties and, after managing them effectively for several years, sold them at double or triple its initial investment.

The company is also serious about reducing its corporate carbon footprint. It has initiated a drive to make all the properties it owns as energy-efficient as possible. Not only is this the right choice for the city’s environment and the company’s tenants, it makes a considerable contribution to the reduction of expenses.

Among the improvements the firm’s leadership has undertaken is the utilization of close to $2 million in grants from the state Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP). Funding from the WAP is available not only to individual homeowners, but to rental property owners as well, based on tenant income eligibility.

New York’s WAP can offer services such as attic insulation, installation of energy-efficient appliances, sealing cracks, renovation of heating systems, repair of mold-causing ventilation bottlenecks, and more. Weatherization services are of particular benefit in New York, which is home to numerous older buildings constructed when energy costs were low. Bringing these buildings up to current standards for energy efficiency increases their value and demonstrates a commitment to tenant comfort and safety.

Castellan Collaborates with Agencies for Greener Buildings

Based in New York City, Castellan Real Estate Partners has acquired investments valued at approximately $750 million in debt and equity. The company has demonstrated success in purchasing multi-family residential buildings, installing considerable upgrades, and maintaining its properties by working closely with tenants. Castellan Real Estate Partners is also invested in the future and remains committed to planning green renovations throughout the properties in its portfolio. The firm has developed relationships with programs and agencies that have made environmental needs and energy efficiency part of New York’s new way of doing business. 

The Northern Manhattan Improvement Corporation, serving Inwood and Washington Heights, is one of several organizations whose weatherization services the firm has used to improve its investments. It has also worked with Brooklyn’s Community Environmental Center, which fights climate change locally, and the Harlem Community Development Corporation, which focuses on reinvigorating that historic neighborhood’s economy. In fact, the Harlem organization specifically chose to work with Castellan to install new solar energy panels on its building on West 141st Street, the first-ever HCDC partnership with a property owner.