The Pinnacle Group, a prominent New York real estate owner, has once again divested an asset. Less than a week after its portfolio of condominiums and commercial properties was sold for $128 million, the company has now sold the rights to an apartment building at 323 West 96th Street to private real estate firm Lightstone Group for an estimated $88 million. This transaction was confirmed by a source familiar with the matter.
The Real Deal first reported the sale, citing filings by Pinnacle's parent company, Zarasai Group, with the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. The filings from 13 August announced the successful completion of the sale of Pinnacle's 100 percent interest in the leasehold rights of the 15-storey building and a 50 percent stake in the land rights. A surplus of $11 million from the sale is to be deposited into the account of Series C bondholders.
Background to the Transaction
Daniel Parker, Gary Phillips, and Will Silverman of Eastdil Secured Savills advised on this deal. As of late March, the property had an outstanding loan balance of approximately $65 million, which was transferred in 2023 from Starwood Mortgage Capital to a Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities (CMBS) trust sponsored by Barclays. According to city records, Pinnacle secured the ground lease for 323 West 96th Street in 2007 and paid an additional $27 million for the stake in the land rights in 2016.
The sale follows just days after news that Pinnacle divested a $128 million portfolio of condominiums and commercial properties, which encompassed 39 transactions across Queens, Brooklyn, and Manhattan. The buyer was Friar Park JW, an entity with ties to Tremada Holdings, an affiliate of London-based real estate firm William Pears Group.
Strategic Realignment
The Pinnacle Group, led by Joel Wiener, had placed a portfolio of approximately 5,000 rent-stabilised apartments across New York City into receivership in May 2025 due to debt of around $574.4 million. Summit Properties acquired this portfolio earlier this year at auction for $451.3 million. These recent sales indicate a strategic realignment of Pinnacle's real estate portfolio.
A spokesperson for Pinnacle Group was not available for comment on the recent sale. Representatives for Lightstone also did not immediately respond to enquiries, and a spokesperson for Eastdil declined to comment on the transaction.
