The retail woes along a stretch of Collins Avenue in South Beach have sparked a foreclosure lawsuit against a storefront owner that allegedly owes $5.5 million to a lender.
Last week, Troy, Michigan-based Flagstar Bank sued Brooklyn resident Zipporah Goldstein and her entity that owns nine ground-floor commercial units of a three-story condominium at 751 Collins Avenue, records show. The commercial space spans 3,615 square feet.
Goldstein, an Auschwitz concentration camp survivor according to published reports, bought the storefront in 2015 for $10 million, partially financing the purchase with a $6.3 million mortgage from New York Community Bank, records show. Last year, the financial institution rebranded as Flagstar Bank.
Goldstein and Flagstar Bank’s lawyer did not respond to requests for comment.
Goldstein’s entity bought the commercial units from Aldo Shoes, which leased back the property until 2020, when the shoe retailer moved out. The space has been vacant since the landlord placed the units on the market in December with an undisclosed asking price. The storefront is being marketed by Miami Beach-based InHouse Commercial Sales.
Goldstein’s entity allegedly defaulted on the loan by allegedly missing payments since January, as well as failing to pay property insurance and property taxes, the complaint alleges. The borrower also allegedly failed to notify the bank about the death of co-guarantor Leon Goldstein, Zipporah Goldstein’s husband.
The $5.5 million mortgage debt includes interest and fees, the lawsuit states.
Completed in 1952, the building also includes seven residential condo units that are not targeted in the foreclosure and are owned by entities unrelated to Goldstein, records show.
InHouse Commercial is marketing the retail space as a possible package deal for six storefronts in Art Deco buildings on a six-block stretch of Collins Avenue from Sixth Street to 12th Street. The asking price for the assemblage is more than $50 million.
