Keystone Equities Provides $84M in Bridge Debt for Queens Multifamily Property

The Vaja Group has secured $84 million in bridge financing for Nova Astoria, a 164-unit multifamily property that opened last year in Astoria, Queens, Commercial Observer can first report. 

Keystone Equities provided the bridge debt through the firm’s private credit platform, which has originated $600 million in debt in the last 24 months. Keystone’s loan is expected to provide liquidity that helps support the asset from closing out construction into full lease-up, according to a release. 

Jonathan Zamir, founder and CEO of Keystone Equities, described Vaja Group as “a high-quality sponsor with multiple financing options,” in a statement, and suggested that his firm secured the deal through its ability to execute “quickly” on a bespoke transaction. 

“As we scale, reliability and certainty of execution, continue to drive repeat relationships for our firm,” he added. 

Located at 11-14 35th Avenue, just across the East River from Manhattan, Nova Astoria opened in 2025 with a mix of market-rate and affordable housing units across its nine stories. The rental building was developed through tax abatements under the now-expired 421a program. 

Approximately 102 units are market rate, while 50 have been set aside for the New York City housing lottery, reserved for residents at 70 to 130 percent of the area median income. 

The building features amenities such as a dog park, a dog-washing station, bike storage lockers, a gym, a business center with coworking spaces, a children’s playroom and a roofdeck with outdoor terraces. 

“Our objective is to continue building a durable and scalable platform that can solve for sponsor  needs across the capital stack,” added Zamir in a statement.

No broker was listed on the transaction. 

The Vaja Group did not respond to requests for comment. 

Brian Pascus can be reached at bpascus@commercialobserver.com.