Mamdani Administration Hits Bronx Landlords With $31M in Penalties

Mayor Zohran Mamdani and housing officials did a victory lap around a pair of Bronx landlords on Wednesday, announcing the highest penalty ever achieved against building owners in New York City.

Karan Singh and Rajmattie Persaud, owners of Robert Fulton Terrace and Fordham Towers and regular inductees into the Office of the New York City Public Advocate’s “Worst Landlords” list, were ordered to pay $31 million in penalties for neglecting their two residential buildings, according to an announcement from the Mamdani administration.

With Fannie Mae foreclosing on the assets, Mamdani, along with Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) Commissioner Dina Levy, have asked the government-backed financial institution to help find a responsible buyer for the properties.

“For years, tenants at Robert Fulton Terrace and Fordham Towers have been forced to live with vermin infestations, chronic elevator outages and a lack of heat and hot water — while their landlords met their suffering with silence,” Mamdani said in a statement. “But penalties alone are not enough. We are taking control of the situation to make sure repairs are made and conditions are permanently improved. Every New Yorker deserves safe, dignified housing.”

Robert Fulton Terrace is a 17-story building at 540 East 169th Street, and Fordham Tower is a 16-story property at 480 East 188th Street.

The news follows Mamdani’s previous failed attempt in January to direct the fire sale of the Pinnacle Group’s 93-building, 5,200-unit portfolio to Summit Properties for $451 million, which the administration found unfavorable as it sought a buyer more in line with the city’s goals to operate the assets as high-quality affordable housing.

Levy, a former tenant organizer, said that she has a background working with two buildings in the Bronx, as they were brought out of the Mitchell-Lama program. She said the litigation sends a strong message to unscrupulous landlords.

“Since then, tenants have been subject to decades of mistreatment, but that comes to an end today,” Levy said in a statement “Thanks to aggressive litigation by HPD’s Anti-Harassment Unit, we now have a record $31 million judgment against the owners. That gives us leverage in bankruptcy proceedings, which we’ll use to deliver better outcomes for residents.”

Mark Hallum can be reached at mhallum@commercialobserver.com.