Leasing & tenant law · Permits & development · Owners & management · Deals & development · 10/26/2026
Merchants Bank lists Abraham Leifer's former Midtown building
Merchants Bank is selling 19 West 55th Street, a vacant 39,000-square-foot building it took over in a foreclosure sale this year. The bank sued Leifer's Aview Equities in 2023 over an unpaid $36.7 million refinance loan. Leifer had planned a luxury condo conversion. Two Chapter 11 filings delayed the sale and have since been dismissed. CBRE is marketing the property.
Reported by The Real Deal · New YorkRead the original ↗
What happened
Merchants Bank is trying to sell 19 West 55th Street, a vacant nine-story apartment building in Midtown Manhattan between Fifth and Sixth avenues. The Real Deal reported this on 10/26/2026. The bank took over the 39,000-square-foot building in a foreclosure sale. It is seeking a price in the low $20 million range. CBRE's Dan Kaplan is marketing the property.
The building was built in 1920. Landlord Abraham Leifer bought it from Salim Assa in 2018 for $50 million. He planned to convert it to luxury condos, put retail on the ground floor and add several floors of residential space on top, adding 14,800 square feet.
Merchants Bank sued Leifer's company, Aview Equities, in 2023, seeking foreclosure after a string of forbearances. The bank said Leifer failed to repay the balance of a $36.7 million refinance loan. It also cited other defaults, including failing to keep a cash balance of more than $9 million. A judgment of foreclosure for about $49 million, plus interest and costs, was issued in 2024, according to court filings. Two foreclosure sales were postponed after Leifer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Leifer's attorney, Aaron Slavutin of Jacobs P.C., said both filings have since been dismissed.
The Real Deal also reported other troubles for Leifer. In 2023, lender Parkview Financial sued Aview Equities in Brooklyn Supreme Court over $66 million in mortgages at 57 Caton Place. That suit was settled. In 2024, Leifer sold an unfinished Downtown Brooklyn hotel project through bankruptcy. A lawyer for Merchants Bank did not immediately respond to The Real Deal's request for comment.
Key facts
- Address
- 19 West 55th Street, Midtown Manhattan, between Fifth and Sixth avenues
- Building
- Vacant, nine stories, 39,000 square feet, built in 1920
- Seller
- Merchants Bank, which took the building in a foreclosure sale
- Target price
- Low $20 million range
- Broker
- Dan Kaplan, CBRE
- Defaulted loan
- $36.7 million refinance loan
- Foreclosure judgment
- About $49 million plus interest and costs, issued in 2024
- Prior purchase
- $50 million in 2018, bought by Leifer from Salim Assa
What it means
Buyers and owners
A buyer may get the building for well under the $50 million Leifer paid in 2018 and the roughly $49 million judgment. The material does not say whether the condo conversion and expansion plans come with the sale.
Landlords
This case shows how loan defaults and missed cash-balance requirements can lead to foreclosure even after forbearances. Chapter 11 filings delayed the sales here but did not stop them once the filings were dismissed.
Tenants and voucher holders
The building is described as vacant, so the material does not point to any current tenants affected by the sale. Any future housing there depends on what a new owner decides to build.
The highlights
- The bank seeks a price in the low $20 million range for 19 West 55th Street.
- A foreclosure judgment of about $49 million was issued in 2024.
- Leifer paid $50 million for the vacant nine-story building in 2018.
Why it matters Landlords
It shows how missed loan terms and stalled conversions can end in foreclosure, even after bankruptcy filings delay a sale.
Not known yet
- Whether any approved plans or permits for the condo conversion and added floors transfer to a buyer
- The exact asking price and the timeline for the sale
- Whether any units were ever rent-regulated before the building went vacant
- Whether Leifer plans any further legal challenge
Background
In New York, foreclosure is a court process. A lender sues in State Supreme Court, and if it wins, the court issues a judgment of foreclosure and sale. The property is then sold at a public auction, and lenders often take ownership themselves if no outside bidder pays more. A bankruptcy filing usually triggers an automatic stay that pauses the auction. If the bankruptcy case is dismissed, the foreclosure can move forward. Banks that take ownership this way often resell the property through a broker rather than hold it.
Buildings in this story
- 19 West 55th Street · building facts and open city records
Summary written by Bulwark from The Real Deal · New York’s reporting. The original story is at therealdeal.com. This is general information, not legal advice.
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Photo: Andre Carrotflower, CC BY-SA 4.0