Summit Agrees Not To Pursue Rent Arrears In Pinnacle Portfolio

The Union of Pinnacle Tenants notched a victory against its new landlord, which has agreed to forgo millions in unpaid rent.

Zohar Levy’s Summit Properties USA will not pursue rental arrears against tenants living in more than 5,000 rent-stabilized apartments that the firm acquired in a bankruptcy sale earlier this year, the UPT announced Tuesday.

“When I saw that Summit was going to forgive past arrears, my eyes lit up,” Sonja Fernandez, a UPT member living in Washington Heights, said in a statement. “I thought ‘Wow. Is this really happening?' I finally feel validated. Now I can sleep a little better at night while I wait for my repairs.”

The portfolio, which spans 93 buildings in four boroughs, was left in distress by its former landlord, Joel Wiener’s Pinnacle Group. Hazardous living conditions and ongoing violations, which ultimately ballooned to more than 12,500, led tenants to withhold rents.

As a result, in a list of proposals, UPT asked that the new landlord not go after unpaid rent. In its April 22 response, Summit said it was developing a policy to address arrears, which “involve complex legal and factual considerations.”

It is unclear exactly how much in nonpayments Summit has agreed to waive. A Gothamist analysis found that Pinnacle had filed more than 2,500 nonpayment eviction lawsuits in the five years leading up to Summit taking ownership. 

Wiener turned a profit on his buildings by deregulating rent-stabilized units through loopholes that have since been closed by the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019, according to bankruptcy filings by his attorneys. In 2011, his firm settled a class-action lawsuit that accused Pinnacle of aggressive eviction attempts and tenant harassment. 

In court filings, Pinnacle blamed the rent reforms, inflation and “lower-than-anticipated rent collections” as factors contributing to the bankruptcy. 

A representative for Summit said in a statement it has cured more than half of the 6,400 violations that existed during the bankruptcy hearing.

“Over the past two months, Summit has invested significant resources in repairs, staffing, building operations, and capital improvements across a long-neglected portfolio,” Summit said. “Our focus has been on apartment repairs and common areas — nearly every lobby has been painted, and hundreds of apartments have been repaired and remediated.”

Summit said in court it had developed a five-year capital expenditure plan totaling at least $30M, $10M of which would be deployed in the first year.

Summit said it is continuing apartment improvements while beginning capital work on building systems, including roofs, elevators and boilers.

UPT has emerged as one of the largest tenant movements of its kind backed by powerful allies. The group has met with Mayor Zohran Mamdani, and, in talks with Summit, it has been accompanied by Cea Weaver, a union advocate and the director of the Mayor's Office to Protect Tenants.

The group also has a direct line to city agencies, allowing tenants to report violations without having to go through the convoluted 311 system. UPT members previously told Bisnow they organized a “Go Fix It” campaign, during which they conducted walkthroughs with inspectors from the Department of Housing Preservation and Development.

Those efforts resulted in over 6,000 new violations being logged, according to UPT. Summit's repairs have brought the current violation count to approximately 9,000.

The widely watched bankruptcy sale received scrutiny from the Mamdani administration. In a show of support for tenants, the mayor visited a Pinnacle property on his first day in office. 

His administration attempted to influence the sale by claiming that Summit was an unknown player that may not be able to maintain the properties. After an investigation by Bisnow uncovered that Summit previously partnered with Chestnut Holdings, a firm owned by Joel Wiener’s brother, Jonathan, the city filed another objection, asking the court to examine the potential relationship between the three parties.

The judge declined to halt the sale, but the city has continued to watch over the portfolio. 

“From our first day in office, the Mamdani administration has stood firmly with tenants across New York City,” Weaver said in a statement. “We took a historic step to intervene on behalf of Pinnacle tenants and secured important commitments from Summit, and we continue to coordinate with UPT to ensure that tenants see the improvements they were promised.”