Greenpoint rental back on the market asking $32.5M

A Greenpoint condominium-turned-rental building that flirted with a sale three years ago is back on the market, this time asking more than $32 million.

Lofts 305, which owner Ronel Ben-Dov picked up in 2010 from developer Bronfman Fisher Real Estate Holdings, is being shopped around by a Cushman & Wakefield team positioning it as a possible condo conversion.

The building, located at 305 McGuinness Boulevard, between Huron and India streets, has 38 units and 19 parking spaces. It boasts a fitness center, a common courtyard and an unfinished rooftop with views of the skyline. The listing from a team headed by Brendan Maddigan states “these amenities can be immediately monetized and will also help drive the pricing for a condo conversion in the future.”

The brokers could not be immediately reached for comment.

Ben-Dov is asking $32.5 million for the building, 30 percent more than the $25 million he was asking back in 2012 when he listed the property with Marcus & Millichap.

The owner had purchased the Karl Fischer-designed building two years earlier for $13.4 million from Bronfman, who converted the property to rentals after the condo market tanked during the recession.

One thing potential buyers will have to take a look at is the 40,000-square-foot building’s 15-year 421a tax abatement, which is in its seventh year.

“It could be a ticking time bomb that buyers have to factor in, and so do lenders,” said broker Shaun Riney of Marcus Millichap, who worked on the team that listed the building in 2012. “The rents must rise faster than the decrease in the value of the benefits, otherwise net income could go down.”

Average rents for a studio and a two-bedroom in Greenpoint were $2,294 and $3,248 in May, respectively, according to the brokerage MNS.