A Wells Fargo-managed trust is looking to foreclose on a 618-unit condo development in Astoria after its owners failed to make a loan payment.
French bank Natixis issued a $45 million mortgage in April 2017 on Acropolis Gardens, the 16-building complex bordered by Ditmars Boulevard, and 33rd and 34th streets. The debt was pooled into a securitized trust managed by Wells Fargo, according to court documents, with monthly repayments of $13,596.
But the Wells Fargo-managed trust filed a foreclosure action on Monday, after the property’s condo board, Acropolis Gardens Realty Corp., missed a July payment.
The failed payment followed the trust’s discovery of multiple legal actions against the condo board. The borrower requested reserve funds from the trust in July, citing the need to pay legal fees from an ongoing litigation, according to the complaint. Upon learning of the lawsuit, the trust said it “conducted a search” and learned of other legal proceedings against the board, with allegations including the misappropriation of funds and failure to maintain common areas in the complex.
Shortly after, a check meant to cover the monthly loan payments bounced and the trust sent the borrower a notice of default, the complaint states.
The condo board then allegedly made another request for funds to pay its legal fees. The trust then ordered a title search of the property, which revealed multiple violations and frontage fees totaling more than $450,000, according to the suit.
The condo board did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In 2015, building residents endured months without gas after Consolidated Edison shut off the complex citing issues with piping system caused by improper and unauthorized connections, according to the Astoria Post.