Ziel Feldman Quietly Begins His Comeback After HFZ Collapse

While Nir Meir weaves in and out of the justice system, his former partner at HFZ Capital Group is quietly back in real estate.

Ziel Feldman has taken on a role as a “silent player” behind the scenes of national development firm GoodHomes, The Promote reported. One of the co-founders of the company is Leila Rosenberg, Feldman’s daughter.

GoodHomes is a platform centered on affordable and workforce housing, pursuing existing adaptive reuse projects involving distressed hotels, extended stay buildings and assisted-living facilities. The multifamily conversions ultimately target those earning between 60 percent and 120 percent of the area median income.

The company’s portfolio spans 16 properties across 10 states, accounting for roughly 2,700 units.

At least three former HFZ employees beyond Feldman are involved with GoodHomes. They include Adam Feldman (Ziel’s son), former construction manager Bill Dibenedetto and former project management employee Akhilesh Hari.

GoodHomes dabbles in the world of tax abatements, tax-exempt bonds and other forms of public financing. It’s far from the glitz and glamor Feldman became accustomed to while building HFZ into one of New York City’s most notable developers in the 2010s.

Led by Feldman with Meir second-in-command, HFZ pursued a number of notable conversions. But the firm was likely best known for the ground-up development of The XI in West Chelsea, one of the biggest luxury condo developments in Manhattan at the time. HFZ bought 76 11th Avenue, the site for the XI, for $870 million, then the most ever paid for land in New York City.

But the project imploded during the pandemic when construction paused. Feldman fired Meir before the end of 2020 and the project went into foreclosure the following summer.

Prosecutors charged Meir with grand larceny and defrauding the city out of $15 million in taxes. The Manhattan D.A. alleged that Meir moved hundreds of millions of dollars out of accounts designated for HFZ’s projects, only to return the money with significant shortfalls.

Meir was ultimately charged with spearheading an $86 million fraud scheme. Meir was arrested in Miami in early 2024 and spent a year on Rikers Island after he was unable to post bail; he finally posted a $1 million bond in June, sending him to an undisclosed apartment.

Feldman, meanwhile, spent most of the recent years either dealing with the legal fallout of Meir’s alleged actions or avoiding the spotlight altogether.

— Holden Walter-Warner