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NYC worst landlord list includes firm that just bought 5.1K rent-stabilized apartments
By
David Brand
Published Jan 21, 2026
Modified Jan 21, 2026
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David Brand
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David Brand
Published Jan 21, 2026
Modified Jan 21, 2026
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The real estate firm Summit Properties is again facing scrutiny from New York City officials over conditions at its apartment buildings, less than a week after a judge green lit the company’s plan to buy more than 5,100 rent-stabilized units from a bankrupt landlord over Mayor Zohran Mamdani's attempt to block the sale.
Public Advocate Jumaane Williams on Wednesday listed 14 properties currently owned by Summit on his annual “worst landlords list,” linking each one to David Tennenbaum, an executive at a pair of companies that partnered with Summit to purchase and operate the derelict buildings four years ago. Williams named Tennenbaum 10th on his watchlist — an improvement from last year, when he came in sixth place.
Summit Properties lists all 14 of the buildings identified by the public advocate as part of the company’s portfolio. Williams found that the properties account for a combined 1,549 open housing code violations. A Summit spokesperson said the company has had little control over the buildings, which are run by the firms Chestnut Holdings and Denali Management.
Summit will soon become one of New York City’s largest owners of rent-stabilized apartments after it closes on a deal to buy thousands of units from the firm Pinnacle Group, which filed for bankruptcy last May.
"Summit’s neglect is exactly why the city intervened in the Pinnacle bankruptcy," said City Hall spokesperson Casey Berkovitz. "Every tenant has the right to a safe, well-maintained home. From day one, we’ve been clear: landlords who neglect their buildings will be held accountable. And we will use every tool available — enforcement, preservation, financial support, and the law — to protect tenants across our city."
Despite the Mamdani administration’s efforts to block the sale, a federal judge approved Summit’s $451 million purchase on Friday. Summit's chair, Zohar Levy, vowed in court to invest $3 million to resolve thousands of open housing code violations, and $30 million on maintenance and repairs over the next five years.
Residents in those buildings face dangerous conditions left behind by Pinnacle, including vermin infestations, crumbling ceilings and mold. A citywide coalition of tenants opposed the Summit deal and organized for months to try to steer the properties to some other entity that it said would more responsibly manage their housing.
In a joint statement, the Union of Pinnacle Tenants told Gothamist that the inclusion of Summit-owned buildings on the landlord list came as little surprise.
“We’ve long known that Summit Properties is amongst the city’s most notorious slumlords,” the group said.
The tenants association, which counts members in dozens of buildings across the city, said it's now working with residents of Summit’s existing portfolio “to fight back against these conditions and organize ourselves to keep Summit accountable to the promises they made in court.”
City lawyers and officials from state Attorney General Letitia James' office have also criticized Summit’s track record.
The company’s existing portfolio includes an apartment complex on Crown Street in Brooklyn that attorneys highlighted for its poor conditions in a court hearing related to the bankruptcy sale last Thursday and another building on 138th St. in the Bronx where Mamdani held a campaign press conference demanding accountability for bad landlords last April. Williams included both properties in his watchlist.
Summit spokesperson Jordan Barowitz said the company is “working with the managing partner to improve conditions and cure the violations,” at the buildings that appear on Williams’ list. Barowitz said Summit is the “limited ownership partner” in those buildings and will not replicate the same problems in the properties it is purchasing from Pinnacle.
“The ownership structure of the Pinnacle deal is completely different,” Barowitz said. “Summit is the managing partner and is hiring new property management firms and will take an active role in managing the buildings.”
At last week’s court hearing, Levy, the Summit chairperson, said he will hire two new management companies to run the buildings that his company purchases from Pinnacle and will not involve Denali or Chestnut in those operations.
Chestnut and Denali did not respond to questions about their latest inclusion on the worst landlord list, but earlier this month both told Gothamist that they have no role in the Pinnacle deal.
A federal bankruptcy judge credited Summit’s “action plan” in his ruling to confirm the sale.
“Summit evinces every good intention to run this portfolio properly,” Judge David Jones said Friday. “They have shown more than adequate financial wherewithal to do this.”
Deputy Mayor Leila Bozorg told Gothamist last week that the tenants organization and the city’s intervention in the bankruptcy sale prompted Levy and Summit to produce the repair and spending plan.
“We will continue to closely monitor this portfolio as part of our ongoing fight for tenants,” Bozorg said in a written statement.
This story has been updated with comment from City Hall spokesperson Casey Berkovitz.
Tagged
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new york city
David Brand
David is a reporter covering housing for Gothamist and WNYC. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal 908-310-3960.
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