Worst
Building
best block.
We buy buildings that cannot transact. We make them transactable. That is the return.
Old Law walk-up multifamilies in prime Manhattan neighborhoods. Too complex for amateur buyers. Too small for institutions. The complexity is the moat.
The problem is not the real estate.
It is the friction surrounding it.
We remove the friction.
Distress enters when ownership, capital, construction, or operating control fails. These deals often do not trade in usable form — they must be constructed through resolution and execution. Legal complexity eliminates most bidders. That discount is structural and repeatable across every deal we source and convert. 100% free-market portfolio. No HSTPA risk. Exit to the broadest possible buyer universe at stabilization.
Where Deals Break
Distress enters when ownership, capital, construction, or operating control fails. When one breaks — legally, operationally, or financially — it falls outside the ordinary market. That is where we buy.
Why Now
Bridge and construction loans from 2021 are resetting into a refinancing market that no longer supports their original proceeds or LTV. Lenders and special asset groups are moving assets at prices that reflect urgency, not intrinsic value.
Sub-50-unit walk-ups require hands-on legal, construction, and regulatory expertise that institutional platforms cannot deploy at this asset size. Legal complexity eliminates most bidders. That discount is structural and repeatable.
HSTPA 2019 eliminated vacancy deregulation. We target exclusively free-market assets — no rent-stabilization risk, no HSTPA exposure. Exit to the broadest possible buyer universe at stabilization.
T1 — Classic 25-Footer
Old Law Walk-Up. The fund workhorse. Largest pool of comparable buildings in Manhattan, proven playbook, repeatable execution.
Internal underwriting on a representative Manhattan walk-up case study. Not a projection of actual fund returns. Fund target net IRR: 15–25%.
Four Principals. One Platform.
Each principal resolves a different layer of complexity. Together they unlock assets no single operator can touch.
Federal trial lawyer and strategic advisor. Sources and unlocks legally constrained assets — removing the friction that keeps conventional buyers out and pricing depressed. Founder and the vision behind Agnes Intelligence; has worked closely with Brian Hughes for more than 15 years.
Started in construction at 16; union carpenter (Local 608), mentored by legendary builder Jack Fickes. Founded J.F. Hughes Builders in 2009 — delivering high-end residential, multifamily, hospitality, and embassy work across New York City, including difficult gut renovations and distressed projects others couldn't restart.
$2B+ in NYC sales volume. Identifies off-market and pre-market opportunities before they are widely shopped, and executes exits at stabilization into a buyer pool that wants this product but rarely sees it created at this asset size.
Former Shearman & Sterling attorney (NY/HK) with 20+ years in cross-border finance, fund formation, and complex transaction structuring. Advises on LPA architecture, capital stack design, and governance; extensive experience with international investors and family offices.
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