A lawyer who specializes in getting tenants fat payouts from landlords just made his own big score.
David Rozenholc, regarded by some as the most feared tenant lawyer in the city, just sold his massive Upper East Side townhouse for $27 million, according to property records filed with the city Wednesday. The 13,000-square-foot Flemish brick mansion at 7 East 84th Street has eight bedrooms and 10.5 bathrooms, and boasts a butler’s pantry, wine cellar and private garage.
The Corcoran Group’s Carrie Chiang and Richard Phan had the listing, which was first listed with Douglas Elliman in 2013 for $30 million. It traded for about $2,075 per square foot to an unidentified Illinois-based investor who controls the entity LF Investments LLC. Rozenholc, who purchased the property in 1996, couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.
The veteran attorney has helped tenants secure massive payouts from developers such as Tishman Speyer, Starwood Capital Group and even Donald Trump. In 2014, he helped a pair of tenants receive $25 million from Tishman Speyer to vacate a small apartment at the developer’s Hudson Yards site, where it’s now planning a $3.2 billion office tower.
“I put myself in the position of the developer,” Rozenholc told Crain’s in October. “I find out what they paid for the property, what are they are going to build, what the construction will cost and how much the financing costs are. It takes two to tango, so you have to figure out exactly what it is worth to them.”