Berkadia has provided a $219 million Fannie Mae permanent loan to fund the rehabilitation and preservation of Rangel Houses, a 984-unit affordable housing community in Upper Manhattan, New York City. The deal, structured on behalf of owner Genesis Cos., locks in long-term financing for one of Harlem's largest residential complexes and for the roughly 1,800 people who live there.

Matthew Baptiste and Heather Olson of Berkadia originated the financing in partnership with three public and private institutions: the New York City Housing Authority, the New York City Housing Development Corp. and Goldman Sachs. The transaction closed in New York City, where the property has stood for more than seven decades.

What does the loan cover?

The $219 million facility is an agency permanent loan (a long-term mortgage backed by Fannie Mae, the government-sponsored enterprise that purchases and guarantees multifamily debt). Proceeds will fund both the rehabilitation of the eight high-rise buildings and the preservation of the community's affordability commitments.

All 984 units are reserved for households earning 80 percent or less of the area median income, the income benchmark used by U.S. housing agencies to set affordability thresholds. The affordability profile concentrates deeply in the lower income bands:

• 954 of the 984 units — the vast majority — are designated for "very low-income" residents.
• The remaining 30 units serve households earning up to 80 percent of area median income.
• The site houses approximately 1,800 people across eight high-rise buildings.

Beyond housing, the community includes playgrounds and open space, commercial space, and specialized centers serving seniors and children of varying ages. The loan's rehabilitation scope therefore supports neighborhood infrastructure, not only residential units.

How is the debt structured?

The loan carries a 15-year term, according to Berkadia's announcement of the transaction. It includes five years of interest-only payments, after which the schedule shifts to amortizing payments based on a 40-year amortization schedule (the period over which principal is repaid in installments).

That structure is a familiar format for agency deals in the affordable housing sector. The interest-only period provides early cash-flow relief while rehabilitation work proceeds, and the 40-year amortization keeps debt service payments manageable against restricted affordable rents.

Why does the property's history matter?

Rangel Houses was originally built in 1951 on 11 acres as Colonial Park Houses. The community was renamed in 1977 in honor of Ralph Rangel, the tenant association president, and it has operated as affordable housing continuously since the postwar era.

The property's scale makes the transaction significant within the Upper Manhattan market. At 984 units across eight high-rise buildings on an 11-acre site, Rangel Houses represents the type of large, aging affordable portfolio that cities across the United States are working to preserve through agency debt. Fannie Mae financing has become one of the principal tools for such recapitalizations, offering terms that private lenders rarely match for income-restricted assets.

Who stood behind the deal?

The deal team reflects a public-private structure typical of New York affordable housing finance. Berkadia, the national commercial real estate lender and servicer, originated the loan through Matthew Baptiste and Heather Olson. The New York City Housing Authority and the New York City Housing Development Corp. — the city agencies that oversee public and affordable housing — partnered on the transaction alongside Goldman Sachs.

Genesis Cos., the owner, will carry out the rehabilitation funded by the proceeds. For the residents of the 954 very low-income units, the transaction secures both the physical renewal of the buildings and the affordability restrictions that govern them.