Baruch Singer (born 1954) is a New York-based real estate investor and developer.

Biography

Singer was born to a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family, the son of rabbi Yitzhak Singer. In 1983, while living on the

Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Traditionally an im ...

and in the midst of writing his doctoral dissertation in clinical psychology at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

, his cousin Rabbi Joseph Singer referred a local builder, David Disenhouse, to invite him as a partner to renovate a vacant apartment building on the Lower East Side. Singer accepted and this led to a ten-year relationship (ending when Disenhouse moved to Israel). Singer specialized in purchasing and leasing distressed residential properties in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

Hamilton Heights Hamilton Heights is a neighborhood in the northern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is the northernmost part of the West Harlem area, along with Manhattanville and Morningside Heights to its south, and it contains the sub-neighborhood an ...

Manhattan Valley Manhattan Valley (also known as Bloomingdale ) is a neighborhood in the northern part of Upper West Side in Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded by West 110th Street to the north, Central Park West to the east, West 96th Street to the south, ...

, and Washington Heights. After an existing tenant vacated, he would renovate the apartment and then find tenants to replace the prior occupants. Although the buildings were often crime-ridden, Singer claims that he would make sure that the new tenants were told upfront about the problems they were moving into before signing a lease. Singer always lets tenants break a lease and personally meets every new tenant. He has been variously credited with or blamed for the

gentrification Gentrification is the process of changing the character of a neighborhood through the influx of more Wealth, affluent residents and businesses. It is a common and controversial topic in urban politics and urban planning, planning. Gentrification ...

of poorer neighborhoods by hipsters as well as being branded a "slumlord." Once he is able to renovate all the apartments in a building having churned through the legacy tenants, he completes the renovation by finishing the hallways and common areas enabling him to the increase the rent in the now secure building to closer to market rates. Singer was accused of being responsible for a 1995 collapse of a Harlem building that killed three people. Singer's company, Triangle Management, was the manager of the building at the time of the collapse. and later purchased the building site. In 2005, he sold a portfolio of 104 buildings for $450 million to the Pinnacle Group and Praedium Fund. He has been criticized for not repairing the distressed buildings he purchases quick enough. Singer defends himself stating that the buildings he buys typically have severe problems that take time to correct and that some tenants do not readily allow the landlord access to apartments. In 2013, Singer sold a portfolio of 84 properties to Brooklyn-based Rainbow Estates Group, headed by Irving Langer and Leibel Lederman for $340 million.

Personal life

He was married to Vera Singer.New York Times: "As Waterfront Smolders, Attention Turned to Failed Deal" by Michael Wilson
May 4, 2006 The two divorced and Singer married his second wife, Susie.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singer, Baruch 1954 births American real estate businesspeople 20th-century American Jews Living people Businesspeople from New York City Harvard University alumni 21st-century American Jews