526 East 138 Street

Bronx, NY

BBL 2-02265-0033BIN 2000039

Concern level4 of 4

Severe

01On HPD's Alternative Enforcement Program — the city's most-distressed-buildings list
0228 open class-C HPD violations (immediately hazardous) across 29 apartments
0321 of those issued in the last 3 years
046 open rent-impairing violation(s)
059 evictions executed in the last 3 years

How this is set: open hazardous violations measured against the building's size, then raised by strong distress signals — HPD's enforcement program, court harassment findings, recent evictions, unpaid DOB fines, open housing-court cases, and a sold tax lien. Neighborhood noise and crime are not part of it. It describes the public record, not the condition of any one apartment, and a quiet record is not proof of a good building.

HPD enforcement

On the Alternative Enforcement Program

HPD placed this building in its Alternative Enforcement Program (AEP Round 16), active since 2023-01-31. AEP is the city's response to its most distressed buildings — it had 1,557 open B/C violations at selection.

Rent regulation

Likely rent-stabilized

The owner registered 29 stabilized units with New York State for 2023 — essentially all of the building's 29 apartments.

2018 — 29 units registered2023 — 29

No public data says which specific apartment is stabilized.

Registration counts apply to the building, not to unit numbers. To confirm your own apartment, request your rent history from New York State Homes and Community Renewal — it is free and takes a few weeks.

How to request your rent history →

Rent regulation

The building

1906

Built

Floors

Residential units

Walk-up apartments

Type

The building

This building and the landlord's others

This building77 others linked to the same owner

HPD housing-maintenance violations

Open now

1640

On record

Open Class C

Open Class B

Open Class A

Class C is immediately hazardous, Class B is hazardous, Class A is non-hazardous. A violation stays open until HPD certifies the repair, so some open items may already be fixed.

CLASS I · NON-HAZARDOUS

§27-2153 ADM CODE THE PREMISES HAS BEEN SELECTED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE ALTERNATIVE ENFORCEMENT PROGRAM WHICH MAY RESULT IN BUILDING-WIDE INSPECTIONS, FEES, AND EXTENSIVE REPAIR WORK TO CORRECT VIOLATIONS AND UNDERLYING CONDITIONS. CHARGES FOR REPAIR WORK DONE PURSUANT TO THIS ORDER, IF NOT PAID, WILL BECOME LIENS ON THE PROPERTY

Status: Notice issued, not yet certified

CLASS C · IMMEDIATELY HAZARDOUSApt 28Issued 2026-08-28

HMC ADM CODE: § 27-2017.4 ABATE THE INFESTATION CONSISTING OF ROACHES IN THE ENTIRE APARTMENT LOCATED AT APT 28, 6th STORY, 2nd APARTMENT FROM WEST AT NORTH

Status: Defect letter issued

CLASS C · IMMEDIATELY HAZARDOUSApt 28Issued 2026-08-28

HMC ADM CODE: § 27-2017.4 ABATE THE INFESTATION CONSISTING OF MICE IN THE ENTIRE APARTMENT LOCATED AT APT 28, 6th STORY, 2nd APARTMENT FROM WEST AT NORTH

Status: Defect letter issued

CLASS C · IMMEDIATELY HAZARDOUSApt 6Issued 2026-08-21

HMC ADM CODE: § 27-2017.4 ABATE THE INFESTATION CONSISTING OF ROACHES IN THE ENTIRE APARTMENT LOCATED AT APT 6, 2nd STORY, 1st APARTMENT FROM SOUTH AT WEST

Status: Landlord hasn't certified a fix

HPD housing-maintenance violations

311 complaints from tenants

586

All time

Last 12 months

Unsanitary Condition127

Plumbing75

Paint/Plaster74

Door/Window72

Water Leak61

Heat/Hot Water57

Electric38

Flooring/Stairs36

Complaints record what a tenant reported, not a finding by the city. "Closed" often means the inspector could not gain access.

311 complaints from tenants

Neighborhood noise

Higher than averagevs. NYC apartment blocks

695

Noise reports · last 12 mo

≈ per month

% from neighbors

Residential358

Street/Sidewalk199

Commercial56

Vehicle55

Unspecified26

Park1

311 noise complaints within about 1,000 ft (a few blocks) in the last year. Most reports here are about noise from inside buildings — neighbors, not the street. This counts how often people call 311, which tracks how densely populated and busy an area is as much as how loud it is — it is not a sound measurement.

Neighborhood noise

Neighborhood crime

Much higher than averagevs. NYC apartment blocks

856

NYPD reports · last 12 mo

≈ per month

Felony288

Misdemeanor429

Violation139

NYPD complaints reported within about 1,000 ft (a few blocks) in the last year, by severity. This reflects what gets reported and where police are active as much as actual safety, and busier, denser, higher-foot-traffic blocks log more. Locations are approximate — the NYPD shifts each report to the nearest corner for privacy — so read this as rough context, not a safety score.

Neighborhood crime

Bedbug history

No bedbugs reported

The owner filed 9 annual bedbug reports and reported no infested units. Filing with zero infestations is the compliant, reassuring case.

Bedbug history

DOB building violations

Active

On record

Active, last 3 yrs

No active DOB violations.

DOB building violations

Evictions

Executed, all time

Last 3 years

2026-09-29Apt 20residential

2026-08-11Apt 3residential

2026-07-22Apt 14residential

Executed by a city marshal. An eviction can be lawful; a high or rising count is a displacement signal, not proof of wrongdoing.

Evictions

Housing court

Cases on record

Open now

Tenant-brought

Harassment found

With a judgment

Most cases are tenants taking the owner to court to force repairs. A case is not proof of wrongdoing; a harassment finding or judgment is a court ruling against the owner.

CLOSEDOpened 2026-08-27

Tenant action

CLOSEDOpened 2026-03-26

Tenant action

CLOSEDOpened 2023-08-02

Tenant action

CLOSEDOpened 2022-09-19

Comprehensive

Housing court

Landlord and related buildings

Registered owner

526-530-534 E 138 LLC

Head officer

DAVID TENNENBAUM

Managing agent

DAVID TENNENBAUM

77 other buildings share this owner's registration contacts. Shared contacts suggest common control, but they are not proof of ownership.

1025 LONGWOOD AVENUEBRONX 1124 STRATFORD AVENUEBRONX 1127 SHERIDAN AVENUEBRONX 115 EAST 169 STREETBRONX 1178 WASHINGTON AVENUEBRONX

Landlord and related buildings

Unpaid city fines

Balance due (active)

Active violations

Lost by default

DOB violations adjudicated by OATH carry money penalties. "Lost by default" means the owner never appeared at the hearing. An unpaid balance is a stronger "ignoring the city" signal than a raw violation count.

Unpaid city fines

Ownership & money

Recorded sales

Mortgages / refinances

Last recorded sale2021-09-24 · $17,900,000

Most recent mortgage2019-12-17 · $5,261,405.76

Sale2021-09-24$17,900,000

SOBRO SHARP II LLC, MEDARY STENTON ASSOCIATES, WINDSOR ESTATES II LLC → 526-530-534 E 138 LLC

Mortgage2019-12-17$5,261,405.76

borrower MEDARY STENTON ASSOCIATES, SOBRO SHARP II LLC, WINDSOR ESTATES II LLC · lender NEW YORK COMMUNITY BANK

Mortgage2016-12-15$3,893,628.38

borrower MEDARY STENTON ASSOCIATES, WINDSOR ESTATES II LLC, SOBRO SHARP II LLC · lender NEW YORK COMMUNITY BANK

Sale2014-09-19no recorded price

WINDSOR ESTATES II LP, SOBRO SHARP II LLC, MEDARY STENTON ASSOCIATES → MEDARY STENTON ASSOCIATES, SOBRO SHARP II LLC, WINDSOR ESTATES II LP

Mortgage2014-09-08$351,061.67

borrower WINDSOR ESTATES II L.P., MEDARY STENTON ASSOCIATES, SOBRO SHARP II LLC · lender NEW YORK COMMUNITY BANK

From ACRIS recorded documents. Amounts are often $0 or nominal for transfers between related parties, and LLCs can obscure who is really involved — treat this as public-record context, not a valuation.

Ownership & money

City debt & tax-lien sale

Not on the city's tax-lien sale list (2019–2025). The owner has not fallen far enough behind on property tax or water charges to be flagged for a lien sale.

City debt & tax-lien sale