Bklyn Homeowner David Sitt Sells for $12M, Marks One of the Priciest Deals in Borough

By:  Serach Nissim

A home in the posh Gravesend neighborhood of Brooklyn sold for over $12 million.

As reported by Crain’s NY, the deal is one of the most expensive home sales in Brooklyn for 2023.  The 5,200 square foot house was sold by David Sitt, an executive with the real estate investment firm Status Capital, for $12.2 million, per the deed which appeared in city property records on Thursday. The price is more than 8 times the median listing price for homes in the neighborhood.

The home buyer, for the house at 2043 E. Fourth St, is a shell company, which listed Thor Equities as its contact for the transaction.  Thor, the global developer, is founded by its chairman Joe Sitt, who is a relative and neighbor of David’s.  The paperwork was signed for the buyer by Morris Missry, an outside lawyer who regularly handles deals for Thor.  It’s not known if Joe Sitt intends to live in the newly purchased house, as he reportedly already owns a similar home on nearby East Fifth Street.  He had purchased that home in 2016, also for about $12 million.

Per Crain’s, the house, which closed on Dec. 12, doesn’t seem to have been on the market publicly, so details about the property and the transaction are limited. Thor’s spokeswoman did not return an email sent by Crain’s for comment. David Sitt and Status Capital also did not provide comment.  Public records show that the sold home is a three-story brick home, originally built in the 1920s.  It boasts nine bedrooms, four full bathrooms and two half-baths on a 40-foot-by-100-foot lot. David Sitt’s family appears to have owned the home since 1997, per property records.

Per Zillow’s property estimate, the home is valued at roughly $5 million, though the city recently assessed its market value at around $7 million.  It is not unusual for the city estimates to be considerably lower than the actual market price purchased at.  The sale did make news though, for being one of the highest priced home sales in the borough of Brooklyn this year.  Only two individual homes appear to have sold for higher prices, based on closings through Dec. 22 featured on StreetEasy. The most expensive home sold in Brooklyn in 2023, was for about $15 million.  That home at 271 Hicks St., is a mid-1800s Greek Revival located in Brooklyn Heights’ historic district, per property records.

The sold home’s median price was impressively higher than others in the area, with houses available for sale in Gravesend, as of Friday, showing a median price of $1.4 million, per data on the listing site StreetEasy.  Most homes that sold at prices comparable to this sale, were “brownstones” in posh neighborhoods like Boerum Hill.

One of the only other homes to sell for such a high price in 2023 in the nearby area, was a home sold by David’s own mother Marilyn Sitt.  Mrs. Sitt sold her home in July also for $12 million. The brick home at 509 Ave. S, had been purchased by Jack Kassin, a textile executive and New York University benefactor, per Crain’s.

Thor Equities, which seems to be linked to the home buyer, is a major owner of land in the amusement zone in Coney Island,  as well as owner of properties in Manhattan, London, Paris and Madrid.