Domain Draws $175.6M From Wells Fargo for 429 Astoria Rentals

The Domain Companies has closed a $175,600,000 Wells Fargo construction loan on Elara, a two-building, 429-unit rental project at 35-33, 35-45 and 35-42 41st Street in Astoria, Queens. The debt recorded in three pieces, and the pieces reconcile to the dollar against the loan size the developer reported, which is not always the case.

Why it matters

Twelve months to the day separate the land trade and the construction debt, and both sit on the public record. That makes Elara a clean look at what a 429-unit Queens rental costs to capitalize right now.

On August 5, 2025, two deeds moved the three lots out of Mayer/Mayor Malbin Realty I LLC of Woodside for a combined $37,000,000, split $26,839,858.91 against the eastern site and $10,160,141.10 against the western one. Domain financed that with a $34,125,000 acquisition loan from Schroder Taft-Hartley Income REIT Holdings II. That Schroder loan was released by document 2026082500424006, which carries the same instrument date and the same recording date as the Wells Fargo debt. The takeout is visible in the record, not inferred from it.

The lots had no residential units at all. Before demolition, 35-45 41st Street was a 15,700 sq ft warehouse built in 1926, zoned M1-5/R9-1 with a residential FAR of 9.0. The other two, built in 1924 and 1989, sat on R7-3 lots at FAR 5.0.

The numbers

Three instruments dated August 5, 2026 reached the register on August 28: a $102,140,000 mortgage against Domain 41st Street Site A LLC, a $38,460,000 mortgage against Domain 41st Street Site B LLC, and a $35,000,000 agreement covering both. They total exactly $175,600,000.

The $102.14M and $38.46M split tracks the program. Elara East runs 18 stories and 330 units, Elara West 12 stories and 99 units, with 107 permanently affordable apartments and 4,000 sq ft of retail between them.

Our arithmetic on those records puts the construction debt at roughly $409,300 per unit and the land beneath it at about $86,200 per unit, or close to $495,600 per apartment before equity.

Canyon Partners Real Estate and BLDG Management have been reported in the trade press as equity partners. Neither appears in any ACRIS party record on these instruments.

What’s next

Separate mortgages on Site A and Site B mean the two buildings can draw, complete and stabilize on their own schedules rather than as one delivery.

See our coverage of the $145.9M posted against Astoria’s battery project and the New York market.