Flushing, New York - July 28, 2008 - Kennedy Funding, one of the nation’s largest direct private lenders announced that it has closed a $7 million loan to the New York development company Bownetree, LLC for completion of residential properties in Flushing, Queens. Bownetree’s Sam Suzuki plans to use the funds to complete build-out of an 8,800 sq. ft. parcel comprising five attached low-rise rental buildings, each with five two-bedroom units.

Finishing the interior structure of the buildings mandated an expedited loan and considering the lag time usually associated with conventional lenders, Bownetree turned to Kennedy Funding and was able to close within weeks.

“The Bownetree loan gives us an opportunity to help further development in the New York metropolitan area,” says Jeffrey Wolfer, Kennedy Funding President and Co-CEO. “Queens traditionally has attracted a wide variety of residents and professional establishments and the Bownetree apartments show potential of being an important part of the residential landscape. The buildings are up and near completion and represent solid value and a stable lending risk.”

For collateral, Bownetree presented the five buildings with brick exteriors on 38th Avenue in Flushing and a four-parcel vacant tract on 37th Avenue. Once completed, each apartment in the existing structures will offer a balcony, two full baths, an equipped kitchen, gas heating and in-wall air conditioning. Fourth-floor apartments will be duplexes with direct roof access. Currently the vacant tract serves as a parking area but presents strong market potential as a future combined residential and medical-office facility. April and May sales of multi-unit Flushing residences indicate continuing vibrancy for this area of Queens, with per-square-foot prices reaching a high of $487.

“Given these figures and the area’s demographics in addition to the development possibilities of the vacant lot, once the apartments are completed, Bownetree’s vision for its property should reap good returns,” says Wolfer.

The Bownetree loan was one of three loans to close in a two-day period. The other two were an $8.8 million loan to MerueloMaddux, one of Los Angeles’s largest industrial developers, and an $11.5 loan to NRDP AZV, LLC, an Arizona mixed-use developer. Two months ago, the company closed four loans totaling almost $40 million in a single day, a significant feat in a stable market, almost unheard of in the current environment.

Kennedy Funding has finalized applications and closed loans within five days to qualified borrowers. Where some traditional lenders take months or more to complete the process through layers of employees, Kennedy uses a hands-on approach, with one-on-one lender-borrower communication along every step. Working directly with the borrower or through its wide network of brokers, the company uses its deep resources to fund projects ranging from $1 million to $100 million, with a loan-to-value ratio up to 70% for commercial land development, acquisitions, workouts, refinancing, bankruptcies, and foreclosures.