The easy thing for Justin Fineberg would have been to stay in Atlanta, where in less than five years he put together more than $300 million in developments and deals.
But, something internally made Fineberg want to come back to his Buffalo-Niagara roots and get involved with the local real estate world.
“I've always loved Buffalo. I always thought I'd come back. You know, I love the sports, I love the people, the food. I mean, you name it. I'm a huge Buffalo fan,” Fineberg said.
In his first deal, Fineberg and his father, Dr. Marc Fineberg, created Dofi Properties and paid $3.2 million for 11 former Trocaire College properties along Agassiz Circle and Humboldt Parkway that they will be renovating into a series of apartments and single-family homes.
In all, 28 residential units will be created among the properties that Trocaire had bought from the now-closed Medaille University.
The $7 million project is just getting started.
“It just made sense for someone as energetic as I am, and I’m pumped to be back,” Fineberg said. “I think it was a great first project for Dofi Properties.”
Dofi Properties emerged from several interested investment groups that were scouting the properties, said Shana Stegner, CBRE Upstate New York managing director, who put the deal together with her fellow CBRE brokers Sarah Cashimere-Warren and Julie Greene.
“I think it takes a developer that has the time to put work into these 11 properties,” Stegner said.
The 11 properties are just the beginning for Dofi Properties, Fineberg said.
The deal completes the sale of all the former Medaille properties along Agassiz Circle and Humboldt Parkway. Two years ago, Charter School Development Corp. paid $9.9 million for 14 acres and several buildings Medaille owned. Buffalo Academy of Science Charter School leases those buildings and land.
