An Upper East Side landlord, charged with shooting an elderly tenant to death, is shopping around his Madison Avenue properties in a lease deal that could earn him millions.
Louis Hubrecht was charged with murder last September for allegedly gunning down Barbara Kenna, 69, a longtime tenant who he said constantly complained about heat and hot water at his rent-controlled building at 700 Madison Ave.
Now, with his trial due to start next month, Hubrecht, 66, is quietly seeking takers for a lease on the six-story brownstone and the adjoining six-story building at 698 Madison.
Real-estate sources said his representatives are proposing a 35-year lease that would pay Hubrecht some $8 million in a lump sum for both buildings. Whoever leases them would manage them and collect all rents.
The allure for a prospective lessee would be in renting out the retail spaces at top dollar once the current tenants’ agreements expire.
The property, between 62nd and 63rd, is on Manhattan’s Gold Coast, a block from Barneys.
Also, as apartments become vacant, the new operator could fix them up and rent them for a lot more money.
Hubrecht, who is free on $2 million bail, claimed Kenna threatened him with a hammer. After shooting her, he stepped over the body and carried out the trash, cops said.
Real-estate sources said the two buildings would sell for $6 million to $8 million each. But the lease deal could be a way of bringing in cash without having to pay capital gains.
