Jackson Heights Among Worst Neighborhoods For Eviction: Report

JACKSON HEIGHTS, QUEENS — The Jackson Heights-Elmhurst-Corona area was one of the worst in Queens for evictions in 2018, according to new data released Monday.

LeFrak City had the most evictions in the area, with landlord Phillip Wischerth evicting 102 families there last year, according to a Worst Evictors NYC map released Monday by tenants rights activists from The RTCNYC Coalition and JustFix.nyc.

Wischerth, who manages the LeFrak Organization, also evicted five families from his building at 42-42 80 St. in Elmhurst.

Landlord Chaim Schweid last year evicted seven families from his building at 34-15 94th St. and four families from 37-41 79 St. Landlords Donald Hastings and Maggie McCormick evicted eight families from Jackson Heights's La Mesa Verde apartment complex, the map shows, and Benedict Realty Group evicted five families in the neighborhood.

The groups also identified the four Queens landlords who evict the most families living in a Right to Counsel district, where city officials found low-income renters are most vulnerable to eviction:

1. Benedict Realty Group - Ely Singer, Jonah Rosenberg, Daniel and Ari Benedict
2. Estates NY Real Estate Services LLC/The LeFrak Organization - Phillip Wischerth
3. A&E Real Estate - Donald Hastings and Douglas Eisenberg
4. King George Apartments, LLC - Marilyn Metz

Tenant leaders and members of Catholic Migration Services on Thursday will canvass tenants who live in buildings owned by Benedict Realty Group.

New Yorkers curious about the eviction practices of their own landlords can use the Who Owns What tool to find out more.