[2] The partnership are known for their attempted purchase of the Starrett City housing complex in Brooklyn, New York, for $1.3 billion on February 8, 2007 in one of the largest real estate transactions in history.
[3] New York's Mayor Michael Bloomberg expressed concerns over the new landlord's history of building violations.
[4][5] Clipper Equity attempted to buy the Starrett City complex, the largest federally subsidised housing development in the United States, for a then record $1.3 billion on February 8, 2007.
According to the Associated Press, Housing Secretary Alphonso Jackson said Clipper Equity, the prospective buyer of the complex, failed to explain how it would remain an affordable community.
[citation needed] Due to past irregularities, Clipper Equity was banned for life in 1998 from converting apartments to condominiums or co-ops in New York State.