Rubin Schron

Rubin Schron
Born	1939 (age 76–77)
Nationality	United States
Occupation	real estate investor
Known for	founder of Cammeby’s International Group
Net worth	$3bbillion (2014)[1]
Religion	Yeshivish Orthodox Judaism [2]
Spouse(s)	married
Children	eight

Rubin "Ruby" Schron is a New York real estate investor, landlord, and the founder of Cammeby’s International Group.

Early life

Schron grew up on the Lower East Side of Manhattan in an Orthodox Jewish family.^[3] His family entered the real estate business by using the proceeds from the death of his brother in World War II to purchase a small apartment building.^[3]

Career

Schron continued with the family business purchasing several buildings in the Bronx. In 1967, he founded the real estate investment company Cammeby’s International Group.^[3] Typically partnering in all his transactions, Schron steadily grew the business. In 2007, Cammeby's was managing over $1 billion in assets.^[3] Rubin Schron partners with Avrohom Fruchthandler president of FBE Limited on almost most of his large real estate deals.

Significant transactions include:

• In 1998, he and partner Steve Witkoff purchased the Woolworth Building for $137.5 million.^[3]
• In 2003, he purchased 6,000 outer borough apartments the estate of Fred Trump.^[3]
• In 2007, he sold 4,000 Mitchell-Lama apartments for $940 million to Urban American Management and its private equity partner, City Investment Fund.^[3]
• In 2011, he sold the Lionel Hampton Houses in Harlem to real estate investor Israel Weinberger for $32.5 million.^[3]
• In 2013, he made an unsuccessful bid for the Empire State Building.^[4]
• In 2013, he purchased the Monterey, a 521 unit apartment tower, for $250 million from The Related Companies.^[5]

Nursing home investments

In 2002, Schron was advised by his friend and attorney, Leonard Grunstein, to purchase two large nursing home chains with over 18,000 patients and 183 facilities spread out over 27 states for a combined $1.4 billion.^[3] In 2003, the bankrupt Integrated Health Services (renamed SavaSeniorCare) was purchased and in 2004, Mariner Health Care was purchased.^[6] Schron financed the entire transaction.^[7][8] They split each company into two entities: a real estate company which would hold the real property (run by Schron); and an operating company that would run the nursing homes (run by Grunstein and a banker named Murray Foreman). The operating company would make lease payments to the real estate company.^[3]

In 2006, whistleblower Adam B. Resnick filed a lawsuit under the False Claims Act against nursing home pharmaceutical supplier Omnicare and Schron's two nursing home chains, Mariner Health Care and SavaSeniorCare alleging that the two nursing home chains solicited kickbacks from Omnicare in exchange for 15-year contracts to utilize Omnicare's pharmacy service. In December 2008, the U.S. Department of Justice joined the lawsuit. In November 2010, Omnicare, denying any wrongdoing, settled by paying $19.8 million to the federal government. In February 2010, Mariner and SavaSeniorCare paid $14 million to settle their part in the alleged fraud.^{[8][9][10][11]}

The partnership deteriorated after Schron was told by Grunstein that he could not raise rent payments even while interest rates were rising. A lawsuit resulted and Schron countersued to exercise a $100 million option to purchase the nursing home side of the business. Schron, represented by attorney Andrew J. Levander, prevailed and in 2012, he took full control of the two nursing home companies with a combined $1.4 billion in revenues.^[3]

Personal life

Schron is married and has eight children.^[3] He lives Brooklyn in the same single-family home where he raised his family.^[3] He leads a simple life and eschews interviews.^[3]

References