The report found 38 instances in which landlords and brokers Ben Ashkenazi, Israel Revivo—who is also Ashkenazi’s step-father—and Joy Azuaru, used brokerage firms FutureHomes, Endless Realty and Asset Homes to receive broker fees they did not earn.
From 2010 to 2021, DSS paid Ashkenazi and Revivo $87,213.60 in broker fees in connection with 29 clients in need of housing. Ashkenazi and Revivo were brokers at FutureHomes, and they placed all 29 clients in buildings they owned, according to findings from the report. False certification is punishable as a misdemeanor under the state’s penal law.
DSS also paid $19,581.30 in broker fees to Endless Realty and Asset Homes, where Azuaru worked as a broker while finding homes for nine homeless individuals. The report found Endless Realty and Asset Homes certified they were not affiliated with the owner of the actual rental unit, when in fact the units were owned by Azuaru.
Per DSS rules, a broker participating in a rental assistance program can only earn a fee if they are not affiliated with the landlord in any way. Diane Struzzi, a spokesperson for the Department of Investigation said there are no criminal charges associated with the report.
Revivo and Azuaru argue they provided information to DSS clearly stating they were both brokers and landlords, and that the responsibility fell on the department of social services to identify their affiliations.
Strauber admits that although the brokers and landlords made false certifications for the fees, DSS had sufficient information to identify the affiliation but failed to do so.
DOI found that in “numerous occasions that rental packets included sufficient information for DSS to determine that the broker and the landlord used the same address, which should have prompted further questions about a potential affiliation.”
Nicholas Jacobelli, a spokesperson for the Department of Social Services, said the department has already instituted changes in response to the findings from the report.
The department has updated its forms, formalized its review process for brokers and landlords, and has begun performing back-end audits for potential conflicts of interest.
Crain’s could not reach Azuaru and Revivo by press time. Ashkenazi did not respond to a request for comment by press time.
