A judge has approved a $2 million judgment against the partners of deceased Scarsdale real estate developer Howard N. Blitman for their share of a bank loan they guaranteed to finance a Mahopac housing project.
Gary S. Peresiper and his MPI Development Inc. had argued that they didn’t have to pay back Tompkins Mahopac Bank because Blitman had the primary obligation, he had pledged collateral, and his estate had paid off the loan.
But Westchester Supreme Court Justice Linda S. Jamieson decided in an April 14 ruling that the bank was not required to collect on the collateral first before enforcing the guarantees.
Peresiper, of Montvale, New Jersey, had worked with Blitman on real estate projects for nearly 20 years, according to court records, and he regarded Blitman as a friend and mentor.
In 2017, they borrowed $2 million from the bank to finance development of Random Ridge, a 29-house subdivision in Mahopac. Blitman, Peresiper and MPI Development each guaranteed the loan. Blitman also pledged as collateral his Charles Schwab brokerage account.
Blitman died in 2021, at age 94, and his estate became responsible for his debt. His daughter, Robin Winter, was named executor.
The loan eventually increased to $3 million. In September 2022, the bank issued a default notice and demanded $3,034,768. Â Winter paid the entire loan from assets other than the pledged collateral.
Then in December 2022 she sued Peresiper and MPI Development, demanding their share of the debt.
Both sides asked the court for summary judgment in their favor.
There is no dispute that loan documents refer to the collateral, Jamieson found. But if the collateral was meant to be used first, before collecting on the guarantees, there were many opportunities to say so in the documents.
“Yet, none of them do.”
She said Peresiper and MPI Development submitted no caselaw supporting their position that they did not have to contribute anything once Winter extinguished the loan.
Repayment of the loan was not optional, Jamieson found. Winter’s only choice was to wait for Peresiper and MPI Development to contribute their shares – while interest and fees accrued – or to pay the bank up front and seek their contributions later.
Winter was within her rights to repay the bank as she saw fit, Jamieson said. “There is no legal basis for the court to second-guess (her) business judgment.”
Jamieson directed Winter to submit a proposed judgement that includes interest that Peresiper and MPI Development each owe on their $1,011,589 obligations.
Peresiper and MPI Development have appealed the decision.
