‘Accident’ after contract signed stalls Rye developer’s deal

A Rye developer is suing a former neighbor who is purportedly disabled and unable to close a deal to sell her home.

Wolfpack Land Development Ltd., owned by Marc Castaldi, is demanding that Delois Spearman or her sister, Margaret Tucker, who claims to have power of attorney, complete the deal, in a complaint filed Aug. 1 in Westchester Supreme Court.

Spearman was injured in an accident after she agreed to the sale last September, according to correspondence, and was in an undisclosed rehabilitation facility, had suffered significant cognitive decline and was “unable to make any sound decisions for herself or execute any documentation on her own volition.”

The property in question is a two-family, 4-bedroom, 2 bath 1,950-square-foot house on 23 High Street that borders Gagliardo Park. Wolfpack used to be based across the street at 32 High St. and Castaldi, who has built, renovated or sold more than 200 homes since 1997, according to his website, owns a house that abuts the Spearman property.

Spearman put her house up for sale for $699,000 last September, according to the complaint. Wolfpack offered $625,000, and when that proposal was rejected, bid $713,000.

Spearman allegedly accepted the offer, but when her broker, Howard Hanna Rand Realty, said a higher bid had come in Wolfpack upped its offer to $725,000.

Both sides signed a sales contract, the complaint states, and Wolfpack paid a $72,000 deposit.

Then last November, before the deal was to formally close, Tucker’s lawyer notified Spearman’s lawyer that her sister had been in an accident. Tucker, of White Plains, claimed to have power of attorney for her sister, according to the letter, and had decided not to go forward with the sale. Wolfpack was told the deal was off.

Wolfpack responded by scheduling a “time is of the essence” closing on Feb. 18 and warning the sisters’ lawyers that failure to close the deal would be deemed a default.

Wolfpack prepared the paperwork and  authorized its bank to release $660,000 to complete the sale. But neither Spearman nor Tucker or their lawyers showed up for the closing.

Wolfpack is demanding that the sisters complete the deal and is asking the court to restrain them from selling the property while the lawsuit is pending.

The complaint also charges Tucker with interfering with a contract and is demanding $850,000 in damages from her.

“A power of attorney,” the complaint states, “does not give Margaret Tucker the right to … refuse to perform any of Delois Spearman’s duties and obligations under the contract.”

The sisters’ lawyers, Anthony Zurica and Thomas Kajubi, did not respond to an email request for their clients’ side of the story.

Wolfpack is represented by White Plains attorney David S. Klausner and Rye real estate attorney John P. Gardner.