Owners & management · Deals & development · 10/21/2026
Condo owners sue Jeff Simpson-tied LLCs over $240K in unpaid charges
Condo owners and manager Irvine Realty Group are suing three LLCs tied to developer Jeffrey Simpson in New York County over unpaid common charges at 1055 Park Avenue. They say Simpson, his wife and a relative control the board, blocking collection. Simpson cites his personal Chapter 11 case and disputed foreclosures, but a judge ruled the bankruptcy stay does not cover the LLCs.
Reported by The Real Deal · New YorkRead the original ↗
What happened
Owners and the management company at 1055 Park Avenue, a six-unit condo on the Upper East Side, have sued three LLCs that are now or were once tied to developer Jeffrey Simpson, a co-founder of Arch Companies. The Real Deal reported on Oct. 21, 2026 that the LLCs own four of the building's six units and allegedly owe nearly $240,000 in unpaid monthly common charges. The complaint was filed in New York County the week before and updated on Wednesday.
The suit says the other owners cannot act on the debt through the board because Simpson controls it. He serves as president, and his wife and another relative are also members, according to the documents. The plaintiffs, Irvine Realty Group and the other owners, are asking the judge to let them pursue the case without board approval. Their attorney did not respond to The Real Deal's request for comment.
The complaint breaks the debt down by unit. The penthouse and Unit 1 owe roughly $149,000. Those units are now held by an entity that took over Simpson's ownership, and the complaint says the condo bylaws make new owners liable for a predecessor's unpaid charges. Unit 4 owes roughly $81,000 and Unit Suite owes $8,600. Simpson appears to still hold those two units through two LLCs named in the suit. He bought all four units in 2021 for a combined total of roughly $7 million.
Simpson called the suit an attempt to "weaponize the board without the authority of the board." He said he has not paid charges on the apartment he lives in because of a personal Chapter 11 bankruptcy he voluntarily filed in February. In August a bankruptcy judge ruled that the automatic stay does not apply to the entities that own or owned the condos. Simpson also said he has repeatedly asked the officers of New York 555 to pay the charges on the other two units, that neither unit has been rented since, and that a lender is "pretending to own them" after what he called faulty foreclosures.
Key facts
- Address
- 1055 Park Avenue, Upper East Side, Manhattan
- Building
- Six-unit, 19-foot-wide, all-glass condo developed by Trevor Davis
- Amount claimed
- Nearly $240,000 in unpaid common charges
- Breakdown
- About $149,000 (penthouse and Unit 1), about $81,000 (Unit 4), $8,600 (Unit Suite)
- Plaintiffs
- Irvine Realty Group and the other condo owners (1055 Park Avenue Condominium)
- Court
- Filed in New York County
- Original purchase
- Four units bought through LLCs in 2021 for roughly $7 million
- Bankruptcy
- Simpson filed Chapter 11 in February; in August a judge ruled the automatic stay does not cover the condo-owning entities
What it means
Buyers and owners
The complaint relies on bylaws that make a new owner liable for a prior owner's unpaid common charges. Anyone taking over a condo unit, including through a foreclosure or loan takeover, should check the unit's charge history and the bylaws before closing.
Landlords
Small landlords who rent out condo units depend on a board that collects charges from every owner. When a few owners control the board and stop paying, the remaining owners can be left covering costs while they seek court permission to sue.
Tenants and voucher holders
Simpson says the penthouse and Unit 1 have not been rented since the loan takeover. The material does not say whether any current tenants in the building are affected.
The highlights
- The three LLCs own four of the six units at 1055 Park Avenue on the Upper East Side.
- Owners ask the judge to let the case proceed without approval from the Simpson-led board.
- Charges total about $149,000 for the penthouse and Unit 1 and $81,000 for Unit 4.
Why it matters Landlords
Small condo owners may face unpaid charges and board deadlock when one owner controls most units, and buyers can inherit a prior owner's debts.
What to do: Check your condo bylaws on whether new owners inherit a prior owner's unpaid charges.
Not known yet
- How and when the court will rule on letting the owners sue without board approval
- Which entity now holds the penthouse and Unit 1, and its response to the suit
- Whether the foreclosures Simpson calls faulty are being challenged in court
- Whether any liens have been filed against the four units
Background
In New York condos, each owner pays monthly common charges that fund building operations such as staff, insurance and repairs. The board, elected by owners, normally decides whether to pursue owners who fall behind, and state condo law generally allows the condo to place a lien on a unit for unpaid charges. Courts usually defer to board decisions under the business judgment rule, but that deference can be questioned when board members have a personal stake. A Chapter 11 filing generally triggers an automatic stay that pauses most collection efforts against the debtor, though a bankruptcy court can rule on whether it reaches related entities.
Summary written by Bulwark from The Real Deal · New York’s reporting. The original story is at therealdeal.com. This is general information, not legal advice.
Related
Follow Bulwark on WhatsApp
Deadline countdowns, rule changes, voucher rents and breaking NYC housing news in your WhatsApp Updates. Free.
Send the message that opens, then save our number. WhatsApp only shows updates from saved contacts.
Brooklyn, NY
Want a manager who tracks this for you?
Rent, repairs, filings and deadlines handled, with one clear statement a month.
Photo: Andre Carrotflower, CC BY-SA 4.0