Arlene Farkas files for bankruptcy to save River House pad

The 14-room apartment at 453 East 52nd St. was slated to be sold at a foreclosure auction

From left: Arlene Farkas and 453 East 52nd Street
From left: Arlene Farkas and 453 East 52nd Street

Arlene Farkas, ex-wife of department store heir Bruce Farkas, has filed for bankruptcy protection to try to save her River House co-op from foreclosure.

Farkas filed for bankruptcy a few hours before the apartment at 453 East 52nd Street was about to hit the auction block, according to the New York Daily News. In return, the auction was postponed indefinitely, according to the newspaper.

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Last year, Farkas defaulted on more than $6 million in mortgage payments. She struck a deal with the French government to sell her unit in the iconic building for $7.8 million last year, but the building’s famously stringent co-op board shot down that plan, fearing it would disrupt the peace and quiet of the building.

Farkas will now have up to 18 months to pay the money she owes, the newspaper reported. The sprawling, 14-room unit — which includes a formal dining room, a separate breakfast room and maid’s quarters — was listed last month for $10 million with Sotheby’s International Realty’s Nikki Field and Patricia Wheatly. [NYDN] — Claire Moses