Bankruptcy baron goes under for 7th time

James McGown will be forced to sell 8 Brooklyn properties

Brooklyn Buschenschank bar in Carroll Gardens
Brooklyn Buschenschank bar in Carroll Gardens

How many Chapter 11s is too many? For James McGown, a Brooklyn landlord who Crain’s dubbed the “Bankruptcy Baron,” the seventh time’s a charm.

After filing for his seventh bankruptcy in as many years, McGown will be forced to sell eight holdings, including the Brooklyn Buschenschank bar in Carroll Gardens, a four-story walk-up in Red Hook, two Gowanus apartment buildings and a Park Slope bar, according to Crain’s.

In July 2015, McGown filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for his real estate company Brooklyn Renaissance, and listed 10 properties, mostly in Brooklyn, and $13 million in debts. He attempted to sell off his properties shortly after but failed to get the prices he was seeking.

But McGown, who uses bankruptcy as a recurring survival strategy, says he’ll be back. “I’ll have no debt when this is done,” McGown told the magazine.

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He may very well be right. Five of his properties have already brought in a total of $14 million in offers or sales, according to court records cited by Crains — $1 million more than his total debt.

“I’ll rebuild when the market collapses,” he said.

If he does come back, it will be his eighth time, and even a cat has nine lives. [Crain’s]Chava Gourarie