Kent Swig

Employees at Kent Swig’s real estate investment firm Swig Equities and commercial brokerage Helmsley Spears are reportedly feeling jittery and even looking for other jobs as their boss’ debt woes threaten to encroach on their own financial wellbeing. Swig has missed his staff’s payroll multiple times this year, one source told the Observer. While he has always made up the difference within a few days, staffers have hardly been encouraged by the incidents. Swig has also been served with an eviction notice on the two floors at 770 Lexington Avenue he leases from jeans retailer Diesel for the offices of Swig Equities and Helmsley Spears. And after this year’s auction of his failed condo conversion project at the Sheffield on 57th Street, Swig’s 140 Williams Street, which he bought for $24 million has been put into special servicing by lender Capital One. “I’m meeting with all his creditors and trying to come up with a global restructuring,” said Y. David Scharf, Swig’s attorney. Scharf said he hopes Swig “can live to fight another day, like many real estate developers have in the past and will in the future.” [NYO] [more]