Owner of failed medical college lists Gables home

Ernesto Perez, owner of failed Dade Medical College, listed his Spanish-style Coral Gables home for sale with an asking price of $2.15 million.

Dade Medical College closed in October and filed a court motion to sell its assets and pay creditors.

Perez’s two-story, 5,291-square-foot residence has five bedrooms, six and a half bathrooms, a large pool and Jacuzzi, and a garden. The master bedroom has a skylight fixture and appears to be approximately the same size as a studio apartment.

Coral Gables bankruptcy attorney Carlos Sardi told the Miami Herald that Perez and his wife have listed the home as their primary residence and claim the homestead exemption from property tax.

State law protects homesteaded property from creditor claims and lawsuit judgments, Sardi said.

County records show Perez and his wife own another Coral Gables home with a market value of $384,043.

The abrupt shutdown of Dade Medical College left about 2,000 students in academic limbo and a many of its former employees with back-pay claims. Some ex-employees have sued to recover money from the college and Perez. [Miami Herald] — Mike Seemuth