Influencer can escape New York, but not $40K in unpaid rent: lawsuit

Caroline Calloway, the influencer famous for plagiarizing Instagram captions and hosting creative writing workshops derided as “blatant scams,” ginned up another controversy this month with her recent move from New York.

The celeb ditched the city for Florida early this month after a series of going-away parties documented by Curbed. Calloway told the publication she wanted to leave the “clout-chasing” behind, settle into a quieter life and focus on writing her memoir.

But there’s one status symbol she can’t shed so easily: the cost of New York living. A filing in Supreme Court last Thursday shows Calloway left Gotham owing $40,000 in rent.

Calloway had lived at 205 West 13th Street since 2011, before she’d gained any Instagram fame. Last year, she extended her lease through Aug. 31, 2022, a complaint filed in New York Supreme Court Thursday shows.

But as Curbed reported, Calloway, to the surprise of her landlord, decided this month would be a better time to go. On March 1, Calloway moved all of her possessions out of the apartment, leaving it “completely bare and vacant.” Presumably, the white paint Calloway used to coat her hardwood floors, working around piles of laundry, remained.

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Instead of handing over the keys and exiting the lease, Calloway passed them off to a couple of friends before heading to the airport and missing her flight, Curbed reported.

Poet Rachel Rabbit White and author Nico Walker, a couple who married for the second time last month, moved in a few days later.

But Calloway could be back in the city sooner than she thought: The limited liability company that owns the building says that it never approved a sublet and that White and Walker’s tenancy is “a complete trespass.”

The complaint also alleges that Calloway hasn’t paid rent since September 2020. The statewide eviction moratorium insulated her from housing court until Jan. 15, or longer if she applied for emergency rental assistance.

The owner calculated Calloway’s arrears to be $40,844 and has also asked the court for monetary damages of no less than $25,000.