Neil Shekhter’s half-brother alleges $100M in unpaid loan payments

Developer and apartment landlord Neil Shekhter faces an unusual legal fight — not with city regulators, but with his own half-brother. 

Alex Nerush, Shekhter’s half-brother, filed a lawsuit last month against Shekhter, his wife, three children and firm WS Communities, alleging Shekhter owes him more than $100 million in unpaid loan payments. The complaint was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court. 

Nerush, who manages a number of limited liability companies tied to real estate investments, according to California state corporation filings, claims he has handed out money to Shekhter since 2009 — first with a roughly $9 million loan. 

From 2010 through 2014, Nerush invested about $19 million in Shekhter’s projects, according to the complaint, though he claims Shekhter has “failed to document” the investments. 

Neither Shekhter nor Nerush’s attorney responded to requests for comment. Shekhter has not filed a response to the complaint in court.

In 2016, Shekhter “offered to convert Nerush’s initial loans and his investments” into one five-year loan, the complaint states. 

Shekhter offered a $55 million loan, compounded at 10 percent, according to the complaint, which cites a 2016 email from Shekhter. The loan would mature in April 2021 and would have another five-year option, bringing the full maturity to April 2026. 

However, that amended loan was never completed — “Nerush never agreed to a five-year extension,” the complaint states. 

In February 2021, Nerush then “complained” Shekhter was not paying off the loan — prompting Shekhter to agree to start paying off the loan in monthly installments. Through October 2022, Shekhter allegedly promised to pay between $100,000 and $200,000 each month. 

But Nerush claims Shekhter owes “an amount in excess of $100 million” including accrued interest on the loans. 

Shekhter’s half-brother also claims that parts of his invested funds have been transferred to Shekhter’s wife, children and his firms. 

“The transfers were made in an attempt to deprive Nerush of the ability to collect on the debt owed by Shekhter to him, and were made with the intent to hinder, delay or defraud Nerush in the collection of his debt from Shekhter,” the complaint alleges. 

WS Communities is coming off a battle with the City of Santa Monica, after Shekhter’s firm filed more than a dozen applications to build apartments utilizing builder’s remedy — a legal loophole that allows developers to bypass local zoning and approvals for projects with affordable housing if a city does not maintain a state-approved housing plan. The development firm came to a settlement with the city in May.