Disgraced television star Bill Cosby and his wife Camille are facing a second foreclosure in New York City after defaulting on a $17.5 million loan for an Upper East Side townhouse. This latest financial setback comes less than a month after another Manhattan property faced foreclosure due to unpaid debts.
The six-story, 12,060-square-foot townhouse located at 18 East 71st Street, just steps away from Central Park in the Upper East Side Historic District, was purchased by Cosby as a surprise gift for his wife in 1987 during the peak of his fame on NBC’s “The Cosby Show.” However, the property, bought for $6.2 million, has spiraled into financial turmoil, with the couple accusing their lawyer, Mary Waller, of embezzling millions from them and transferring ownership to Camille’s mother in 1990.
Since June, the Cosbys have failed to make any payments on the $17.5 million loan and owe over $300,000 in property taxes, as revealed in Manhattan Supreme Court documents filed by First Foundation Bank. Additionally, the couple is grappling with a default on a $4.2 million loan for a separate Lenox Hill home at 243 East 61st Street that they have owned since 1980, leading to a lawsuit by CitiMortgage in December.
Cosby’s once esteemed reputation has been tarnished by allegations from over 60 women accusing him of sexual assault, culminating in a 2018 criminal conviction for drugging and assaulting Andrea Constand in 2004. Despite serving time in prison, Cosby was released in 2021 after a successful appeal to the Pennsylvania State Supreme Court.
The Cosby family spokesperson has declined to comment on the foreclosure proceedings, leaving many to speculate on the future of the couple’s real estate holdings in New York City. As the legal battles continue, the once-beloved actor finds himself entangled in a web of financial and personal turmoil that further cements his fall from grace in the public eye.
