A hefty tax bill is coming due for Jeff Winick as his fall from the perch of his brokerage firm continues.
A bankruptcy judge ordered the Winick Realty Group founder to pay approximately $9 million to the Internal Revenue Service for income tax he failed to pay between 2012 and 2016, Bisnow reported. The judge declared Winick’s tax filings for those years an “outright fabrication,” though he was credited for paying $2 million in taxes from 2014 to 2020.
The bankruptcy judge’s decision was reported first by Bloomberg Law.
The ruling was years in the making. The IRS sued Winick in 2020, shortly after he filed for bankruptcy claiming $10 million in liabilities against only $500,000 in assets. The IRS alleged Winick was living it up and fraudulently transferring assets while ducking his income tax responsibilities.
In his defense, Winick pointed towards a gambling addiction, which cost him more than $12 million in the years prior to his bankruptcy. He also claimed he planned to pay his taxes with big business or gambling gains that failed to materialize.
The judge balked at his argument, pointing to years where Winick managed to gamble, pay taxes and still have the money for international trips, exorbitant rentals and family shopping sprees.
Winick also allegedly transferred business and property shares to his daughter for no consideration, which the IRS alleged was likely a method to dodge taxes.
Winick ultimately was forced to sell a stake in his brokerage several years ago. Steven Baker, now chief executive officer, teamed up with colleagues Louis Eisinger and Lee Block to purchase a majority stake in the company in 2021.
The insiders scored a 63 percent stake after being selected as stalking horse bidders, a controversial proceeding due to the alleged involvement of Winick’s daughter in the bid.
Last year, Winick Realty Group rebranded as RTL, a name designed to reflect a focus on the retail industry. Winick remains an active dealmaker and has been listed as an exclusive agent on many of the brokerage’s listings, continuing with RTL as an associate broker.
— Holden Walter-Warner
Read more
Bankrupt Winick being forced to sell stake in brokerage
Majority stake in Winick Realty auctioned to insiders as IRS waves red flags
Jeff Winick’s former brokerage charts retail-focused rebrand