A rich real estate developer who killed himself in July had only $8,000 in his bank account and a pile of debt amounting to $34 million, according to court papers.
Brandon Miller, 43, also left behind a suicide note that said a last-ditch effort to save his fortune through a new business deal had fallen through, and that he had no hope. While his wife Candice and their two daughters were off on a European vacation last month, Miller killed himself by carbon monoxide poisoning from car exhaust. He started his car in his closed garage and eventually died.
A family friend flew Candice and the two girls back to the U.S. on hearing the news. Miller had not died immediately and was in the hospital on life support, where his family was able to visit him until the machines were turned off on July 3.
Almost half of Miller’s debt was related to the plush mansion he owned in the Hamptons; the house is now for sale at an asking price of $15.5 million. Meanwhile, widow Candice Miller is dealing with creditors. She’s facing four outstanding loans on the Hamptons house. One of them is an unpaid $2 million mortgage.
In addition to property bills, Miller left behind more than $11 million in personal loans from BMO Bank. He also owed $6 million to lender Donald Jaffe, who had funded some of Miller’s earlier projects, including some he worked on with his father. Jaffe is suing to get his money back.
His other creditors include American Express, and a cash lender in Brooklyn called Funding Club, from whom Miller had borrowed $266,000.
Media reports say he had taken out two life insurance policies that could be used to pay off his debts, but it is unclear if that will work. Nearly all life insurance policies are declared void if the customer commits suicide.
Like many wealthy men who get in over their heads, Miller appeared to be trying to keep up appearances as debt mounted. Miller and his wife had already had to sell a Manhattan townhouse, but they didn’t economize on their living arrangements, renting out a house on the Upper East Side for an eye-watering $47,000 a month in rent.
He may have been deceiving his wife about their financial status, as Miller reportedly assured her that the European trip she was about to take had already been paid for. But when Candice Miller arrived on the continent, her credit cards were all declined.
