Developer Jeremy Morton, who has been amassing a large commercial portfolio in the Hamptons over the last few years, is facing mounting legal troubles. Several lawsuits have been filed against the East Hampton resident, claiming he has defaulted on more than $5 million in loans he personally guaranteed.
Morton and his Great Neck-based company, Excelsior Development, have been behind some of the biggest commercial deals in recent years, including a $30 million deal along the Sag Harbor waterfront last year, thanks to a $40 million loan, and the $8.4 million purchase of a multi-tenant building in the heart of Southampton Village. Along with investors, he also purchased Montauk’s Ruschmeyers and Rick’s Crabby Cowboy Café in multimillion-dollar deals in 2021.
However, according to a filing in Suffolk County Supreme Court, Morton hasn’t been able to make good on a $3.8 million loan he took in July from U.S. Strategic Capital Advisors, a limited liability company based in Alpharetta, Georgia.
Though Morton could not be reached for a comment, he told The Real Deal, “I am addressing these matters in the ordinary course. I take my obligations seriously and will continue to work constructively with all stakeholders as issues are evaluated and resolved.”
He personally guaranteed the loan to cover the debt, which allowed Strategic Capital to file the foreclosure action against two residential East Hampton properties, including his personal residence at 38 Chatfields Ridge Road, and a newly built house at 126 Long Lane.
By November 1, 2025, he failed to pay the full amount under the loan terms, the suit claims, placing the amount due at more than $4 million. The loan is now accruing interest at the aggregate rate of 23% annually, 8 percentage points above the non-default interest rate of 15% per annum.
Any foreclosure sale would have to cover the outstanding mortgages Morton also has on the properties — more than $3.8 million with TVC Funding for the Long Lane residence and a little more than $5 million with JPMorgan Chase Bank for his own home.
The 12,800-square-foot residence at 38 Chatfields Ridge Road, sited on 2.05-acres, is listed for rent for the first time, according to a Corcoran listing, asking $450,000 for the 2026 summer season.
As for 126 Long Lane, an 8,000-square-foot house on one acre sits close to the village. Completed last year, it was listed for sale at $7.4 million, but in October it dropped to $6,995,000. On Jan. 20, the asking price was slashed by $1 million to $5,995,000.
Several companies, ranging from painters to a land design firm, have mechanic’s liens on the home, totaling more than $165,000, according to the complaint.
Jeremy Morton’s Hamptons Portfolio
In February of 2025, Morton closed for a combined $30 million on 22 Long Island Avenue and 2 Main Street in Sag Harbor, buildings that had been purchased by Friends of Bay Street Theater, looking towards a new and permanent home for the Sag Harbor-based non-profit. With plans abandoned for the theater, Morton eyed both buildings for further commercial development and obtained a $40 million first mortgage loan from New York-based investment firm, Mavik Capital Management.
Mavik, which held $1 billion in assets under management since September 2022, describes itself as “a next-generation, multi-strategy investment firm built to deliver long-term outperformance. Founded by Vik Uppal, the company focuses on commercial real estate credit and special situations.
Mavik Capital could not immediately be reached for comment.
A year ago, a source told Behind The Hedges that Morton was planning for a major renovation is “to reposition the properties and bring rents in line with the area’s strong market demand.” Yet, no concrete plans materialized.
The property at 22 Long Island Avenue, a 0.67-acre parcel overlooking Sag Harbor Cove and John Steinbeck Waterfront Park, sold for for $18,885,000. It is home to a 15,000-square-foot, mixed-use building. The adjacent property at the foot of Main Street, a horseshoe-shaped, 4,600-square-foot building, traded for $11,150,000.
Morton is also tied to the purchase of the largest commercial building in Southampton Village in January 2024. The 19,865-square-foot building, located at 1-15 Hill Street and 1-17 Windmill Lane, at the corner of those two streets.
Provisions Natural Foods Market & Cafe, long based in Sag Harbor and under Morton’s ownership, announced in 2024 that it would be opening on the ground floor of that building.
In December of 2023, Morton sold the Napeague Stretch eatery, then called Morty’s Oyster Stand, which most still remember as Cyril’s Fish House. The sale recorded at $2.4 million after Morton’s Out East Restaurant Group bought the 0.57-acre property in 2019 for $1.3 million.
Under the name 161 2nd House LLC, Morton and investors purchased the nighttime hotspot Ruschmeyers in Montauk back in April of 2021 for $11,130,000. However, by 2022, Hedges learned that Morton was no longer involved with Ruschmeyers, whose ownership was then described as a new partnership, though the property had not been sold.
A group led by Morton paid $13.98 million, also in April of 2021, for Rick’s Crabby Cowboy, a five-acre property on Lake Montauk with a restaurant and marine and rental units. The deed includes 6.75 acres of underwater land and 22 slips in the marina.
Rick Gibbs, who had owned the property for more than 20 years, and Morton ended up suing each other that summer over the liquor license for the cafe. They settled out of court in 2023.
In the meantime, Morton proposed a 14-unit resort, a single-family residence and a 110-seat restaurant, along with a pool and a fitness center, for the East Lake Drive property, a plan rebuffed by town officials and later withdrawn. In May of 2023, a fire destroyed the existing restaurant along the water.
Mounting Financial Woes Loom
Earlier this month, M&T Bank filed a complaint against Morton and other companies tied to him for defaulting on more than $200,000 on a line of credit that dates back to 2021.
The companies were listed as Amagansett MOS Inc. (presumably once tied to Morty’s Oyster Stand as it lists that establishment’s former address) and Water Mill Grocery LLC, which lists the address at 15 Hill Street.
Just last week, Florence Building Materials, the parent company of Amagansett Building Materials, filed a $126,411 judgement against Morton and 73 Wainscott Stone LLC. for unpaid materials.
Morton also allegedly defaulted on $415,400 that he borrowed as a cash advance from Simply Funding just this past November. Last month, Morton entered into a confession of judgment — a legal agreement in which a borrower admits liability for a debt in advance without going through a full lawsuit first — with the lender. He only paid $20,770 to Simply Funding, leaving the balance owed at $394,630, according to the Jan. 13 filing.
What Becomes of Various Projects?
In addition to the commercial properties and interests, Morton has various residential projects in various stages of development. For instance, a 12,300-square-foot house on a two-acre lot in Bridgehampton, owned by another one of his limited liability companies, was last asking $11.25 million. It’s reportedly under contract.
A two-acre parcel at 850 Millstone Road in Water Mill has complete plans and permits in place for a 7,500-square-foot home. In addition, a guest house, a three-car garage, a pool, a pool house and a cabana can be built. The lot does not currently appear to be on the market.
What becomes of these, along with his commercial endeavors, remains to be seen.
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