A Manhattan Supreme Court lawsuit filed by the owners of 240 Central Park South alleges that Daniel and Susan Bancroft have accumulated $78,375 in unpaid rent and are occupying their luxury apartment without payment. The couple, who have resided in the white-gloved building since August 2023, allegedly stopped paying rent in full shortly after renewing their two-year lease on July 1, 2025.
The building owner, Central Park South Associates, L.L.C., claims the Bancrofts have not made rent payments for October and November 2025, paid less than the full amount in January and February 2026, and made no payments from April through July 2026. The lawsuit seeks to recover past, current, and future rent, along with an additional $50,000 for legal fees and expenses. The owners stated in the suit that they continue to incur expenses such as taxes for the property while the tenants occupy the apartment without paying rent.
According to court documents, the Bancrofts have faced previous financial difficulties. In July 2024, they were issued a federal tax lien of $223,873 while residing at the Central Park South address. Previously, in January 2020, they owed a $112,718 tax bill when living at a penthouse on West 66th Street. Additionally, a 2017 lawsuit filed by Malvern Federal Savings Bank for $74,107.46 in unpaid debt was dismissed without prejudice. The Bancrofts also filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy in Philadelphia in October 2012, which was dismissed less than a year later due to missed paperwork.
Daniel Bancroft, 66, is listed as a graduate of Johns Hopkins University and has served as the leader of the transportation practice at WTW, a global professional services firm, since January 2020. Susan Bancroft is 65.
Their former property in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, which they owned for approximately 20 years, was sold in June 2024. During their bankruptcy filing in 2012, they listed assets and liabilities in the range of $500,001 to $1 million.
240 Central Park South is a 28-story, 340-unit landmarked building located near Billionaires' Row, overlooking Central Park. Past residents of the Art Deco building include actresses Renée Zellweger and Angie Harmon, broadcaster Bill Boggs, and actress Sylvia Miles. The building features a fitness center and a rooftop lounge.
According to the lawsuit's complaint, it is anticipated that the tenants will not make further payments unless directed by the court, and the landlord is entitled to ongoing fees until possession of the unit is regained.