When You Sign a Guaranty, You Are the Backstop: What Every Business Owner Should Know Before Signing
A guaranty is your personal promise to pay someone else’s debt if they don’t. Understanding the types of guaranties, how lenders enforce them, and what defenses actually work is essential for any business owner, investor, or developer asked to sign one.
The Guarantor’s Defense — Part 5: Workout Strategy Without Making It Worse
Every decision made during a distressed workout — what to say, what to sign, what funds to move — is a potential data point in subsequent litigation. Part 5 of 5.
The Guarantor’s Defense — Part 4: Negotiating the Guaranty Before You Sign
Bad boy guaranties are negotiable. The borrower’s leverage is highest before signing. Here is what to push for — and what lenders will and won’t move on. Part 4 of 5.
The Guarantor’s Defense — Part 3: What the SPE Covenants Actually Say
SPE covenants are not boilerplate. A technical violation can convert a non-recourse loan into full personal recourse — and most guarantors can’t recite what theirs require. Part 3 of 5.
The Guarantor’s Defense — Part 2: Causation Is Not Automatic
A breach of a carve-out provision is not the end of the analysis. Causation is a separate element — and it is contested far less often than it should be. Part 2 of 5.
The Guarantor’s Defense — Part 1: The Lender’s Own Hands Are Not Clean
Lenders are not passive observers in distressed projects. Before defending against their claims, examine what the lender itself did — and didn’t do. Part 1 of 5.
Alleged “Bad Boy” Breaches: Where Lenders Actually Attack
When commercial real estate deals go sideways, lenders rarely lead with bankruptcy. They lead with waste, misapplication of rents, and SPE violations. Here is where they actually attack.
DSCR, Debt Yield, and Recourse Exposure: When Financial Metrics Become Personal Risk
DSCR and debt yield don’t trigger recourse by themselves. But the decisions sponsors make when those ratios fall often do.
Can I Just File Bankruptcy to Get Out of This Deal?
If your deal is in trouble and you have a bad boy guaranty, filing bankruptcy may be the event that converts a non-recourse loan into full personal liability. Read the guaranty first.
Bad Boy Carve-Outs: You Signed It — Now What Did You Actually Guarantee?
If you signed a bad boy guaranty, you were probably told the loan was non-recourse. That is only partially true. Here is what you actually guaranteed.
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