RHONJ’s Margaret Josephs accused of IGNORING $165K foreclosure lawsuit as ex-business partners beg judge to make her pay

REAL Housewives of New Jersey star Margaret Josephs has been accused of ignoring the $165,000 foreclosure lawsuit against her, as her ex-business partners have begged a judge to make her pay up. 

Margaret, 54, and her husband, Joe Benigno, were initially sued for $180,000 on February 9, 2022 for defaulting on settlement payments from a previous foreclosure lawsuit. 

Joe was served with the court papers on February 21, 2022. 

But despite being served, the RHONJ did not respond to the lawsuit. 

In a letter to the judge, the Plaintiff’s lawyer wrote: “[Margaret and Joseph] have not submitted opposition papers to the court. As such, Plaintiffs respectfully request that you grant its motion for Judgment by Confession.”

They are now asking for $165,000, which is the outstanding balance as of February 16, 2022. 

A judge will decide on the request later this week. 

PAY UP?

As The Sun previously reported, Plaintiffs Charles and Camille Ardito claimed they purchased two homes in Englewood, New Jersey. 

To convince the Arditos to enter the agreement, Margaret allegedly said one of the properties “could be quickly flipped for a profit.”

Margaret and Joe allegedly agreed that they would purchase one property for $1,100,000 and the second, which is the home the RHONJ stars live in today, for $1,800,000.

The court papers read: “The agreement called [the Arditos] to provide $400,000 for the purchase of the properties. [The Arditos] eventually provided $440,000 to be used by [Margaret and Joe].”

The Bravo stars agreed to contribute $180,000 to the purchase price of the properties. 

But the Arditos claimed that Margaret and Joe bought the first home for $1,500,000 instead of $1,100,000 and the second house for $1,800,000 instead of $1,400,000. 

The lawsuit continued that Margaret and Joe “falsely represented that there were no judgments against them” when applying for the mortgage loans. 

The court papers continued: “In fact, between the two of them, Defendants had judgments entered against them totaling over $330,000 that would constitute liens on the Properties, if docketed, and they soon were after the closing.”

The court papers alleged: “The Defendants did not make the mortgage payments required in connection with the loans. Defendants defaulted on the [first property] by failing to make payments due and owing on July 1, 2017. 

"They defaulted on the [second property] by failing to make the payment due and owing on September 1, 2017.”

In December 2017, Unity Bank filed a foreclosure complaint against Margaret and Joe, which was reported at the time of the filing. 

The Arditos claimed they “were unaware that the Foreclosure Action had been filed” and were not told by the reality stars. 

According to court papers, the first property was sold on August 23, 2019 for $100 and the second, where Margaret and Joe live today, was not sold. 

FIRST LAWSUIT

The Arditos sued Margaret and Joe in 2019 for Breach of Contract, Breach of the Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing, Fraud, Unjust Enrichment and Equitable Lien/Mortgage. 

The parties agreed to settle in April 2021. 

The lawsuit claimed Margaret and Joe agreed to pay the Arditos $280,000. 

This would be provided by a first payment of $25,000, then $35,000 every 90 days from July 2021 to October 2022, and a final payment of $45,000 on January 2023. 

Margaret and Joe allegedly made the first payment and two installment payments. 

When the January 14, 2022 payment came around, they only paid them $5,000 out of the $35,000 due. 

They initially sued for $180,000 at the time, as that was the remaining amount for the settlement. 

PAST MONEY TROUBLES

Margaret has struggled with financial issues for years. 

The Sun previously reported Capital One Bank sued Margaret on December 5, 2019 for $12,172.86. 

The lawsuit read: “Defendant failed to make periodic payments on the Account, which was subsequently charged off.

“The entire balance on the account is owed to Plaintiff and is presently due and payable in full.”

The court papers continued that Capital One has demanded payment of the credit account, but the star of the hit Bravo show allegedly “has failed and refused to remit same.”

Margaret was ordered to pay the judgment. 

Margaret was also sued in March 2018 by a law firm for an unpaid legal bill in the amount of $3,568.73.

She was ordered to pay $3,744.10 in July 2018.

Back in 2014, competitor Vineyard Vines sued her company Macbeth Collection for trademark infringement.

On a November 27, 2019 episode of RHONJ, said of the lawsuit: “I’m coming off a rough couple of years. I had a horrible lawsuit with Vineyard Vines... They accused me of stealing their logo, which I did not do.

“I settled for around $300,000 because I could not afford to go to trial. I filed for bankruptcy in my business. They put a lien on my property. I’m up to my eyeballs in legal bills.”

HOME RENOVATIONS

But the financial woes didn’t stop her from renovating her home, as she showed off the "a rock and roll hotel” themed abode in 2021. 

She told Bravo TV: ”This is a restoration, as opposed to a renovation. [Updating] a 115-year-old house isn’t like building a new house. I had a feeling it was gonna take a while. I mean, not this long." 

Margaret stars on the current season of RHONJ.