Franklin Realty Advisors Founder Chip Norton Files for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Amid $70M Debt

By Hank Stolz

Photo Eric Casey- Worcester Business Journal
Mercantile Building Photo – Kill the Ball Media

WORCESTER, MASS.- Worcester Business Journal’s Eric Casey reported the story that took everyone by surprise. That Chip Norton, Founder of Franklin Realty Advisors, was filing for Chapter 7 personal bankruptcy with almost 70 million in debt. Eric stopped by the Talk of the Commonwealth to fill us in.

Casey tells us that Norton’s personal finances are deeply intertwined with his company, Franklin Realty Advisors, through personal guarantees on business loans. The situation appeared to have “imploded” in the spring, when Norton resorted to using unregulated, high-interest merchant cash advances, signaling severe financial distress. Norton has stepped away from FRA which he founded. It is a long list of creditors and the IRS is among them. Norton is said to owe significant sums to tax authorities, including $511,000 to the IRS and $233,000 to the Massachusetts Department of Revenue.

Casey will continue to work on the story and as of now there are plenty of unanswered questions. “The two big questions I still have even after writing this piece that was pretty thorough and pretty in depth is really how did this happen exactly. And what does this mean moving forward for these properties?” The future of his key properties, which are central to downtown Worcester’s economy, are uncertain and of major concern.

As Casey points out, this isn’t just a Worcester story, this is a billion dollar company with holdings around the state. Chip Norton has always been well spoken of in the business community and is a perennial on the on the lists of Worcester’s most powerful. That is what makes this such a surprising and shocking story.