HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Former Bachelor Aaron Buerge is speaking out after filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy last week.
In an interview with People magazine, the banker and restaurant owner said his problems were aggravated by the collapse of a bank that held a loan for his restaurant business – a loan that the new note-holder wanted him to pay back more quickly than he had planned.
"I’m not broke," the Season 2 star insisted to the mag. "I’m not in financial distress – nothing like that. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be paying everybody."
In fact, Buerge said all of his businesses are operating normally as he pays back the loan in question.
"We’ve been making payments … every month, but they’ve just been pushing to come after some private assets that I might have," he said.
Now a married father of an 18-month-old girl, Buerge said protecting his loved ones is his top priority.
"I’m more focused on my family than on continuing to pay to fight the lawsuit for who-knows-how-long," he said. "I’m a family guy now. That kind of changes a guy’s priorities in life."
