Seymour Milstein, 81; Led N.Y. Banking, Real Estate Empire

Seymour Milstein, 81, head of a real estate and banking empire in New York City that includes the Emigrant Savings Bank, died Tuesday of pneumonia at New York Presbyterian Hospital.

Milstein and his younger brother, Paul, oversaw a multibillion-dollar real estate company with 3 million square feet of office space, 8,000 apartments and the bank, which is one of New York’s oldest financial institutions.

Milstein was born in New York City and graduated from New York University. Shortly after World War II, he joined Mastic Tile Co., a firm started by his father that flourished in the postwar housing boom.

The brothers worked together for nearly five decades, with Seymour handling financial details and dealing with banks. In later years, however, a succession battle divided the two men and led to a separation of the family business.