Skip to content
×
PRO
Pro Members Get Full Access!
Get off the sidelines and take action in real estate investing with BiggerPockets Pro. Our comprehensive suite of tools and resources minimize mistakes, support informed decisions, and propel you to success.
Advanced networking features
Market and Deal Finder tools
Property analysis calculators
Landlord Command Center
$0
TODAY
$69.00/month when billed monthly.
$32.50/month when billed annually.
7 day free trial. Cancel anytime
Already a Pro Member? Sign in here

Join Over 3 Million Real Estate Investors

Create a free BiggerPockets account to comment, participate, and connect with over 3 million real estate investors.
Use your real name
By signing up, you indicate that you agree to the BiggerPockets Terms & Conditions.
The community here is like my own little personal real estate army that I can depend upon to help me through ANY problems I come across.
General Landlording & Rental Properties
All Forum Categories
Followed Discussions
Followed Categories
Followed People
Followed Locations
Market News & Data
General Info
Real Estate Strategies
Landlording & Rental Properties
Real Estate Professionals
Financial, Tax, & Legal
Real Estate Classifieds
Reviews & Feedback

User Stats

7
Posts
43
Votes
Maria Dantas
  • La Palma, CA
43
Votes |
7
Posts

Turnkey Nightmare with Morris Invest - Indianapolis

Maria Dantas
  • La Palma, CA
Posted

Hi there fellow investors!

We've done our first turnkey purchase with Morris Invest in Indianapolis about 6 month ago. A house in a C neighborhood near downtown, for about 50k. For this price the house was supposed  to be renovated and ready to rend. We had a hard time receiving photos of the process, and communication wasn't that good. Morris Invest gave the management part to Ocean Point, and things just got worse from there on, everyone is always too busy to come to the line, and calls are never returned. We got an email saying the property was still empty and they were having a hard time putting a tenant in place.

So we've decide to come by Indianapolis and find out what  was going on... as most of you can already imagine, things were much worse than we expected. When we drove by the house we noticed right away that it was the only house in the neighborhood that didn't have any work done in a looooooong time. It looked empty from the out side, so we try to get a better look inside, and that's when we noticed there is people living in the house, by what looks like they are probably squatting! I talked to a lady in her twenties, who said that they bought that house, then said they were actually leasing, and already living there for 8 months, then changed her story to "we are living here for 4 months". I was standing by her door and could feel the strong smell of weed coming from the house.

We called Ocean Point, but as usual everyone was too busy to come to the phone. I was outraged and wanted to visit their office in person, only to find out the address they have listed on their website its only for mailing, and they don't actually have an office for the public.

It's safe to say that we didn't do our due diligence enough with this one, and looking back we would've done things much different.

It's my first time going through something like this, and I'm not sure how to best handle this situation, what would be the best action in this case? If anyone has gone to something similar any tips or advises would be greatly appreciated. 

Thanks in advance, 

Maria Dantas

User Stats

202
Posts
222
Votes
Son D.
  • Rental Property Investor
  • boston, ma
222
Votes |
202
Posts
Son D.
  • Rental Property Investor
  • boston, ma
Replied

@Jeremy Z. that is quite an undertaking considering all the parties involved. Right now we are currently gathering information on all the properties of investors who are planning on moving forward. We have started talking to lawyers but have not chosen an office yet.

@Joe Splitrock this is 200+ new investors that just woke up to the level of fraud and criminal activities just this past weekend. Overwhelming majority do not know what Biggerpockets is so this is all new to them. Initially people were still saying things like it's probably not a Ponzi scheme, Clayton probably doesn't know anything about it, etc. etc. It took over 100 emails of us telling each other our investment stories for everyone to agree that we got screwed by MI/OP. Then we got emotional. Then we got to work.

In addition, most if not all OP "rehabs" are trash. Most are not livable by normal standards. Doesn't matter who manages it, it can not be rented as is. Despite this lots of us have changed management with more jumping. I'm sure other management companies in the area have already or will be busy with messages. The ones that are on the fence are contemplating to force OP to honor their contract for rehab. People have poured tons of savings into MI/OP. All bought with cash. They may not have the funds to have someone else redo it properly for them.

It is not enough for them to simply go out of business and stop harming others. They've pocketed millions of our savings. For us this is both business and personal.

User Stats

9,999
Posts
18,553
Votes
Joe Splitrock
Pro Member
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Sioux Falls, SD
18,553
Votes |
9,999
Posts
Joe Splitrock
Pro Member
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Sioux Falls, SD
ModeratorReplied
Originally posted by @Jay Hinrichs:
Originally posted by @Joe Splitrock:
Originally posted by @Jay Hinrichs:
Originally posted by @Joe Splitrock:

Help me understand what is going on here. Ocean Point has been engaged in activities that go past bad management and many people believe raises to the level of criminal. They send a bulk e-mail to 250 clients who proceed to complain to each other. Why don't ALL 250 of you send a termination letter and hire an attorney? I don't get why you are all staying with this company. You call the police before you even terminate your contract? 

I talked about due diligence before the sale, but now that you own the property, take control and run it properly. That means FIRE THE DAMN PM. It is like you are all in an abusive relationship and refuse to leave. Get your property under control and get away from Ocean Point and Morris, then go after them for civil damages. 

Guess what else happens if you ALL fire them? They will go out of business and stop harming people. 

Joe this just goes so much deeper than what most would imagine.. these are 5 to 10k value ghetto homes that were in many cases never touched.. they are trashed.. and they are for all intense and purposes past their economic and or functional life span.. so these folks got talked into paying 40 to 50k for the property then sending an additional 5 to 15k to rehab them.. when in fact a proper rehab would never be warranted on these as it would be 25 to 40k.. each property..  it only works for locals who snag them for the 5 to 10k.. and keep them.. Morris took all the equity plus a bunch out of these and then to add insult to injury never rehabbed most of them and they have been sitting there rotting.. so as to create an illusion of a good company IE model that worked OP kept sending rent to these folks based on non existent tenants.. and or many other combinations of same. And for me personally I know for a fact Morris knew of this stuff LONG ago.. but kept charging on.. how could he not.. he sold hundreds of these.. and he takes videos in the market he could drive by a home and see it was not touched..

this is a very nasty case of high profile marketer who by the sheer position he had on TV and the internet was able to spin a tale.. and folks just thinking he was something it appears he is not ( expert real estate investor) got duped..

I would be livid as well. However there Is no doubt Morris preyed on absolute first time rental home buyers.. you here the back and forth of how little these folks understood about the transaction and how trusting they were.

Its easy for us who do this for a living and have been doing it for years to second guess it all. but that's what happened.. taking over these assets while all well and good  is not financially feasible in many cases.. in most cases they will just sell to the next low level wholesaler who will then sell to the next person who thinks they can make the hood work.

I am someone who looks for solutions, so my point is keeping the property with Ocean Point is nothing but trouble. If the property has a tenant in it, then they should move to a different PM. If the property is vacant and not in condition to rent, then they should consider either doing rehab or selling the property for a loss. 

After they sell the property for a loss, they can take Morris to court to sue for the difference. Taking a loss has some value in many cases, because you drop the nonperforming asset and take the loss against other income. Every month a property sits vacant, it deteriorates more and continues to cost money. 

Just sitting on these properties and begging Ocean Point and Morris to fix the problem, seems like a waste of time. How many times do you e-mail and call before realizing you need to move on? People are just banging their heads against the wall.

I would recommend taking action quickly, Once the house of card topples, there will be no money to sue for. Go after them quickly before they are gone (bankruptcy, jail, whatever their fate is).

I am not disagreeing that they were wronged, but they need to take action to resolve this. The same lack of due diligence that got them into this mess is keeping them from taking action to get out of it.

cant argue with that.. I think the issue is one for many its their entire cash lifesavings.. so its not as easy as taking a whopper loss .. they will be devastated.. for many they probably don't have the money to fix them up.

and they are just hoping something good happens.. I mean one guy called Morris out with a U tube video of a wreck of a duplex.. Morris doing damage control gets him to take it down promises to fix it.. and or buy it back.. to every ones shock and amazement the guy chose not to get bought out.. even though its documented these are not good long term investments.. so its a strange scenario here and well you cant help those that still believe in this cash flow dream.. they just don't understand no all cash flow is the same and that certain assets carry much higher risks than others..  

I am guessing some of these properties that Morris sold are performing better than others and are rented. Some may have even had decent rehab. So the first step for every investor is to figure out what they have. Is it worth keeping or better to dump it for a loss. I would personally take the money from Morris if he offered it. I wouldn't lose $50K on principal in this situation. Take the money, sign the non-disclosure and move on. The way this is headed, there will be no money a year from now. Anyone holding out waiting for some payday or vindication has a unrealistic view of how these type of things turn out. 

  • Joe Splitrock
  • BiggerPockets logo
    PassivePockets is here!
    |
    BiggerPockets
    Find sponsors, evaluate deals, and learn how to invest with confidence.

    User Stats

    41,790
    Posts
    61,559
    Votes
    Jay Hinrichs
    Professional Services
    Pro Member
    #4 All Forums Contributor
    • Lender
    • Lake Oswego OR Summerlin, NV
    61,559
    Votes |
    41,790
    Posts
    Jay Hinrichs
    Professional Services
    Pro Member
    #4 All Forums Contributor
    • Lender
    • Lake Oswego OR Summerlin, NV
    Replied
    Originally posted by @Son D.:

    @Jeremy Z. that is quite an undertaking considering all the parties involved. Right now we are currently gathering information on all the properties of investors who are planning on moving forward. We have started talking to lawyers but have not chosen an office yet.

    @Joe Splitrock this is 200+ new investors that just woke up to the level of fraud and criminal activities just this past weekend. Overwhelming majority do not know what Biggerpockets is so this is all new to them. Initially people were still saying things like it's probably not a Ponzi scheme, Clayton probably doesn't know anything about it, etc. etc. It took over 100 emails of us telling each other our investment stories for everyone to agree that we got screwed by MI/OP. Then we got emotional. Then we got to work.

    In addition, most if not all OP "rehabs" are trash. Most are not livable by normal standards. Doesn't matter who manages it, it can not be rented as is. Despite this lots of us have changed management with more jumping. I'm sure other management companies in the area have already or will be busy with messages. The ones that are on the fence are contemplating to force OP to honor their contract for rehab. People have poured tons of savings into MI/OP. All bought with cash. They may not have the funds to have someone else redo it properly for them.

    It is not enough for them to simply go out of business and stop harming others. They've pocketed millions of our savings. For us this is both business and personal.

    Son... you should share this lawsuit with your group.. this is the exact same model morris uses.

    this law firm has already layed the ground work

     

    User Stats

    41,790
    Posts
    61,559
    Votes
    Jay Hinrichs
    Professional Services
    Pro Member
    #4 All Forums Contributor
    • Lender
    • Lake Oswego OR Summerlin, NV
    61,559
    Votes |
    41,790
    Posts
    Jay Hinrichs
    Professional Services
    Pro Member
    #4 All Forums Contributor
    • Lender
    • Lake Oswego OR Summerlin, NV
    Replied
    Originally posted by @Joe Splitrock:
    Originally posted by @Jay Hinrichs:
    Originally posted by @Joe Splitrock:
    Originally posted by @Jay Hinrichs:
    Originally posted by @Joe Splitrock:

    Help me understand what is going on here. Ocean Point has been engaged in activities that go past bad management and many people believe raises to the level of criminal. They send a bulk e-mail to 250 clients who proceed to complain to each other. Why don't ALL 250 of you send a termination letter and hire an attorney? I don't get why you are all staying with this company. You call the police before you even terminate your contract? 

    I talked about due diligence before the sale, but now that you own the property, take control and run it properly. That means FIRE THE DAMN PM. It is like you are all in an abusive relationship and refuse to leave. Get your property under control and get away from Ocean Point and Morris, then go after them for civil damages. 

    Guess what else happens if you ALL fire them? They will go out of business and stop harming people. 

    Joe this just goes so much deeper than what most would imagine.. these are 5 to 10k value ghetto homes that were in many cases never touched.. they are trashed.. and they are for all intense and purposes past their economic and or functional life span.. so these folks got talked into paying 40 to 50k for the property then sending an additional 5 to 15k to rehab them.. when in fact a proper rehab would never be warranted on these as it would be 25 to 40k.. each property..  it only works for locals who snag them for the 5 to 10k.. and keep them.. Morris took all the equity plus a bunch out of these and then to add insult to injury never rehabbed most of them and they have been sitting there rotting.. so as to create an illusion of a good company IE model that worked OP kept sending rent to these folks based on non existent tenants.. and or many other combinations of same. And for me personally I know for a fact Morris knew of this stuff LONG ago.. but kept charging on.. how could he not.. he sold hundreds of these.. and he takes videos in the market he could drive by a home and see it was not touched..

    this is a very nasty case of high profile marketer who by the sheer position he had on TV and the internet was able to spin a tale.. and folks just thinking he was something it appears he is not ( expert real estate investor) got duped..

    I would be livid as well. However there Is no doubt Morris preyed on absolute first time rental home buyers.. you here the back and forth of how little these folks understood about the transaction and how trusting they were.

    Its easy for us who do this for a living and have been doing it for years to second guess it all. but that's what happened.. taking over these assets while all well and good  is not financially feasible in many cases.. in most cases they will just sell to the next low level wholesaler who will then sell to the next person who thinks they can make the hood work.

    I am someone who looks for solutions, so my point is keeping the property with Ocean Point is nothing but trouble. If the property has a tenant in it, then they should move to a different PM. If the property is vacant and not in condition to rent, then they should consider either doing rehab or selling the property for a loss. 

    After they sell the property for a loss, they can take Morris to court to sue for the difference. Taking a loss has some value in many cases, because you drop the nonperforming asset and take the loss against other income. Every month a property sits vacant, it deteriorates more and continues to cost money. 

    Just sitting on these properties and begging Ocean Point and Morris to fix the problem, seems like a waste of time. How many times do you e-mail and call before realizing you need to move on? People are just banging their heads against the wall.

    I would recommend taking action quickly, Once the house of card topples, there will be no money to sue for. Go after them quickly before they are gone (bankruptcy, jail, whatever their fate is).

    I am not disagreeing that they were wronged, but they need to take action to resolve this. The same lack of due diligence that got them into this mess is keeping them from taking action to get out of it.

    cant argue with that.. I think the issue is one for many its their entire cash lifesavings.. so its not as easy as taking a whopper loss .. they will be devastated.. for many they probably don't have the money to fix them up.

    and they are just hoping something good happens.. I mean one guy called Morris out with a U tube video of a wreck of a duplex.. Morris doing damage control gets him to take it down promises to fix it.. and or buy it back.. to every ones shock and amazement the guy chose not to get bought out.. even though its documented these are not good long term investments.. so its a strange scenario here and well you cant help those that still believe in this cash flow dream.. they just don't understand no all cash flow is the same and that certain assets carry much higher risks than others..  

    I am guessing some of these properties that Morris sold are performing better than others and are rented. Some may have even had decent rehab. So the first step for every investor is to figure out what they have. Is it worth keeping or better to dump it for a loss. I would personally take the money from Morris if he offered it. I wouldn't lose $50K on principal in this situation. Take the money, sign the non-disclosure and move on. The way this is headed, there will be no money a year from now. Anyone holding out waiting for some payday or vindication has a unrealistic view of how these type of things turn out. 

    agreed that's why I was shocked when the guy who got offered the buy out did not accept it..

    this will take on a life of its own

    Joe read this one..

    this is the exact model used by Morris..

    User Stats

    35
    Posts
    25
    Votes
    Carl Fredrickson
    • Wichita , Ks
    25
    Votes |
    35
    Posts
    Carl Fredrickson
    • Wichita , Ks
    Replied

    May I also suggest contacting, if they haven't been already,

    1. The Feds. I think this would fall under the jurisdiction of the FTC. Possibly also the CFPB. 

    2. CNBC's American Greed TV series. 

    User Stats

    202
    Posts
    222
    Votes
    Son D.
    • Rental Property Investor
    • boston, ma
    222
    Votes |
    202
    Posts
    Son D.
    • Rental Property Investor
    • boston, ma
    Replied

    Thanks Jay we'll look into that case.

    I doubt buying back is an option anymore. Clayton Morris was in the original list. When people got emotional they demanded answers from him. There were refund requests. Not a word from him.

    MI & OP didn't seem to coordinate well this past weekend, sending conflicting emails.

    User Stats

    51
    Posts
    48
    Votes
    Colin Zhu
    • San Francisco, CA
    48
    Votes |
    51
    Posts
    Colin Zhu
    • San Francisco, CA
    Replied

    Crisis management can reveal a lot about how well a company is managed and its leadership. This is very enlightening is all I can say.

    -Colin

    User Stats

    340
    Posts
    638
    Votes
    Tyler Jahnke#2 Ask About A Real Estate Company Contributor
    • Rental Property Investor
    • Oakland, CA
    638
    Votes |
    340
    Posts
    Tyler Jahnke#2 Ask About A Real Estate Company Contributor
    • Rental Property Investor
    • Oakland, CA
    Replied

    @Jay Hinrichs @Colin Zhu @Son D. @Steve K.

    Damage control today from Morris Invest. Clayton and Natali released an Official Statement:

    Recently customers of Oceanpointe Property Management were notified that the company is going out of business and transitioning to a new company called AHI Property Management. After search and discovery on behalf of our investors, we have found that this is not true. Oceanpointe Property Management remains in business and intends to continue to be.

    It appears that this notice from AHI was a premature announcement from an unsanctioned employee. The poorly-worded grammar and the fact that it was not a blind copy seems to corroborate that story but we have only half of the facts.

    At Morris Invest, we are as perplexed by this as you are.

    We have had a long-standing relationship with Oceanpointe for property management and rehabs. Last year, Morris Invest referred hundreds of investors to Oceanpointe. This created a backlog of rehabs and longer-than-expected completion timeframes on jobs. Because of this, we decided to start our own property management company in March called Blue Sky Property Management LLC operating solely in our Indianapolis market. We have also partnered with another property management company called Home River to meet the needs of our ever-expanding group of investors. This has allowed us to solve some of the overage problems that were created with Oceanpointe as our main partner in this market.

    Oceanpointe does not intend to turn its customers over to AHI. The statement below is from Shelby Glenn at Oceanpointe:

    "We had tried to work with AHI to strengthen our services and unfortunately that has not been the case. Many of you have been with us for a long time and know that we run a tight ship. Due to blogs and many other naysayers and competitors that have been all over us we have lost employees and clients. We have since replaced those employees and have people back out on the streets which is what makes us different then all other c class management companies . All of us at Oceanpointe intend to go forward as we have for the past 22 years. We are not going out of business we are merely restructuring going back to our old way of doing things that made us successful. Basically we are slowing down to speed up. We would love anyone who's interested in staying with us to schedule a call with Natalie Bastin or Herbert Whalen over the next 30 days to discuss how things will work going forward. If you're interested in staying with Oceanpointe please schedule a call with us we would love to talk to you and get you back on our team. To schedule this call please email myself Ericka, Bert or Natalie."

    At Morris Invest, we are feeling the profound effects of growth and restructuring. We are working to be an advocate for our investors, no matter who their property management company will be going forward. If you remain with Oceanpointe, they will handle any outstanding issues you will have from here on out. Please reach out to the contacts above. If you are in the midst of a rehab project, Morris Invest will work with the contracted team to move you across the finish line and reduce wait times to the best of our ability.

    Our promise to you is this: We will run our property management company to meet your needs with as much transparency and communication as we can. We will refer investors to companies that we know can meet their immediate needs. We will help you solve what needs solving to the best of our ability.

    We are very sorry for this confusion.

    Sincerely,

    Clayton and Natali Morris
    Co-Founders, Morris Invest

    User Stats

    41,790
    Posts
    61,559
    Votes
    Jay Hinrichs
    Professional Services
    Pro Member
    #4 All Forums Contributor
    • Lender
    • Lake Oswego OR Summerlin, NV
    61,559
    Votes |
    41,790
    Posts
    Jay Hinrichs
    Professional Services
    Pro Member
    #4 All Forums Contributor
    • Lender
    • Lake Oswego OR Summerlin, NV
    Replied

    @Tyler Jahnke  about 18 months too late..

    horse is already out of the barn ... its a stampede now..

    its like stealing a candy bar getting caught and oh we will just put it back and you should forgive us.

    User Stats

    340
    Posts
    638
    Votes
    Tyler Jahnke#2 Ask About A Real Estate Company Contributor
    • Rental Property Investor
    • Oakland, CA
    638
    Votes |
    340
    Posts
    Tyler Jahnke#2 Ask About A Real Estate Company Contributor
    • Rental Property Investor
    • Oakland, CA
    Replied

    @Jay Hinrichs - You're 100% correct.

    "Many of you have been with us for a long time and know that we run a tight ship." - Favorite line of it all. Still waiting to hear back from an email I sent 16 months ago. I'd say that's a pretty tight ship.

    -Tyler

    User Stats

    2,630
    Posts
    4,772
    Votes
    Steve K.
    • Realtor
    • Boulder, CO
    4,772
    Votes |
    2,630
    Posts
    Steve K.
    • Realtor
    • Boulder, CO
    Replied

    Morris blaming OP is not acceptable. Morris was selling the rehabs, he should have known it was going to cause a massive backlog and that he wouldn’t be able provide what he was selling. It’s called basic expectation setting and having a clue if you can deliver what you’re selling or not. Playing dumb is not okay when you’re dealing with people’s life savings. He should never have been giving financial advice to begin with, he’s not a CPA or an MBA or even an experienced investor, he’s a novice. He definitely shouldn’t have put himself in a position to be trusted with other people’s money given his lack of experience investing himself. Either he’s really dumb or knew it was a scam at some point during the last year and continued selling anyway. 

    User Stats

    2
    Posts
    1
    Votes
    Replied

    Does anyone know where Morris / OP was getting these properties?  Was if from wholesalers?  If so, does anyone know who?  I'd like to know.

    BiggerPockets logo
    BiggerPockets
    |
    Sponsored
    Find an investor-friendly agent in your market TODAY Get matched with our network of trusted, local, investor friendly agents in under 2 minutes

    User Stats

    41,790
    Posts
    61,559
    Votes
    Jay Hinrichs
    Professional Services
    Pro Member
    #4 All Forums Contributor
    • Lender
    • Lake Oswego OR Summerlin, NV
    61,559
    Votes |
    41,790
    Posts
    Jay Hinrichs
    Professional Services
    Pro Member
    #4 All Forums Contributor
    • Lender
    • Lake Oswego OR Summerlin, NV
    Replied
    Originally posted by @Connie Walker:

    Does anyone know where Morris / OP was getting these properties?  Was if from wholesalers?  If so, does anyone know who?  I'd like to know.

    city tax sale  city surplus and of course local wholesalers just need to follow a few of the deeds backwards.. I know wholesalers that were feeding them the inventory that's why I have more than a passing knowledge of this.. Morris knew he had a problem long ago 

    User Stats

    688
    Posts
    467
    Votes
    Paul Ewing
    • Investor
    • Boyd, TX
    467
    Votes |
    688
    Posts
    Paul Ewing
    • Investor
    • Boyd, TX
    Replied

    Morris implied that he had his crews doing the rehabs on the podcasts, YouTube videos, and in the call I had with them.  Evidently I asked them too many questions during the call because I never got any offers of properties. I think it was my reluctance to buy sight unseen and without an inspection.

    User Stats

    545
    Posts
    930
    Votes
    Ross Denman
    • Real Estate Consultant
    • Carmel, IN
    930
    Votes |
    545
    Posts
    Ross Denman
    • Real Estate Consultant
    • Carmel, IN
    Replied

    No, NO, NOOOOO.... don't pull that on. JENGA!!! It's over.

    AHI has purchased Oceanpointe. Their clients are scrambling. The phone has been ringing off of the hook and their clients are scrambling. I just left a 6-unit that was supposedly occupied by 3 tenants. The owner even had the leases. The home doesn't appear to have ever been rehabbed. Uploading video to the owner right now, I'm sure that he is going to be disgusted.

    For all of the victims looking for options and help, feel free to reach out to the good property managers here. There are several on this thread. Who are getting their hands dirty and trying to help.

    User Stats

    9,999
    Posts
    18,553
    Votes
    Joe Splitrock
    Pro Member
    • Rental Property Investor
    • Sioux Falls, SD
    18,553
    Votes |
    9,999
    Posts
    Joe Splitrock
    Pro Member
    • Rental Property Investor
    • Sioux Falls, SD
    ModeratorReplied
    Originally posted by @Jay Hinrichs:
    Originally posted by @Connie Walker:

    Does anyone know where Morris / OP was getting these properties?  Was if from wholesalers?  If so, does anyone know who?  I'd like to know.

    city tax sale  city surplus and of course local wholesalers just need to follow a few of the deeds backwards.. I know wholesalers that were feeding them the inventory that's why I have more than a passing knowledge of this.. Morris knew he had a problem long ago 

    Do any of these wholesalers feel any responsibility in this whole thing? Knowingly participating in a scam? I guess they get paid and probably sleep well believing "not my problem". I wouldn't be surprised if they have resold the same house more than once. It would be interesting to hear if any Morris owners are getting yellow cards in the mail.

    These wholesalers better be careful, because they could be brought down with Morris. I bet the same names start showing up if you dig deeper on this. 

  • Joe Splitrock
  • User Stats

    41,790
    Posts
    61,559
    Votes
    Jay Hinrichs
    Professional Services
    Pro Member
    #4 All Forums Contributor
    • Lender
    • Lake Oswego OR Summerlin, NV
    61,559
    Votes |
    41,790
    Posts
    Jay Hinrichs
    Professional Services
    Pro Member
    #4 All Forums Contributor
    • Lender
    • Lake Oswego OR Summerlin, NV
    Replied

    @Joe Splitrock   not sure about getting wrapped up but if this goes civil Rico there is a good chance anyone and everyone who had anything to do with this title companies etc will all get thrown into the mix.  And probably why some title companies refuse to work with Morris / OP anymore

    along with others in other markets that are selling the same stuff.. I can see a plantiff making the case

    Just like the class action i posted about with BuyPD  they were in multiple markets

    User Stats

    13,450
    Posts
    8,349
    Votes
    Steve Babiak
    • Real Estate Investor
    • Audubon, PA
    8,349
    Votes |
    13,450
    Posts
    Steve Babiak
    • Real Estate Investor
    • Audubon, PA
    Replied
    Originally posted by @Tyler Jahnke:

    @Jay Hinrichs - You're 100% correct.

    "Many of you have been with us for a long time and know that we run a tight ship." - Favorite line of it all. Still waiting to hear back from an email I sent 16 months ago. I'd say that's a pretty tight ship.

    -Tyler

    My favorite line was:

    "We will help you solve what needs solving to the best of our ability."

    What ability have they already demonstrated in all this ...

    User Stats

    41,790
    Posts
    61,559
    Votes
    Jay Hinrichs
    Professional Services
    Pro Member
    #4 All Forums Contributor
    • Lender
    • Lake Oswego OR Summerlin, NV
    61,559
    Votes |
    41,790
    Posts
    Jay Hinrichs
    Professional Services
    Pro Member
    #4 All Forums Contributor
    • Lender
    • Lake Oswego OR Summerlin, NV
    Replied
    Originally posted by @Steve Babiak:
    Originally posted by @Tyler Jahnke:

    @Jay Hinrichs - You're 100% correct.

    "Many of you have been with us for a long time and know that we run a tight ship." - Favorite line of it all. Still waiting to hear back from an email I sent 16 months ago. I'd say that's a pretty tight ship.

    -Tyler

    My favorite line was:

    "We will help you solve what needs solving to the best of our ability."

    What ability have they already demonstrated in all this ...

     Steve I think he lives in your area... I guess he is popular there ?  

    like I have said many have done this model but few have done the damage and gotten away with it so long.

    mainly in my mind by the Podcast he does and the new age of marketing on line.. its really something.

    User Stats

    13,450
    Posts
    8,349
    Votes
    Steve Babiak
    • Real Estate Investor
    • Audubon, PA
    8,349
    Votes |
    13,450
    Posts
    Steve Babiak
    • Real Estate Investor
    • Audubon, PA
    Replied
    Originally posted by @Jay Hinrichs:
    Originally posted by @Steve Babiak:
    Originally posted by @Tyler Jahnke:

    @Jay Hinrichs - You're 100% correct.

    "Many of you have been with us for a long time and know that we run a tight ship." - Favorite line of it all. Still waiting to hear back from an email I sent 16 months ago. I'd say that's a pretty tight ship.

    -Tyler

    My favorite line was:

    "We will help you solve what needs solving to the best of our ability."

    What ability have they already demonstrated in all this ...

     Steve I think he lives in your area... I guess he is popular there ?  

    ...

    Jay, according to Wikipedia he lives in NJ, north part close to NYC:

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maplewood,_New_Jer...

    I don't think he is so popular in the Philadelphia metro area, but I do know he made an appearance at one of the NJ REIA meetings in March or April; I asked a contact of mine in the NJ REIA to put the word out to warn others but not sure if that happened.

    User Stats

    919
    Posts
    911
    Votes
    Alan Grobmeier
    • Rental Property Investor
    • Phoenix, AZ
    911
    Votes |
    919
    Posts
    Alan Grobmeier
    • Rental Property Investor
    • Phoenix, AZ
    Replied

    @Jay Hinrichs, how much time will Clayton get?  ;-)

    User Stats

    11
    Posts
    9
    Votes
    Cheryl R.
    • Investor
    • Cary, NC
    9
    Votes |
    11
    Posts
    Cheryl R.
    • Investor
    • Cary, NC
    Replied

    I want to know who owns the property management company. Is it an LLC of his that he runs from florida?

    User Stats

    364
    Posts
    109
    Votes
    Lana Lee
    • Philadelphia, pa
    109
    Votes |
    364
    Posts
    Lana Lee
    • Philadelphia, pa
    Replied
    Originally posted by @Caleb Heimsoth:

    Sorry this happened. This is basically what Morris does. He sells overpriced, crappy homes with shoddy (if rehabbed at all) work.

    I’d say you can remedy the situation with an inspection and your own contractor but if the neighborhood is awful you may just want to sell

     Why are you saying that? Do you have any other examples of " what Morris does"? Or are you making that assumption based on that particular case? 

    User Stats

    545
    Posts
    930
    Votes
    Ross Denman
    • Real Estate Consultant
    • Carmel, IN
    930
    Votes |
    545
    Posts
    Ross Denman
    • Real Estate Consultant
    • Carmel, IN
    Replied
    Originally posted by @Lana Lee:
     Why are you saying that? Do you have any other examples of " what Morris does"? Or are you making that assumption based on that particular case? 

     I have plenty of examples. I can't say that it is "Morris Invest" as it's really Oceanpointe, but Clayton has been to Indianapolis many, many times spending time in the field with Bert and OP. He knew at least a little about what was going on and covered for them when he would get the calls from crazed clients. I just picked up 31 units from them in the last week. I visited a 6 unit that supposedly had 3 tenants. The owner sent over his leases for these units. When I went to the OP/AHI office, they said that the home was secured and that they had to run off the people staying there (squatters?) I stopped by the unit and it was still in major disrepair. The doors were screwed shut. The windows were covered. I don't think that anyone has lived there in years. Of the 15 doors owned by this client... he had leases for 5, but only 1 was actually leased. He had been getting paid rental income though. 

    The biggest problem is this. The owners take title of a property at a price that includes the rehab, but the rehabs aren't getting done. Oceanpointe/Morris took the money but are not performing the services. Now Oceanpointe is out of business. I don't see Morris turning over any money for the work that was never completed, but he's the one that was feeding his clients to Oceanpointe and getting paid in some fashion to do it. It's all very ugly. We've been trying to alert people to this mess for nearly a year now and people are still drinking the Kool Aid. I don't know who committed what criminal acts, but there is negligence at multiple levels and this case is likely to go Federal before much longer.

    We now have another prospective problem on the cities side. Almost all of these properties address on the tax records go to a pak-mailbox on Fox Rd or the OP office on Allisonville Rd. Any notices and/or bills from the city is not going to make it to the owners and the city is going to have to board these homes up, mow their grass, and eventually sell the properties at auction (which is where many of these came from in the first place.) I spoke with someone yesterday about possibly bringing in the Mayors office to ask for the city to put together a team of identifying these properties and getting in contact with the actual owner and update the records.

    I am also working on putting together a team to help limit the damage of this mess. Many of these owners are going to have to sell at a loss. I want to have buyers lined up for these. Many of these owners are going to have to invest more money to get any return on their investments. I plan on having construction teams lined up for these. Every situation is going to be different, but there is money to be made here while trying to take care of helping the people who have been preyed upon. The problem is that there are too many units for any of us PM's to take on everything at once and none of us want to take on so much that we can't properly service our other clients. We still have a tough road ahead of us.

    To answer the question... I don't know that Morris was "criminal" other than partnering with someone that was criminal and covering for him when the heat got turned up. He certainly has not crossed his "t's" and dotted his "i's", but I am not sure what his culpability is in the matter.

    User Stats

    545
    Posts
    930
    Votes
    Ross Denman
    • Real Estate Consultant
    • Carmel, IN
    930
    Votes |
    545
    Posts
    Ross Denman
    • Real Estate Consultant
    • Carmel, IN
    Replied

    Wow. Just got an email

    As another member of this group pointed out yesterday, Clayton's Company, Blue Sky, is connected to AHI, as both have the same parent company, Park Place Real Estate, LLC.

    I don't have time to do the research right now... if someone wants to verify this, but it's very suspicious.