What would you do in this situation?

[Mike Schorah]

Let say you contracted an entire development. You put it under contract.

You have 6 months to do your due diligence. You found a cash buyer out of a fancy city.

You let the guy woo you. He shows up in a Ferrari, takes you on an amazing boat ride. This cash buyer is flashing a massive amount of money. He puts down $100,000 escrow deposit. You think the deal was done. You’re going to make about $400,000 off the deal.

You find out the buyer is not what he represented. It was a rented car. It was a friend of a friend’s boat. It wasn’t his multimillion dollar mansion.

When he doesn’t perform on the contract, you find out the buyer got all this money from an illegal trade. The last time you meet with the buyer, he takes all the paperwork without you knowing about it. The buyer puts the property in a trust.

You find out the buyer’s attorneys owned this property and they threaten you for non-performance and they sue you. You’re sitting there with no paperwork, no alibi, no defense. You have an unscrupulous businessman and you’re honestly concerned with your safety.

What would you do? How much do you think it would cost you to get out of the deal?