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All Forum Posts by: Monique Walker

Monique Walker has started 1 posts and replied 8 times.

Post: Fortune Builders Refund Policy

Monique WalkerPosted
  • Paso Robles, CA
  • Posts 8
  • Votes 13

As I am, I believe, a woman of high integrity, I felt it necessary to update the public on what has transpired since yesterday when I posted my original topic for this forum. Last night I was contacted by a gentleman who identified himself as Paul from Fortune Builders, who assured me this was an isolated case. My reply to him was that I did not believe it. But as I said I am woman of integrity, so we set up an interview with Than Merrill (hereto shall be referred to as Mr. Merrill, both out of respect and the fact we do not have a person attachment/relationship) to clear up this so called cloud.Well Mr. Merrill did indeed call me for that interview. I will not go into any of the actual questions or answers due to the fact that the interview lasted one and a half hours. I will state that he was pleasant and accommodating. This by no means that I am retracting what has transpired.

I had questions on the validity of the actual Fortune Builders programs and he directed me to the Fortune Builders website for some free classes and information. As I promised him, I took some time to check it out and found there is some possibly informative videos and useful information. The reason I state "possibly" is for me some of the information was beneficial and to some this information may not be of any benefit. As I have stated before I do not attest to if the program works or to, since I opted out before I started any classes. I need to be fair to both the public and to a company that has the right by our Constitution the right to make money. For some people this Free information may be of use to you and for others it may not. It is up to you, the public, individually, to do due diligence to decide for yourselves.

Now as to the question of them asking me to give up my Constitutional Rights in the form of a Mutual Non-Disparagement / Confidentiality Agreement / Liquidated Damages document (which I refused to sign). Mr.Merrill admitted that it should not have been sent out to me. I informed him that I would continue to suggest that anyone who receives this and is told that they must sign it as a stipulation for the Request for Refund and before any actual agreement in writing has been made should first contact him (Mr. Merrill) personally, before signing it. He has agreed to be contacted. I also asked him to please find out if this is indeed an isolated incident by reaching out on these websites and find out if there are any other folks , like me, that were asked to sign this agreement as a part of their Request for Refund before or as a stipulation in order to be considered or get a refund, and that he will work with them to rescind this agreement. He acknowledged the need to make a statement. As to what he will write, i am not him, therefore I cannot put any statement down on how he plans to handle this. Since I have such regards for Our Constitution and our Justice System, I will state that a man or a Company is innocent until proven guilty by facts not opinions. So let us give Mr. Merrill a chance to rebut.

Lastly, what I would like to present, is how we write reviews and how they affect us. Writing a review that is hostile or insulting is counterproductive and seems often the reason for Non-Disparagement clauses. By sticking to facts, putting in personal statements (i.e. The product didn't seem to work for me, I was unable to make money doing this, in my opinion, I cannot attest to if it works or not or this is my personal opinion/position), would be constructive as well as informative to the Public. Also asking questions or making subtle statements in a review may become thought provoking and may encourage people to research and search out the truth for themselves. This is a great way to get your point across without becoming hostile or disparaging. Also try not to be sarcastic (which I sometimes have subtle sarcasm to me). Remember Not to make statements that seem like facts that are not truly actual and provable. This will keep you out of litigation for slander.

I believe in the American Public and believe we can find good and bad in everyone. Maybe if we took some time to give constructive criticism we may all benefit and become greater people as well as greater consumers.

I hoped this helps someone and as I have said Buyer Beware, do your homework and protect yourself

Post: Fortune Builders Refund Policy

Monique WalkerPosted
  • Paso Robles, CA
  • Posts 8
  • Votes 13

I would like to take a moment to address what Brian had commented about BBB. 20/20 had done an investigative report on the BBB doing pay for play (if you get a chance look it up, They apparently gave a A+ rating to a known terrorist group). They have apparently been completely shut down here in Southern California with a new corporation taking over their duties.

Post: Fortune Builders Refund Policy

Monique WalkerPosted
  • Paso Robles, CA
  • Posts 8
  • Votes 13

Edward, I used the 3 day rescission law to get out of my contract. But just to let you know i looked up the law preceding using it and found out that not all contracts can be rescinded by this law. So if a person thinks they have three days to get out of any contract that is false advice.

Now to the business at hand. This evening I was contacted by a Fortune Builders representative who told me my case was an isolated incident. At this point I don't by it, but in all fairness to Fortune Builders Company I have felt it only right to print it. Tomorrow I am expecting a call back from Than Merrill for an interview because they would like to clear this up. They also invited me down to check out their operation which have graciously accepted. I will not print a retraction unless I am completely satisfied that they are not asking people to give up their constitutional rights of free speech and press. I will neither print something that is vicious and spiteful so if they prove to me that this is an isolated incident, which at this time I hold reservations to,I will print a retraction with one exception I will keep in the part of the actual situation of the Mutual Non-Disparagement, Confidentiality Agreement and Liquidated damages. That way if anyone else finds themselves in this same isolated incident they will know not to sign it and have a representative agreement to dismiss it. Know that any Non-Disparagment clause will silence all or part of your rights and you should make sure it is of Mutual Benefit. That any Confidentiality clause should be made after or at the time an agreement has been made or reached, not before one has been reached, That Liquidated Damages clause must be accepted in Advance and be part of the contract. If you are asked to sign such a contract just to be considered or as a part of a request for consideration / refund it is probably better not to sign it ask to speak to someone higher up in the company and if that doesn't get you anywhere seek legal advice. There are plenty of attorneys that would do pro-bono (free) work for principles or to help make a name for themselves.

Post: Fortune Builders Refund Policy

Monique WalkerPosted
  • Paso Robles, CA
  • Posts 8
  • Votes 13

Mary, I have sent a report to ripoff report as well as a couple youtube videos. One video even challenges Than Merrill to an interview with me or an open forum. I would like to know what he thinks of our Constitution and the practices of the company. I would like to give him a chance to prove his company is not a guru scam and that it benefits more people than it takes away from. I am open minded but I am also savvy (most of the time).

Post: Fortune Builders Refund Policy

Monique WalkerPosted
  • Paso Robles, CA
  • Posts 8
  • Votes 13

John, we did check out Better Business Bureau everything looked fine, until I saw the 20/20 investigative report on BBB and their pay for play. The BBBin Southern California has been shut down and a new corporation has taken over the duties of the BBB. I wish I could find an attorney pro-bono that could look into for others sake. I am trying my best to expose this company if they are indeed as immoral as I feel they may well be. Though I am not sure they are breaking the law. I do believe that anyone who looks them up and reviews on them are probably only getting a very small portion of the reviews which is a downfall for the consumer. So I will continue to youtube about them and write what I do know as factual as well as my opinions until I can find out if litigation can be taken against them.

Post: Fortune Builders Refund Policy

Monique WalkerPosted
  • Paso Robles, CA
  • Posts 8
  • Votes 13

Don't worry about me. I rescinded contract on my own terms. I let them know I would use my constitutional rights if they did not rescind my contract. I had no money on the line since I had put a stop payment on my check the very next day. But is my mission now to warn the public of shady contract and refund policy of Fortune Builders. I cannot attest if this program works or not, but judging by their hidden refund policy, I would venture they have something to hide that they don't want the investing public to know about. In their seminar they preached transparency and yet they do not follow their own rules. The most that I am out is the $297.00 for the three day seminar, a 50th birthday I can not get back, $30.00 for a cancelled check fee and $20.00 to send their educational materials back to them. I am one of the lucky ones. I did not sign their forms, therefore my freedom of speech and press are intact.

Post: Fortune Builders Refund Policy

Monique WalkerPosted
  • Paso Robles, CA
  • Posts 8
  • Votes 13

My story on Fortune Builders refund policy.
I went to a three day seminar. We did due diligence before we went and tried to find out as much as possible about them. (Had a hard time finding reviews). We decided to go into the bronze Mastery program for a total cost of nearly $15,000. We left all amped out and excited. Later in the evening that we got home i again tried to find reviews especially negative ones to see what we were in for. There were a few reviews that caught my attention and then they were later retracted and practically praising Fortune Builders. This actually made me feel a little ill at ease, like maybe they were coerced into writing a retraction. I terminated my contract the very next morning and cancelled my check. That is when the fun started. I went through their exit interview where they tried to sell me on the program at a cheaper price. I just answered all their questions with "I decline to answer that". They told me I needed to sign 2 papers that they will email me in order to get a refund and cancel my contract. First one I had to sign was a request for refund. On that document they state "This form is A REQUEST FOR REFUND ONLY- NOT AN APPROVAL!" , capitalized just as written, in bold letters, highlighted in yellow and punctuated with an exclamation point. Therefore you are not guaranteed any refund (even though they say they have a 14 day refund policy with some conditions which I could write a whole reply just on that).

The second paper they sent me that must be signed in order to be considered for a refund was a Mutual Non-Disparagement / Confidentiality Agreement / Liquidated Damages document. Which seems hardly to a mutual benefit. The document simply put, says that (if you sign it and if you want them to consider refunding your money you must sign it) you may not disparage or criticize them, their program, their employees, agents etc.. or otherwise say or do anything that could disrupt their business. (now this brings into focus about reviews of companies. Reviews are critiques or criticism) therefore people who have signed this CANNOT give feedback or reviews without FEAR of penalty.

The Confidentiality Clause (if you sign it) states you cannot disclose and keep factual allegations to yourself. If you received your money back, how much of it you received and even if you do not receive money back you must keep that confidential. Most Confidentiality clauses are made at the time of the meeting of the minds and an agreement has been made, not before the agreement has been made. So this should not be signed at the time of the request but at the end of the agreement itself.
I would like to state profoundly that this in my opinion is bullying and coercion making people give up their Constitutional Rights of Free Speech and Freedom of Press. This does not allow people to do due diligence in researching this company.

Now the third part of this document (if signed) is Liquidated Damages Clause that states for every violation in the Non-disparagement and confidentiality clauses there will be $5,000 per violation. None of this benefits you therefore it is not mutual. it is in my opinion a way to bully or coerce people into not saying or printing the truth. That right there may give you pause and make you think twice.

Also Fortune Builders may be on the Inc. Magazine top 500 of fastest growing companies, but think, it is Fortune Builders, not CT homes(the flipping business) that seems to be making the money. If I was bringing in $15,000 to $25,000 times 50 people on average or more per event I would be damn wealthy too. When they use A&E Flip this House and CT Homes and combine it with Fortune Builders (a separate company) remember it is a marketing ploy to enhance the image that you too can be Inc. 500 next business.

I cannot say if the program works or not. I don't feel you can do due diligence in researching this company. So Buyer Beware. There are good coaches and other programs find one that fits your budget without hurting your life or lifestyle.

Post: Is fortune builders mastery program legit?

Monique WalkerPosted
  • Paso Robles, CA
  • Posts 8
  • Votes 13

Keri I too went to a three day seminar. We did due diligence before we went and tried to find out as much as possible about them. (Had a hard time finding reviews). We decided to go into the bronze Mastery program for a total cost of nearly $15,000. We left all amped out and excited. Later in the evening that we got home i again tried to find reviews especially negative ones to see what we were in for. There were a few reviews that caught my attention and then were later retracted and practically praising fortune Builders. This actually made me feel a little ill at ease, like maybe they were coerced into writing a retraction. I terminated my contract the very next morning and cancelled my check. That is when the fun started. I went through their exit interview where they tried to sell me on the program at a cheaper price. I just answered all their questions with I decline to answer that. They told me I needed to sign 2 papers that they will email me to refund and cancel my contract. First one I had to sign was a request for refund. On that document they state This is a request for refund not an approval. Therefore you are not guaranteed any refund (even though they say they have a 14 day refund policy with some conditions which I could write a whole reply just on that). The second paper they sent me was a mutual non-disparagement / confidentiality / liquidated damages document. Which seems hardly to a mutual benefit. The document simply put, says that (if you sign it and if you want them to consider refunding your money you must sign it) you may not disparage or criticize them, their program, their employees, agents etc.. or otherwise say or do anything that could disrupt their business. (now this brings into focus about reviews of companies. Reviews are critiques or criticism) therefore people who have signed this Can not give feedback or reviews without FEAR of penalty. The Confidentiality Clause (if you sign it) states you cannot disclose if you received your money back, how much of it you received and even if you do not receive money back. Firstly I would like to state that this in my opinion is bullying and coercion making me give away my Constitutional Rights of Free Speech and Freedom of Press. This does not allow people to do due diligence in researching this company. Now the third part of this document (if signed) is Liquidated Damages Clause that states for every violation in the Non-disparagement and confidentiality clauses there will be $5,000 per violation. None of this benefits you therefore it is not mutual. it is in my opinion a way to bully or coerce people into not saying or printing the truth. That right there may give you pause and make you think twice.
Also Fortune Builders may be on the Inc. Magazine top 500 fastest growing companies, but think it is Fortune Builders, not CT homes(the flipping business) that seems to be making the money.If I was bringing in $15,000 to $25,000 times 100 people on average per event I would be damn wealthy too. When they use A&E Flip this House and CT Homes and combine it with Fortune Builders (a separate company) remember it is a marketing ploy to enhance the image that you too can be Inc. 500 next business.
I cannot say if the program works or not. I don't feel you can do due diligence in researching this company. So Buyer Beware. There are good coaches and other programs find one that fits your budget without hurting your life or lifestyle.