HOW THIS ROBO-DATING FRAUD AFFECTS YOU

1. If you are a home owner, you may be living in a home that was actually built during the timeline of Chinese drywall installation, but you never knew it! From 2003 to 2009, drywall that was manufactured in China was used in countless homes nationwide in America and has been proven to be a major health hazard, causing significant health problems and resulting in lawsuits all over the country. When Chinese drywall is discovered in a home, it has to be removed and replaced.

If a home's year-built date has been changed, then you could be the owner of a home that contains Chinese drywall, putting you and your family at a huge health and safety risk.

2. If you are an honest real estate agent, lender, builder, or a home owner who is trying to sell a home, then you are also a victim of CONSUMER FRAUD if your competition is claiming to be a larger home, have more land, or a younger home than yours, when it actually isn't. The homes whose square footage is exaggerated, inaccurate land size or year-built dates have been changed are being listed as brand new or newer than their actual build date, which puts them at an illegal and unfair competitive advantage over other sellers, agents, and banks whose homes on the market are properly dated or the same age. They are advertising their homes as newer and better than their competition, when they are actually just as old or older!

3. If you are a home buyer or general consumer, then this deceptive advertising is giving you false information about the square footage or age of some homes you are considering for purchase. Buyers may not, in fact, be purchasing a "new" home as they are being led to believe, but rather a home that is several years old with electrical systems, HVAC systems, duct work, roofs, plumbing, and appliances that are also several years old. This home may also contain Chinese drywall, but if the actual age of the home is being concealed, then you may not be aware that your health and safety may be at risk.

Your "new" home may actually have been sitting empty for years, and you may be exposing you and your family to health and safety concerns that come with aging systems or Chinese drywall that you were not made aware of prior to that purchase. The plumbing, electrical, and HVAC/duct systems of homes, as well as the roofs, that sit unoccupied for years continue to naturally deteriorate and age. In fact, some would argue that these systems deteriorate even more rapidly than a home that is occupied.

Lastly, when you try to insure or sell your home, you are stuck with an older home, or a smaller home, or smaller land amount than you were led to believe. Plus the plumbing, electrical, and HVAC systems, and roofs are much older than advertised to you. You were told the home was new, now your may be stuck with trying to sell a home 2, 3, 4 years older than what you were sold.

4. If you are an appraiser, mortgage lender, inspector, insurance agent, or insurance company who is dealing with one of these homes, then you are also a victim. The home's appraisal value, lending decisions, and insurance underwriting are all being based on inaccurate information about the square foot, land size, home's age, the age of the roof, and the age of all of its systems -- as well as possible Chinese drywall! This could lend itself to possible appraisal fraud, mortgage fraud, and insurance fraud, because buyers are not getting what they are being led to believe they're getting.

 

This fraudulent practice is the same as rolling back the mileage on a car (making it appear newer) in order to get it sold.

Remember, just like a car, a home's year-built date NEVER changes.

Unethical real estate agents, banks, and builders are changing the year-built dates of homes all the time (especially in January of any given year) to the most current year just because:

• the home has not sold during the previous year(s);
• the home has never been occupied;
• the home has never received a Certificate of Occupancy;
• renovations have recently been made to the home; or
• the home was built during the time when Chinese drywall may have been installed.

But the accurate year-built date of a home is NOT based on occupancy or renovations at all, and is actually during the year when:

• the original roof is on, and
• the walls have been dry-walled, enclosing all electrical, wiring, plumbing, heating/cooling, duct work, and systems within the walls that have been cleared by an inspector.

Once the roof is on the house, and the major systems have been inspected, enclosed, and dry-walled, then the year-built date of the home is set permanently and has nothing to do with when the home is sold or occupied.

When a real estate agent, builder, or bank changes or manipulates the year-built date of a home, then they are committing fraud and are guilty of false advertising and misleading the public in a way that could endanger the health and safety of consumers.

Real estate agents are NOT above the law and should be held accountable for deceiving the public and all consumers.