My USA Property Scam Nightmare
86Buying Property? Beware Of Property Sourcing Scams
If you want to buy property you need to beware of property sourcing scams. In my case I purchased USA property as an investment and have lost about fifty thousand dollars so far.
I live in the UK and bought a buy to let property in Buffalo in the USA. The property was sourced by Ajay Ahuja and his Ahuja Group. It never made profit, as promised by the Ahuja Group and its preferred third parties in the USA.
In fact I - like so many others, soon lost many, many thousands of dollars because of Ajay the rogue property sourcer and bad landlord.
Still trusting Ajay and his staff, a few months later I purchased a second buy to let property - sourced by them - hoping to bail out the first. It also failed miserably. Just over one year later, both properties were threatened with foreclosure.
Stress Related Heart Attack?
Only days after paying a large sourcing fee to Ajay for the first property purchase I suffered a major heart attack.
Obviously I survived and elsewhere you can read about how I reversed my heart disease.
Otherwise my partner would have been left alone to deal with this financial disaster. My dream of extra retirement income turned into a nightmare. I feel I have a duty to share my story as a warning to others about trusting people like Ajay.
I trusted Ajay Ahuja, also known as Ahuja Holdings, Ahuja Group, www.ahuja.co.uk, www.propertysourcer.com/,etc. I did not consider myself naive. Over the years I have worked my way up the property ladder and been a (good) landlord. I believed the claims on Ajay's website and in his literature that profits could be made by investing in US property.
More recently I have found the name Ajay Ahuja connected with terms such as conman, con artist, swindler, crook, etc. Thankfully, I even learned that Ajay has already been successfully prosecuted at least once already here in the UK.
The Ajay Contract
Notice that in his contract (see image below) Ajay promises properties yielding 20% or more. (My partner says Ajay forgot to put a minus sign in front of the figure of 20%)
Notice that the USA buying trip is crossed out. If Ajay's UK clients ever got to the USA and saw his specially sourced properties for themselves, lack of tenants, etc. then there would be far less Ajay victims, if any. Notice that Ajay didn't sign the contract.
- Video - Texas Man Gets House For 16 Bucks
Texas man gets house for $16 under obscure law...
Property Sourcing
Ajay provides what is known as a property sourcing service. I was required to pay £2,750 for details of the first property and £3,500 for details of the second property in Buffalo, USA.
Later I discovered such information is available for free at sites such as RightMove.com
At Rightmove I found full details of numerous properties for sale in Buffalo and other such areas. Many of these rental properties were already under stable management with long-term tenants, and other information.
The property sourcing fee I paid to Ajay could easily have purchased a rental property in Buffalo complete with tenants and a proven rental history.
Property Management In Buffalo
Ajay's recommended USA property management are located in Buffalo and there was no reason to suppose they would have any significant problems managing my newly purchased Buffalo property with its three tenants and Ajay's assurance of no void period.
When rental income failed to appear from the property I queried my Buffalo property manager. Initially they seemed unaware there were any tenants in the property. They eventually informed me the tenant in the back unit did not pay rent but maintained the property and collected the rents from the other two tenants. When the property manager told him he was now required to pay rent he departed the property. Next, the property manager informed me the unit had been vandalised and all the plumbing/copper had been taken. I was sent a bill for over $11,000 to make the unit tenantable again.
I deferred paying that amount. It seemed more cost effective to instead purchase a second tenanted property. I still believed Ajay in the UK and his preferred people in Buffalo - the real estate agent and the property management people. Obviously more rents would pay the damage bill faster - or so I figured.
Second Property Puchase
To cut a long story short, after reassurances all round, I went ahead with a second rental property purchase in September 2008. With four new tenants added to the remaining two, it promised to bring in enough rental income to turn the situation around.
After the deposit and paperwork went through I was informed that in fact there were no tenants in the second property. There was no explanation as to what happened to the four tenants.
In addition to paying for the required inspection, I also had both the Buffalo real estate agent and the property manager attend the property. (Remember, these were both recommended to me by Ajay Ahuja as his preferred third parties). They both assured me it was in excellent, rentable condition. I said I could only go ahead with the purchase if tenants could soon be put into the property. The property manager assured me this would not be a problem.
Months later there were still no tenants in the second property. The property manager suggested I form an LLC to allow me to have section 8 housing assistance tenants. The LLC cost me $817.
The property manager soon put in two section 8 tenants but then were unable to collect all the rent. In addition there is a $1100 plumbing bill for repairs required when the water was turned on plus $1,044.36 for City Taxes.
Meanwhile there are unpaid bills at the first property. These include recently discovered water bill of $3,556.84 plus $509.64
October 2009 and the property manager informs me it's necessary to begin eviction proceedings against the two section 8 tenants plus the two tenants at my first property who are no longer paying. Eviction costs are $480x4 for evictions = $1,920 plus $100 for each extra court appearance.
The above expense is all in addition to what I have already paid - 10% of all rents collected to pay for management, lawn-mowing costs, winterization costs, landlord's insurance (which didn't cover the damage to the first property because it was "vandalization"), etc.
- Video Interview - Ajay Ahuja Property Conman
Interview with Ajay Ahuja, property sourcer, prior to multiple court appearances in the UK
What About The Recession?
Surely Ajay - and his staff/agents - should and would have known more about the recession, downturn, economic condtions, whatever in 2008 than most. Despite this, his contracts promise properties yielding 20% or more.
As I say, one tenant at my 1st property had never paid rent at all! Iinstead he'd been maintaining the property and collecting rents from the other 2 tenants. Therefore Ajay's figures for it were completely false and misleading. There were no tenants - therefore zero yield at best - in the 2nd property until I finally got rid of the bad management. In fact any yield is way, way in the negative due to actual costs such as city taxes, water bills, vandalism, winterization costs, lawn fees,etc.
It's Not Just Ajay
It's not just Ajay in the UK. There's also something rotten in the state of Buffalo (or anywhere else) when -
1. Real estate agents can sell properties promoted as tenanted - without tenants.
2. Where property managers can promise to easily get (four) tenants and then fail to get any. (Especially when I made it very clear that I could only support a second property if it was quickly tenanted.), when they can suddenly discover bills unpaid for 12 months plus, etc. etc, ad nauseam
3. When compulsory landlord insurance refuses to pay out on property damage.
Operating from the UK overseas landlords are entirely dependant on the "preferred third parties" on the ground in Buffalo. These guys all know that!
They know better than anyone - certainly far better than novice would-be landlords from overseas - the huge amounts - city taxes, water bills, repair bills, insurance, winterization, lawn fees,etc. that must be paid. They knew I was already stuck with paying the $12,000 vandalization bill - now with 1 tenant less - for the first property. And now I had twice the committment, but Instead of tenants I only get more and more of this -
"Dear Buffalo Property Owners:
The summer season is upon us, and the grass is growing! We will be charging $40 per month per property. This will assure a beautiful and violation free lawn all summer long!
We will set up automated billing which will deduct the monthly fee from your portfolio income beginning May 1, 2008. If we receive a check or credit card number before May 1, you will receive the entire season for $200 which is one full month off!"
As your property management in Western New York, it is our duty to make sure that your property is kept up. Lawn maintenance is an easy target for fines, which come to the property owner, and, worst case scenario, can land you in housing court."
Further Costly Mis-Management by Ahuja's Preferred Third Parties
"Charles, I have called the appropriate parties. Of course I have some wonderful news for you. The rear building at xxx Niagara also known as xxx Niagara has its own water meter/account. The balance is $3,556.84 and an unpaid user fee (garbage) of $509.64. These bills have not been seen by anyone since you purchased the property as I was unaware that they were separate bills/tax properties! Due to lack of funds, xx Duerstein city tax for this year is still unpaid of $1,044.36."
All of these horrendous costs with zero rents coming in!!!
I hope this page helps expose more of the goings on behind the hype and lies of property sourcing scams and people like Ajay Ahuja. Need I mention the sleepless nights and countless times of waking up not out of a nightmare but into one?
Have you had a similar experience? I soon discovered dozens of Ajay victims like myself - how many, I don't know. Your comments are welcome. Also helpful advice, etc.
First Property - Sold!
December 2009 - accepted an offer for the triplex on Niagara Street - sold for $18,500. Yes, paid $67,000 for it in March 2008. That's with ALL the bills paid, insurance, etc. completely up to date - and two tenants. Except of course the estimated $12,000 bill for repairing the back unit (which the insurance refused to pay because it was "vandalism").
Total loss from just this one property sourced by Ajay Ahuja - At least $50,000.
I hope to get a better offer for my quad on Duerstein St, Buffalo, which is in far better condition and fully tenananted. All bills now completely up to date except for the insurance which was cancelled earlier in the year.
Why was the insurance cancelled? Because the (Ajay recommended) property manager in Buffalo neglected to inform my insurer of their change of address. So the insurance renewal notice went to a previous address, along with all the reminders.
I finally managed to find another insurance agent and Duerstein is properly insured. Of course it was another nightmare explaining why the original insurer cancelled and was refusing to re-insure.
Why on earth management would not have arranged to have their own mail forwarded to their new address is beyond my comprehension. Until I got involved with Ajay's preferred third parties in Buffalo I never left bills unpaid. Incurring penalties, interest, etc. on overdue bills is a completely new experience for me.
I have finally found new, sane management for my remaining buy-to-let property. The saga continues on My USA Property Scam Nightmare - Part II
Thankyou everyone for your comments on this page . For sure, keep those comments coming but this page remains a bit depressing for me, so maybe let's take it over to Part II.
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- The New York State Attorney General - Complaints
We welcome your complaints. For consumer type complaints, we offer a mediation service if we believe our intervention might assist in resolving disputes. - Consumer Direct - Scams: watch out!
Be careful - dodgy dealers and scammers want to part you from your money! - Landlord Action UK
Need to recover money from Ajay? See how effective Landlord Action are - working with barristers and solicitors. - Scammed By Ajay
Have you been scammed by Ajay Ahuja? I have. I noticed that Ajay (or one of his Ahuja Group staff members) quickly removes all negative... - USA Locations
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Hi Bail Up! - appreciate your comments and have now added to the hubpage his contract promising high yielding property. There was no yield - no tenants at all - on the 2nd property. Will check out that rental program - thanks.
I am a female London landlord having started the business 20 years ago after leaving Uni, and grown my portfolio single-handedly whilst raising a family. As a rule of thumb I personally feel an investor has to at least set eyes on a property and the vicinity and do plenty of one's own groundwork. In business never trust anyone implicitly, of course most people are in the deal for what they will personally get out and to a greater or lesser extent lies abound, so Ajay will be no different. I have always chuckled at Ajay's daily emails and comments, and have in fact had respect for his boldness in the past, but I see he has stuck his neck out just too far and he IS a cropper, though clearly it is sadly at the expensive of many of his hopeful punters. I get increasingly disillusioned by what I read about him and have all but lost the respect I once had in what he seemed to advocate. I have to say I have never been tempted to join up with his service...it was always very obvious to me you could not just pinpoint some ex local authority property on the edge of e.g. Glasgow, give it some jumped up "rental yield" and call it a good investment. Your website underlines specifics: vandalisation, poor quality tenants, lack of control due to distance. I am proud of my own portfolio, its yields and low voids, but it has been build on knowledge of the areas I invest in, and understanding of the tenant base, not in the hope that information provided by a 3rd party at considerable cost, will pan out for me. To me my own route was the only way to go. In fact I'm really starting to think I should make a few hundred thou' on the side by getting up on my soapbox and writing a book or two like several of these property guys of recent years. I would have a lot to say which has interestingly still not been published. But then I'm making a few hundred thou' without doing that, so why put myself to the trouble! lol. Most interesting site though and good luck with future projects.
PS: I got to your site via Ajay's own forum in fact - but I see the post of 5pm (4 hours ago) by some other poor guy (who had lost £1,000's in Hammersmith & Fulham on council flats sourced by Ajay, which did not yield) is now removed. So is your own link Charles...Tut tut Ajay.
Lynsey, thanks heaps for your input. It's significant that you have succeeded without Ajay. I too was successful until getting involved with Ajay, and so far I've only seen others lose after trusting him. Like that Hammersmith guy you just mentioned. I knew Ajay would remove that post so I copied it - it's going on my next anti-Ajay site! I don't know what it's going to take to stop him ripping people off. And re that BBC video (exposing his scam methods) he actually said "any publicity is good publicity".
Thanks for the comment. It's always good to have a background knowledge of these investment gurus. It's great that you are sharing your experience so we can all learn from it. This is a very informative website.
Hi Charles S.
The police have been intouch today.
Have you seen the web site action fraud which reports directly to the police. They will also give you a crime number so seem to be taking it seriously. The police have been in touch with me 3 times. They are starting to investigate Ahuja. Great stuff.
Can this site Action Fraud, be cascaded to all, and all other BTL and Landlord sites.
Regards John standring
O my god I have heard of this guy - what a total bast*rd!! I do hope the police get him and lock him away for a very long time!!! Good Luck
Found and experienced that Ajay Ahuja group does business in a way of unethical. Be careful to invest with this guy's company!
I wasted a membership fee of £300 more. Stopped maintain business after I found this company is doig business with sneaky and crooked way.
Hello Kimr01 - so Ajay and his Ahuja Group are still doing the wrong thing? What is it going to take to stop them! I do hope you can get back your money one day!
Meanwhile write to me at cyberwyz1@yahoo.com.au and I can add you to our mailing list of about 50 other people complaining about Ajay.
Hi Charles,
So sorry to hear about your nightmare experiences.
I have been a member of ajay for some time now and have been considering buying property in the U.S. through his company.
For some unknown reason he no longer lists property for sale in the U.S.
After reading your unfortunate story ,I cant help but think this may have somthing to do with it.
I have also been involved with other U.S. property sourcers, and some of their deals seem too good to be true. After reading your story,they prob are too good to be true.
I dont think Ill be investing in the U.S. now that I know the reality of some of the deals.
Good luck
Wayne
Hi Wayne -
Thanks for the empathy! It's much appreciated while I remain stuck in the nightmare until I sell the 2nd US property.
If my hubpage prevents just one person from trusting Ajay Ahuja then it has been worthwhile. Apparently this page is having an effect because there has been an attempt to shut it down recently.
Thanks again, and good luck to you too!
I purchased a couple of similar properties in Buffalo through a Company called Colossal Property Investments S.C (www.colossalpropertyinvestments.com). The Company is run from Spain by a guy called Steve Garrott & his wife.
The problems that you have described with your purchase, Charles is almost identical to the problems that I have had.
I have actually visited my properties in Buffalo. They are situated in an extremely rough part of the City. Many properties are delapedated or boarded up. I have lost £1000's. I will report further on this site with details in due course.
Paul
I have bought a property thru colossal property of Spain and having read all the above, I am now quaking in my boots.
Hi Paul - Thanks a lot for the info. I look forward to further updates from you. I see that Mr Ahmad is now worried about his purchase of a property with Colossal Property...
hi I do have a US website and I am probably the only UK based Fully paid up REALTOR... I have pulled my hair out since 2003 over UK based scum scams and they still smile and print glossy Bull for the property shows and it turns my stomach.. One quote i will give is from a London Property show in 2009
I showed my deals and a guy said to me " I know I will overpay but I will still be making money" I nearly gave up hope there and then.. I have only been involved with 2 sales in the last 2 years !! Yet others companies set up and make a real killing.. Its just a good job that I do not make living selling porperty , perhaps I am trying to be to honest and trustworthy with people and put others first and in this day and age its a bit unreal... Sorry to read your story but could you please let me copy it and put it onto my website with names removed etc..
email me at owendaleuk@hotmail.com
I have not put my property website address down as I do not want any Free ad
Owen - I just visited your website. You said you don't want free advertising but I have added a link to your website anyway, because for sure people should be dealing with people like yourself - definitely not Ajay Ahuja types.
You're not permitted to "copy" from a hubpage because that causes "duplicate content", gets noticed by the search engines, violates terms of service, etc.
But for sure just type "... read this guy's story about how he was ripped off by a UK scammer agent..." or something like that, and then just link it to this page, okay?
You know, I would not have minded "overpaying" (even to Ahuja) IF, IF, IF, IF, I had made ANY profit at ALL from my US properties! Years later I am $50,000 down and STILL paying insurance, taxes, bills, fees, etc. out of my own pocket PLUS damage & repairs from tenants who don't pay rent and have to be legally evicted, costing even MORE money from my pocket!!!
Mate you cant always blame the player !!! some times you have to blame the game. Take ownership of not doing your homework before investing into any properties. Although Im sure you have done a great job to run his name in the mud and warn people about him (and surely enough he deserves it). Good on ya !! I was just wondering, since your first property went down the drain, why would you invest in the second (and also trusting him completely ????)
Hey Sydney sider - fair comment, but inaccurate. Firstly, Ahuja is not a player. He is a predator. He creates victims. This is obvious to judges which is why he loses all his court cases.
In Australia I made enough money through property to retire at age 50. I experienced only honest property management and sales. I expected Ahuja to be the same, and he wasn't. I believed what he said and found out too late that he was lying.
I've paid very dearly for being too trusting, not just in dollars. One of his other victims mentioned suicide, financial stress being a major reason for suicide.
If you want to side with Ahuja why not put your money where your mouth is and go buy some property through him?
Hi Charles,
Sorry to hear you had such a bad experience with U.S. Real Estate. Your experience is not because you are from out of the country, I am a Realtor and a Loan Officer in San Diego and have had problems with properties I own in other cities. The issue is just finding honest competent services. I have plenty of experience and as far as reputable I am licensed in California under the Department of Real Estate as well as a member of the National Association of Realtors. I am also licensed to originate loans in California as well as registered in the National mortgage licensing system. I know your experience has put a sour taste in your mouth for overseas investing, however if you are interested in quality investments in San Diego California maybe trying a joint venture with me or other of my local investors would help ease your anxiety. In this way myself or a local investor would have half ownership and half the liability. We would have every interest in making the investment profitable. Please take a look at my website http://dirkcahaan1.point2agent.com
It is geared towards owner occupant owners. However it gives a good look at San Diego.
I underastand your issues I hear them all the time from Australian investors taken for a ride too through hyped up seminars around the country. You need accountability, support and ethics which is something very hard to find in this business.
If you ever feel you can trust someone to work on your behalf again look me up cash flow gold.
Best of luck and be sure to have learned that makes it a little easier to recover.
Jason - found your site, very nice! Watched some videos, etc. and was very impressed with your professionalism.
At this point my partner would never let me get involved in real estate again. But if I did, then it would be with you ;-)
I'm doing a followup "nightmare" page and - even though you didn't ask - will include a link to your site. Thanks for dropping by!
Hi Dirk218 - you are so, so right about honesty and competency!
Thanks for the offer, etc. Your site looks fine and I'll leave your link there for the time being ;-)
Hi Charles,
Stories like yours truly make me cringe, as it makes it very difficult for others like myself who are interested in truly helping out of town and international investors find and purchase profitable real estate investments in the United States.
The only advice I can offer to investors is that you should fully research the company you are working with before deciding to engage with them on a deal. For your first deal, I would strongly suggest traveling to personally meet with the company you are planning to invest with and also review some of the potential properties. A lot can be learned with such a meeting. I do understand that the travel required is time consuming and costly, but the question I always pose to investors, is that if they are willing to place an investment of $50,000 in purchasing a property, is it worth the cost of a plane ticket and hotel to come and do some first hand inspections?
You see, the key to investing successfully in US property is not finding the right property. The key is finding the right people that you can trust to manage your investments as if they were their own. If you find this, you will be successful as an international investor.
Todd, you are so right - thanks for your comment! My situation has in fact improved simply because of new management. You can read more at my update page -
Sorry to hear what you have been through. This made me think twice before investing in US property.
I wonder why you have to evict Section 8 tenants. Wouldn't it be that the rent from Section 8 tenants comes directly to your account from the US goverment? and Section 8 tenants tend to protect your property because if something go wrong and the tenants damage your property, they may lose their Section 8 status, be wiped out of the Section 8 book, and can never get help through this section 8 again?
I read that you eventually have to evict these Section 8 tenants?
Hi Tom - now that I've changed management (see part II) things are turned around. Under Ajay's preferred 3rd party management losses far outweighed profits, every problem became a bigger problem, we were foreclosed for a bill we didn't even know existed.
If I put everything on this page it'd be too long and too depressing. In the end it was hard to sell because tenants - section 8 or not, I don't know - were refusing entry to viewers, and the 2nd property received a drug violation. Which is still in place.
Hi Charles,
What's the name of the Company in Buffallo who managed your properties. Your story sounds so similar to mine, even down to the cost of grass-cutting in the Summer!
Paul
WNY4Rent
Hi
I was thinking of investing in a company called colossal properties buying in Buffalo, when I thought I would Google the company and came across these comments, thank you Paul, and Charles.You have helped me with my decision not to buy.
I also was about to purchase property from Ajay too, but again so pleased I came across these comments. I thank you all.
Are there no companies out there that are honest and trustworthy?
Hi again , i have linked to this hubpage and enjoy some of the comments the advice from Todd above is so true.. I wish more UK based investors would do more research, and avoid being ripped off. The thning that really bugs me is the extra costs , and fees added by uk so called usa experts?. one quote i have had by one is " how else are we to make money?" How about get licensed and take time and pride to provide a better fully qualified service. ie put the client first for a change not greed... I WISH.
Mind you charles you have made some nice comments and I thank you for them I am now pushing my message a lot more and getting in touch a lot more. I hope i can help a few people enjoy their USA investments instead of having a nightmare.
Best regards to all
Owen Dale
USALocations
Hi.
I keep receiving emails about investing in the USA property market, mainly section 8 rentals and land contracts. But the yields looked a bit too good to be true?
I looked around, found your web site. Thank goodness. Horrible experience for you, but a real warning for me! The only way I'd invest now is by going over there and checking everything and everyone out. Time consuming, but it seems to be the safest route.
Kind regards.
Hey Paul Kent,
I too purchased property from colossal and have key property consulting inc managing my property.
they have requested payment for services unjustified and are continuing to log work requests.
I have told them to stop any form of work or proceed with any unless i get specific details and unless they get my consent.
Is there anything I can do please advise?
do you guys have personal email addresses so we can discuss further?
Thanks
Hey John - just caught up with your entry. What you could do is put YOUR email address in another comment here and invite people to correspond.
Or, better yet, join HubPages - it's free - and put up your own page/s like mine. See my profile for more...
I have sympathy for you. I do. I am a real estate investor and it's a dog-eat-dog environment. It's not really something you can 'just jump into'. I wish you'd done more research, then you'd have found someone like me (who lives in the states), does international investment, and would be happy to help a fellow landlord... gratis! It's always a HUGE clue when an investor stops investing and begins to sell leads or starts the seminar circuits. That means that deals are thin on the ground and BUYER BEWARE. What confuses me more is how the first one didn't work out great... so... what you jumped into #2? Really. Please be careful, the deal you scrounge out of a dirty little hole will be the best one for you. The deal offered up on a silver platter will bankrupt u.
Hi Garth - wish I'd had your expert advice prior to my USA property experience but meanwhile it'll help other readers of this page ;-)
Why did I jump into #2 property when #1 failed? Hey, if Edison had stopped with his first mistake then we would have waited longer for electric lighting! Was he stupid to keep trying -and failing - so many times? (thousands!)
(With hindsight) you are right and I was wrong. Others were even more wrong. One guy paid Ajay for ten properties. Where there are con-men there will be victims.
I may enjoy the last laugh. While Ajay becomes more and more answerable to the courts that 2nd property, a quad, now in the hands of sane management, has turned around with 4 great tenants for the past year.
can you let me have details of management company you use now.
Hi Charles,
Sorry to heard about the problems you've had. My Buffalo experience (not sourced via Ajay or managed by WNY4RENT) haven't been much better.
Are you still finding mpgproperties.com ok? How long have things been working ok with them for? And, if it's not too personal a question, are you making money from the properties now under the new management?
Kind regards,
Matt
Hi Matt - yes, MPG has been great since taking over my quad last year. They put in 4 good tenants so I'm no longer out of pocket. It's paying for itself - maintenance, new furnaces, roof repairs, etc. The money's going back in because I'm upgrading it for sale.
Bail Up ! 2 years ago
Hi Charles
This is really unfortunate. While I don't doubt this guy might have been a crook, noone really expected the real estate market and economy to crash like it did. By 2008 we were already experiencing a downturn. You might want to find a different rental program like vacationrentals.com
It saved me.