Navigating the Shadows: HOA Fraud and Community Safety (CA)

Homeowners Associations (HOAs) play a pivotal role in maintaining harmony and order in the fabric of community living. However, this structured environment is not immune to fraud and misconduct risks. HOA fraud casts a shadow over community trust and safety, raising concerns and demanding vigilance. This blog explores the intricacies of HOA fraud, offering insights […]

Scottsdale HOA says manager stole $1.6M (AZ)

Scottsdale House board members wish they had been more attentive a few years ago.  After failing to do a background check on a twice-sued manager who ran the HOA for years, the board started discovering money was disappearing from funds targeted for repairs and upgrades.  The deeper into the books they dug, board members found […]

Texas sues Colony Ridge development for fraudulent real estate practices

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued the Houston-area developers of Colony Ridge on Thursday, accusing them of deceptive sales, marketing and lending practices that allowed their sprawling housing development to flourish.Residents of Colony Ridge filed dozens of complaints for years about the development to state agencies, but Texas had little to show for addressing those […]

Des Peres Alderman John E. Pound Pleads Guilty to $220K Embezzlement (MO)

John E. Pound, an experienced Des Peres alderman, admitted guilt to wire fraud charges, having embezzled $220,000 from a St. Louis condo association. Using his managerial position, Pound orchestrated unauthorized payments to himself over a decade, a federal court heard Thursday.   Read the article…………………………….

Collier, Lee condo fraud: Owners of management company indicted on federal fraud charges (FL)

The owners of American Property Management Services, who allegedly stole millions from dozens of Southwest Florida community associations, have been indicted by a federal grand jury.  The 17-count indictment, filed in January, charges Orlando Miserando Ortiz and his wife Lina Munoz Posada with wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and failure to file income […]

Corona Woman Sentenced In Federal Embezzlement Case (CA)

A Corona woman was sentenced Friday to four years and nine months in federal prison for embezzling nearly $1 million from her employer.  Jenev Boyd, 60, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sunshine S. Sykes, who also ordered her to pay $780,810 in restitution.  Boyd was a long-time employee and director of accounting for Corona-based […]

Mother-daughter-boyfriend trio accused of defrauding West Kendall HOA; 2 arrested (FL)

Thirty-eight-year-old Yasnely Pedroso had once been fired from the Westwind Lakes Garden Homes Condominium Association, Inc. for destroying records, among other things, according to police.  Enter her mother, Idoris Pedroso. According to Miami-Dade police, when the 63-year-old became board president, she rehired her daughter as an assistant.    Read the article…………………………….

Inside the battle for the Hammocks HOA’s future leadership (FL)

Over a year after five people were charged with running a massive fraud at the Hammocks, the homeowners association is again embroiled in contention.  Court-appointed receiver David Gersten has been overseeing the HOA since the November 2022 arrests of four ex-board members and a fifth person.   Read the article…………………………….

Essex County Man Pleads Guilty in $470,000 Condo Complex Fraud Scheme (NJ)

Federal officials said Smith, alongside his conspirators Nathaniel Obedos and Ranaldo Bennett, orchestrated a kickback scheme targeting the condominium complex where Bennett served as the lead property manager, and Smith held the position of superintendent.  The trio manipulated repair and maintenance operations to benefit Obedos’s company, through which they executed their fraudulent activities.    Read the […]

Dozens of swanky Florida country clubs and HOA’s are being sued for $29 million in alleged PPP fraud. One is in Key Biscayne (FL)

A lawsuit unsealed in federal court last month alleges dozens of South Florida’s most luxurious country clubs and homeowners associations – including one in Key Biscayne – improperly got as much as $29 million in federal pandemic or “PPP” loans and should be ordered to pay up to triple damages.    Read the article………………………….

Ex-Laurelwood HOA President Charged with Embezzlement (MS)

Flowood Police arrested former Laurelwood HOA President Emary Walker for embezzlement and possession of a controlled substances.  The police report states a “local attorney” notified the police of possible embezzlement of Laurelwood HOA funds. The report accuses Walker of using HOA funds to purchase personal items from Amazon.   Read the article……………………………..

Condominium Associates and Precedent Hospitality Join Movement to Shine a Spotlight on Fraud

Fraud costs organizations worldwide an estimated 5 percent of their annual revenues, according to a study conducted by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE). “Occupational Fraud 2022: A Report to the Nations” analyzed 2,110 occupational fraud cases that caused a total loss of more than $3.6 billion.   Read the press release……………………………

Neronha (AG) opens criminal probe of condemned condos’ management company (RI)

The R.I. Attorney General’s office has launched a criminal investigation into the North Providence property management company that has recently come under fire for allowing poor living conditions that led to the city condemning a 56-unit condominium complex and the 24-hour eviction notice sent to its residents.  Read the article………………………………..

“So screwed up”: Senior condo complex in Miami-Dade is an alleged hotbed for grift, hefty assessments (FL)

In lawsuits filed against the association and in interviews with The Real Deal, unit owners claim association leadership illegally imposed $3 million in special assessments, but failed to make promised and required repairs. Unit owners suspect some former and current association leaders of a self-enrichment scheme, as many of the 17 buildings remain in poor […]

Defrauded HOA Trying to Unravel the Mess (FL)

At the Hammocks in West Kendall, 6,500 homeowners are anxious for a return to self-rule after seven years under the thumb of a tyrannical, secretive board of directors that is accused of stealing millions in monthly fees from their neighbors.   Read the article………………………..

Two Jersey City Men Charged in Scheme to Defraud Owner of Condo Complex (NJ)

According to U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger, the men, Ranaldo Bennett, 40, and Nathaniel Obedos, 56, conspired with Jonathan Smith, 56, of Montclair, to inflate charges for repairs and maintenance at the complex and pay the excess money to Bennett and Smith as kickbacks.   Read the article………………………..

Condo board member: More fraud at EmeraldBay (FL)

A second unit owner at a ritzy Key Biscayne apartment building told condominium officials that he too was defrauded by a longtime property manager who was arrested this week on fraud and grand theft charges involving another owner, according to a member of the EmeraldBay board of directors.   Read the article………………………..

Repeat scammer sentenced to prison after embezzling $80K from Orange County HOA (VA)

Like many neighborhoods in the early days of the pandemic, the Germanna Heights Phase I community in Orange County found itself with a dissolved homeowners association. What was once a seven-member board was reduced to a single caretaker: Machell Marie Sims  In 2020, Sims was placed in charge of the HOA’s financial reserves, amounting to […]

Monitoring Fraud in Condo Associations: The Do’s and Don’ts (IL)

Condominium associations hold a significant level of trust, as they are responsible for managing the community’s financial affairs and overall well-being.  Fraud can have devastating consequences for the condominium, both financially and reputationally. Not only does fraud have the potential to break down relationships between neighbors, but it can also cause a significant increase in […]

Woman who stole nearly $80k from Virginia neighborhood faces jailtime

On Monday, July 31, Machell Marie Sims was sentenced on three felony charges of embezzlement, which she had previously pled guilty to in April.  Sims took over the the Homeowners Association’s (HOA) finances for Germanna Heights Phase I, a neighborhood in Orange County, after the neighborhood’s 7-member board dissolved during the early parts of the […]

Lakeshore Gardens senior community targeted in apparent scam (CA)

Seniors at Lakeshore Gardens have reported a rash of scams involving two men allegedly posing as employees of the Carlsbad Lexus and Toyota dealerships and convincing unsuspecting residents to pay for subpar or non-existent vehicle services.   Read the article………………………..

Former CFO Pleads Guilty to Embezzling More Than $3 Million from Employer (MN)

According to court documents, David Efrem Katz, 56, was the former Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Durand and Associates (“D&A”), a property management company that specialized in servicing homeowner associations (“HOAs”). Between 2012 and 2017, Katz embezzled over $3 million from D&A and its client HOAs.   Read the article………………………..

Investigation at luxury Key Biscayne condo widens (FL)

Widening the scope of a criminal probe at the posh EmeraldBay condominium, the State Attorney’s Office confirmed this week it is now involved in a “misappropriation of funds” case that is now in its seventh week.   Read the article………………………..

Judge rules Sammie Sias, ex-commissioner, will not get a new trial (GA)

During the trial last summer, FBI agents testified that Sias deleted 7,000 files in minutes after receiving a grand jury subpoena for bank records. The subpoena came as part of an investigation into the spending of tax dollars at the Jamestown Community Center.  Sias served as president of a homeowner’s association which received the $150,000 […]

Gillette woman’s prison sentence commuted (WY)

The prison sentence of a Gillette woman convicted of embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from a homeowners association in the early 2000s has been reduced to time served, making her eligible for release.   Read the article………………………..