After a deadly wildfire destroyed the town of Lahaina on Maui in Hawaii, residents whose homes were reduced to ashes are receiving calls from off-island real estate investors to get their land back.
Unsolicited purchase offers, which experts describe as violent because of the fire’s proximity to devastation, have prompted local authorities to act to protect residents coping with the loss of their homes and livelihoods, along with the loss of loved ones. inspired to.
At least 115 people died in the August 8 fire, making it the deadliest fire in the US in more than a century, and officials have said the death toll is likely to rise. Maui County officials on Thursday released the names of 388 people who have not been traced.
“Ready to leave your community?”
Maui resident Goldian Lowe, who has a home in Napili, north of Lahaina, told CBS MoneyWatch that he has received offers from five different entities to buy his home, which was not affected by the wildfires. She operates a clinic in Lahaina to serve youth with autism spectrum disorders. That building also survived.
Lowe said she was “frustrated and troubled” by the tone of the emails that arrived in her inbox soon after the area caught fire. One offer came from a man who described himself as “part of a small group of real estate investors who buy homes in and around Lahaina.”
Addressing Gouldian by name, the email said, “We have identified your home at 6 Killie Nahe St that we would like to potentially invest in.” “It’s always a good idea to see what your home’s current value might be. We’ve appraised your home and you may be eligible for a cash offer.”
Lowe wasn’t sure why he was approached.
“It seemed like an automated email, and the fact of the matter is, they apparently didn’t even double check that our house was not in a fire zone,” he said. “So they’re just randomly saying, ‘Are you ready to leave your community and get cash for your house?’ In the midst of a tragedy, it feels disrespectful and lacking empathy or compassion.”
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Troy JH Andrade, a law professor and director of the Ulu Lehua Scholars Program at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa’s William S. Richardson School of Law, is providing grassroots relief and education to the Mauvasis that he is working to avoid. He said poachers are infiltrating the realtor community.
“We’re trying to help this community at least breathe a sigh of relief while outside pressures try to take advantage of this dire situation,” he told CBS MoneyWatch. “Many people are still grieving and trying to get necessities. Some are still without power and water, while at the same time the community has been hit hard by external pressures.”
The Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) has issued two separate warnings about predatory real estate pitches targeting local residents. In a notice dated August 14, the department urged Mauvasis to be alert to unsolicited offers to buy their properties.
Burnt cars and homes are seen in a neighborhood destroyed by wildfires on August 8 in Lahaina, Hawaii. Getty Images
“While property owners have the right to sell their property, unsolicited offers from buyers may result in owners receiving less than they should have,” the agency said. “The appeal of an all cash offer, a quick closing, a hassle-free transaction, a pre-closing cash advance, lien payoff, commission avoidance, attorneys’ fees avoidance, and foreclosure avoidance are all things that the owner can are asked to induce them to sign a contract under a time limit that does not allow the consumer to make sound decisions or consult with others.”
A follow-up notice stated that “people are calling the landlords careless in an attempt to buy property from the injured and take advantage of their vulnerable position.”
To prevent land grabs by predatory speculators, Hawaii Governor Josh Green signed an emergency proclamation making it illegal to solicit Maui’uan to buy their land.
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“In Governor Josh Green’s Sixth Emergency Proclamation, making an unsolicited offer to the owner of real property located in three East Maui zip codes to purchase that property is a felony punishable by up to one year in prison and a $5,000 fine. ” The Hawaii State Department of the Attorney General said in a statement to CBS MoneyWatch. “The Attorney General’s Department is committed to holding accountable those who seek to prey on people at their most vulnerable during this tragedy.”
“I Pray People Know Better”
Deborah Loeffler, a Maui resident whose Lahaina home was destroyed by wildfires, has found temporary accommodation at a hotel. Meanwhile, he said he received an email from an Oklahoma-based organization claiming to represent local real estate buyers and investors.
Loeffler told CBS MoneyWatch, “I received some emails and I deleted them. They said they represented local realtors, but at the bottom of the email it was written that it came from Oklahoma.”
“He started by apologizing for your loss or something and then said he had a cash offer if I was interested in selling my house,” he said. “I removed it and cleaned out the trash can as well. It’s too violent.”
Loeffler also stated that she was not interested in selling her land and did not want to leave Lahaina. Rather, she wants the community to have a say in how it should be rebuilt.
“I pray that people know better than to accept such offers,” she added.
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Source: www.cbsnews.com
