The case was one in every of a handful of authorized challenges in a number of states confronted by the sale-leaseback platform that was based in 2016.
Whether or not it’s refining your online business mannequin, mastering new applied sciences, or discovering methods to capitalize on the subsequent market surge, Inman Join New York will put together you to take daring steps ahead. The Subsequent Chapter is about to start. Be a part of it. Be part of us and hundreds of actual property leaders Jan. 22-24, 2025.
The New York-based sale-leaseback firm EasyKnock scored a authorized win in its battle with a Texas couple who claimed that their transaction was really a mortgage in disguise.
The ruling was an vital early signal for the corporate, which has confronted client lawsuits in Maryland, South Carolina, Pennsylvania and Ohio, and enforcement actions in Michigan and Massachusetts that posed dangers to its enterprise mannequin.
EasyKnock scored a victory in Texas final month when an arbitrator who thought-about the case dominated in its favor and awarded the corporate $153,000.
“We are thrilled with the arbitrator’s ruling, which affirms the integrity of EasyKnock’s business model and clearly identifies our sale-leaseback as a true sale,” EasyKnock CEO Jarred Kessler stated in an announcement. “This victory is a bold statement that EasyKnock operates in full compliance with the law and provides a valuable, lawful option for homeowners to access their equity.”
At difficulty was a Texas couple who bought their dwelling to EasyKnock after which agreed to lease it again from the corporate with the choice to purchase it again or direct the corporate to promote it.
The couple later challenged the transaction and claimed it was a disguised mortgage that violated Texas lending legal guidelines, claims that EasyKnock denied.
The lawsuit adopted an investigation by NPR, which included an evaluation of over 400 properties that EasyKnock bought in Texas. The investigation discovered the offers “cost some people tens of thousands of dollars in equity and that the vast majority of people do not buy their houses back.”
EasyKnock informed NPR the civil lawsuits are “meritless” and that it’s cooperating with attorneys common trying into its enterprise practices. If owners lose cash on sale-leasebacks, it’s due to private circumstances or the native housing market, the corporate stated.
In a Might 20 cease-and-desist letter, Michigan’s lawyer common ordered the corporate to halt what it claimed had been illegal enterprise practices, together with deceptive advertising and “oral misrepresentations made by EasyKnock representatives” to induce customers to enter into sale-leasebacks.
“EasyKnock’s sale-leaseback solution continues to provide a non-lending alternative for homeowners facing financial difficulties,” Kessler stated. “This ruling reaffirms that our model is not only innovative but also entirely legal. We are committed to helping more homeowners secure financial stability through our transparent, fair sale-leaseback agreements.”
E-mail Taylor Anderson
