I joined Housevalues in August of 04, newly licensed in CA in July 04. I was interested in establishing a lead generator that brought me listings only, and in my geographic location of Oakland, CA.
Housevalues contacted me as well as HomeGain and Reply! Com... After evaluating all of the pros and cons that I could establish without joining (housevalues would not allow any trial runs) I decided to join Housevalues. The commitment was for one year with 3 leads per month, and requirement that I complete their on-line university program becoming a Certified Professional before I recvd a lead. This CP program entailed attending a "Fast Start" phone class, attending a coaching call, and turning three leads to listings before attaining the designation of Certified Professional.
The cost was a bit much for a newby like myself, so they set a plan in place where I could pay $99.00 for the 1st 6 months, but then after 6 months, the cost would increase to $199.00 for the final 6 months... I signed the contract, and got my 1st lead instantly... I followed up immediately, excited that I would have my 1st listing in no time... Unfortunately, my 1st lead was very disappointing... The name in the email was [email protected], and no phone number... I was instantly dismayed...
I did allow this crap to go on for 5 months, and when I was aware that my cost would increase, I decided to pull the plug... No leads responded to my CMAs, phone attempts, or emails... I was getting scammed and was just sitting back and letting it happen... Every month, my savings was depleted more and more...
I cancelled the credit card that Housevalues had, and instantly recvd an email threatening me to make arrangements to fix the problem with my billing... 2 months later, I was (and still am) in collections for a tune of over $800.00... The collections dept calls me every day, sometimes 2-3 times, harrassing me all day long... I will never pay this bill, they have already wrecked my credit, and so it will stay wrecked...
Seems to me, there must be a way to stop these bastards from perpetuating this scam... But I havent found one, and although I had a very productive summer despite housevalues, I still dont have it in me to go after them legally by myself. If anyone is considering a class action against them, I would be in in a heartbeat... But I just cant do it alone...
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