I signed for "7-days Free Trial Subscription" on www.realtytrac.com.
The condition was that if I don't cancel this free trial in 7 days, they will charge a monthly subscription fee. Which happened, their website being absolutely useless and outdated and I lost track of those 7 days by not using the service. I was charged with the $39.95 fee on Oct. 12.
Later after I cancelled the subscription, when checking my bank account I found an unknown (AND UNAUTHORIZED) charge on my card, made on Oct. 30 to "Property Investor Magazine".
Searching for the subject, I found out it was about real estate, and then I tracked it to my subscription with Realtytrac.
The surprise was about a $39.95 "complimentary issue" of this magazine, for which i absolutely did not subscribed or signed in any way, and i never authorized any charge, purchase, subscription to this company.
It was never brought to my attention as part of ANY agreement signed with RealtyTrack, nevertheless with Property Investor Magazine" company.
It was NOT mentioned in their "Terms of Use" nor in their "Privacy Policy".
There was NO "Small Print" that I could overlook.
After I sent an e-mail to cancel my "subscription" and asked for a refund somebody at "customer service" wrote:
"I have Cancelled your subscription, and issued a refund for the amount charged. The refund process should take about 30 day's to be credited back to your card. Your Cancellation confirmation # is 55179."
After that, silence; I waited patiently for the "up to 30 days", wrote them again after, but no answer.
But there is more.
The magazine arrived, and another surprise. The following paragraph is a quote from a letter attached to the magazine, signed by the publisher, Robert Anastasi:
"RealtyTrac and property Investor Magazine (PIM) have joined forces. (...)
If, after reading the enclosed issue of PIM, you would rather not receive 12 issues of PIM for a one-time charge of $29.95 (!!!) billed to your credit card, simply pick-up the phone and call... Your credit card will not be charged if you cancel your subscription within 30 days of the date you accepted the offer to receive this complimentary issue."
I was billed on Oct. 27, and the magazine arrived much later after the cancellation of the "subscription" was confirmed, to find out that actually it costs $29.95 instead of $39.95 I was billed.
Something is definetely dubious and elusive about this company.
On Property Investor Mag. Website there is no phone number, no physical address, only few e-mail contacts.
The scheme is actually planned between these two companies: RealtyTrac Inc., One Venture Plaza, Suite 300, Irvine, CA 92618, Fax#: 949.861.9413;
and
Property Investor Magazine, 5420 Beckley Road Box 244, Battle Creek, MI 49015.
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