Cautionary Tale: How a "Find-Fund-Rehab" Program Bled Me Dry in Cincinnati

[Selina Kang]

NEVER trust a closed-loop "program" where the seller, lender, broker, title company, and contractor all point back to the same referral chain. Independent third-party inspection, independent title review, and verifying city code databases yourself are absolute musts.

I am sharing my story as a warning to out-of-state investors who might be looking at "turnkey" or "packaged" fix-and-flip programs online. What looked like a streamlined, one-stop investment model turned out to be a coordinated trap that resulted in bleeding cash loss.

Here is how the entire timeline unfolded.

June 2024: The Pitch & The Purchase Contract

I was hooked by a Facebook post promoting a complete, hands-off real estate pipeline marketed as a "Find the deal, fund the deal, rehab the deal" program.

The deal presented to me was a residential property at 966 Fairbanks Ave in Cincinnati, OH. The program packaged everything together:

• The Wholesaler/Seller (Urban Oasis Properties LLC / Camren) set the purchase price at $105,000 and provided a contract explicitly warranting that there were no code or building violations.
• The Broker & Lender (caliverbeach/ Kiavi ) handled the financing. The broker told me the lender had inspected the property and approved the inflated After Repair Value (ARV).
• The Terms: Because I was instructed buying through LLC, the loan originator repeatedly and explicitly assured me verbally that this was a non-recourse loan—meaning if the rehab failed, I would simply hand the property back without personal financial punishment. I have found out he also did the same thing to other investors/ victims.

Relying on these assurances, I signed the purchase contract on June 11, 2024.

July 2024: The High-Pressure Closing

Closing took place around July 2, 2024. The title agent (Title Clearing and Escrow) withheld closing paperwork until the very last minute, giving me no advance time to review documents.

Instead, a mobile notary was sent to my house, demanding I sign a thick stack of papers within an hour. Buried in the stack was a "hold harmless" document regarding code violations. When I stopped to question the document, the notary called the title agent, who brushed it off as standard paperwork and pressured me to keep signing rather than halting the deal to explain the situation.

Late July 2024: The Demolition Order Discovered

Shortly after closing, the General Contractor (Krono Construction "Richard")—who was specifically recommended to me by the loan originator—called me with alarming news. He claimed he couldn't pull building permits because the property was on the City of Cincinnati's Demolition List.

As it turned out, the City had issued an active Notice of Violation and Condemnation on April 3, 2024—months before the seller warranted there were no violations and before the lender funded the deal.

The contractor told me I needed to pay an $18,000 bond to the city to stop the demolition, which later turned out to be $24,000. I paid the $24,000 bond out of pocket to save the building. 

Late 2024 – Mid 2025: Contractor Delay & Forfeited Bond

After I posted the $24,000 bond, the "recommended" contractor proceeded to stall and fail to pull building permits for 10 full months.

Because no permits were pulled within the city's required timeframe, the City of Cincinnati forfeited my entire $24,000 bond. I later discovered that the initial $18,000 bond figure quoted by the contractor matched the exact bond required for a different condemned property in this same network's pipeline, which also have a demo code on it, indicating they were fully aware of the demolition status all along.

May 2026: Cutting Losses & Discovery of the Personal Guarantee

By mid-2026, the project was completely dead, and I had sunk tens of thousands into wasted construction fees. I was forced to sell the property in May 2026 for its true market value of $25,000 just to stop the financial bleeding.

To make matters worse, when I looked back into the loan agreements, I discovered that despite repeated verbal promises of a non-recourse loan, a personal guarantee had been hidden in the closing package. The lender now retains the right to pursue me personally for a deficiency balance on an asset they funded at $105,000 that was actually condemned and worth $25,000.

Why I Am Posting

If any other investors on BiggerPockets have encountered similar issues or turnkey programs operating in the Cincinnati/Ohio market, please reach out or comment below. I am actively compiling information regarding this pipeline.

Also, if you know an ATTORNEY who specializes in real estate fraud or lender misconduct cases, please be sure to reach out to me.

[Jay Hinrichs]

OK  sorry you got hammered like this I am going to play devils advocate here.

1. demo list should have been on the preliminary title report if it was not you do have a title claim. 

2. its something that is common these days with closing companies they dont produce the docs until day before as it frustrates me to no end.. so thats common but I think not a good practice.

3. mobile notary does not force people to sign.. they are independent agents and have no real skin in the game other than to get their MN fee 

4. Cautionary tale when buying property any property you need to ask title company for the title commitment in writing so you can review and approve if you dont understand it then you need to have either a very good RE broker or attorney review and advise.. 95% of the time its fine but I call out items each year that no one caught. 

5. the PG document was in the closing package and you signed it MN will explain what these are as a matter of course.. Kiavi and other lenders ONLY make loans to LLC with a PG. SOP.

AS for contractors and wholesaler fibbing to you that is also pretty standard procedures its a caveat emptor business full stop. Its why most TK companies sell post rehab .. there are a few that set up this BRRR method with the investor hoping they are going to snag equity by doing it this way. But the risk is real.