The Federal Trade Commission is giving $12 million in refund payments to those duped by a Utah company associated with multiple HGTV stars.
Zurixx LLC lured students into taking expensive seminars on house flipping. The company agreed to a settlement in February 2022 after it was accused of using false earning claims to draw in would-be real estate entrepreneurs.
Some participants paid tens of thousands of dollars to take part in the Zurixx seminars.
The FTC said Zurixx owners Christopher Cannon, James Carlson, and Jeffrey Spangler partnered with home-improvement TV personalities. They included Tarek and Christina El Moussa, Hilary Farr, Peter Souhleris, and Dave Seymour of A&E’s Flipping Boston, among others.
In some cases, the celebrities never attended the classes, sending in pre-recorded video messages.
The FTC termed it a “coaching scheme.” Many attendees complained that most of the classes were focused on getting participants to spend more money for additional lessons and access to investors with capital.
The company told attendees that they’d receive 100% funding for potential real estate investments, and inflated potential profits.
One participant told AP that on the last day of the course, the teacher pushed participants to pay for training that cost as much as $26,000.
The FTC said 25,563 customers will be receiving payments, according to Wednesday’s news release. Administrators are advising recipients to cash their checks within 90 days.
“Many victims will finally be getting some justice. Thousands who were coached into fraudulent investments by Zurixx owners will receive checks from this substantial settlement,” Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes said in a statement. “Removing these actors permanently from the coaching space is a significant win for Utah. We hope this serves as a warning to others who might consider setting up similar programs based on false earning claims.”
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