There are plenty of people from all walks of life who plunk down their paycheck at a casino, we may feel pity but if they stood out front of the casino with a sign protesting that they didn’t realize they could lose, they wouldn’t get much pity. There are also people who wire thousands of dollars to pay the taxes on the Nigerian Lottery knowing they didn’t enter only to find out it is a scam. There is no difference here just because it is real estate. Scams work because a person is blinded by the prize and selectively ignores logic and advice. I do it when i buy a lottery ticket, but I don’t mortgage my house to buy lottery tickets and I don’t hold picket signs asking for help when I lose my dollar. I was approached a few years ago by a friend who wanted me to invest in this or a similar scam. They had invested and were earning 20-40% annual return loaning money to a group of flippers, it was a profit share so the retunrn varied. I asked them why would someone give me 20-40% when they could get the money at the bank for far less. He didn’t know the answer other than he was going to get rich. I told him to get out because things that are too good to be true, usually are. It wasn’t true.
Who has deceiv’d thee so oft as thy self? -Benjamin Franklin
