Graziosi a self-proclaimed real estate mogul who rose to that status after a poverty-ridden childhood. Seeks to inform those who buy his system of how the current housing downturn can be tapped.
He claims various methods allow users to buy property for as little as a few hundred bucks. And that the housing market has already. Bottomed out and is ready to soar once again. For $19.95 you can order a copy of Graziosi’s book and learn his secrets. One can be assured. though. that the disclaimer that .”Some students may have purchased optional support program. Results not typical” means buyers will. Get still more sales calls promoting more expensive materials. To Graziosi’s credit. the majority of complaints logged with the Better Business Bureau in his home base of Arizona were “resolved.” and he retain a sizable Internet following.
The BBB did initially accredit Dalbey’s
Company in 2003. but revoked that seal of approval within a year.
Bacon’s office has collected 170 complaints related to infomercials in the past three years. Most about service. Sales practices and false advertising.
A common tactic the BBB looks for in its reviews are fraudulent claims that may not relate directly to the content of what is offered — claiming something is a “limited time offer” or a “$100 value.” for instance. even though the promotion is constant and the pricing arbitrary.
“In an economy of today. when people are looking for jobs
Everything is so slow. people are looking for something that is too good to be true.” Bacon says.
Dalbey is not the only infomercial star to face legal woes.
In 2008. Utah residents Linda Woolf and telegram data David Gengler were charged in connection to the “Teach Me to Trade” stock-picking system. Customers paid between $3.000 to $40.000 to learn the system. even though the duo were. in the words of the Securities and Exchange Commission. “unsuccessful traders.” Combined. they earned more than $6 million selling the product.
An SEC complaint alleges that at The charges facedÂ
Their workshop presentations between 2003-06. Woolf and Gengler made false and misleading statements to sell TMTT packages of personal mentoring. software and classes. often targeting retirees. In his workshops. Gengler urged investors to borrow against their retirement accounts to buy these products. the SEC says.
This month a federal judge in Texas sentenced Eric Rulack Farrington. another infomercial star. to 11 years in prison for “orchestrating a multimillion-dollar mortgage fraud scheme in the Dallas area.” He was also ordered to pay approximately $1.6 in restitution and forfeit approximately $1.2 million to the U.S.
Author Kevin Trudeau’s infomercial for “Free Money The charges facedÂ
 They Don’t Want You to Know About” is a variation of the infomercials once made popular by Martin Lesko (known for wearing a Riddler-like suit adorned with question marks).
Trudeau. perhaps trying to appeal to a tea party sensibility even as he espouses how to collect no-strings-attached money. From the maximize machine shop outreach: constant contact & targeted email lists government.
Spends much of the infomercial promoting these secrets as though they were divined from the “Da Vinci Code.” The government wants him taken down. you see. because the information he espouses is dangerous. In reality. it appears to be a revisited list of various government programs. most of which can be easily found with an Internet search.
The consumer news and advocacy site The charges facedÂ
Has logged numerous complaints that ordering Trudeau’s books has led to pushy upsells and being charged for additional. unwanted products.
Real estate. in particular. is a ripe category china leads for infomercials. with many offering tips on how to buy and flip distressed property. It’s a theme many may have first seen via the late-1980s infomercials featuring Tom Vu. a Vietnamese immigrant who claimed to have amassed a fortune by flipping property.