Victim of Contractor Fraud? Read this!
If your home has been damaged in a natural disaster, then you know what it means to be displaced and depressed and financially compromised. Matters become far worse if you have the misfortune of being victimized by an unscrupulous contractor. It happened to me and my story is far more common than people realize. The contractor I hired deliberately caused excessive damage with the intention of increasing the insurance claim and causing psychological dependence. After talking with my banker, Tori Scott at Key Bank and my insurance agent, Rod Ronquillo with Allstate, the contractor I hired and the trauma I’m still swimming on happens with such regularity that both believe fraudulent contractors are more common than not. We surmised fraud may occur in over 50% of all remodeling and repairs performed.
The contractor I hired advertises on Nextdoor — still — even though I was persistent in asking that his ad be removed. I emailed Nesxdoor’s Meridian Park lead repeatedly complaining. To date the ad remains on Nextdoor. To my dismay, Regalado posted photos of my home and the charity I founded, Whisker City as references. I’ve never referred him to anyone. Nextdoor responded by suspending my account for violating community standards. I opened a second account hoping for further investigation, that account was suspended for the same reasons. I wrote to the CEO, Sarah Friar today and I’m not hopeful she will respond fairly either. I’ve since discovered others who hired this contractor based on the Nextdoor Advertisement.
I’ve come to the conclusion nobody cares. Washington State Department of Licensing gave the company a license. All the owner had to do is put up $12,000. A victim must file a civil suit in the Superior Court of King County in order to make a valid bond claim. I’ve called several local attorneys and each asked for the same $5000 retainer. I plan on filing pro se. I was shocked to discover that contractors can leave dozens of victims in one State and open up a business in another State without their fraudulent history following them. The owner of A to Z Contracting Corp operated in Los Angeles County as MR Interior Design. Manny Regalado, has eleven unpaid judgments totaling over a million dollars. When I told the licensing clerk what I found, she cut me off as soon as I uttered the words “Los Angeles” with “Los Angeles, that’s not our problem, we don’t do background checks”. She also told me that Contractor Fraud is a civil matter. So please tell me what the point of licensing contractors?
I’ve contacted four of the attorneys who won judgments against Regalado in the Los Angeles cases. The stories are heartbreaking. Regalado targets charities offering free or cheap handyman work while boasting he is retired and independently wealthy. Nearly 100% of every story he told us was false. He said many many times that he came to Seattle because he “just wants to help people and make friends”. He creates false friendships and name drops. He boasts about having worked on television home improvement shows and talks about awards he’s won on HOUZZ and Porch.com. He is overly friendly and charming and patient until he finds the perfect target. I am his first victim in King County. There are others now. Carolyn Steber, wrote an article perfectly describing the ways, Regalado used to infiltrate my home and our minds - “13 Common Mind Games Sociopaths Play In Everyday Life To Watch Out For”.
It appears there will be no accountability by conventional means. Law enforcement considers contractor fraud a civil matter when in fact, the destruction is every bit as horrific as arson or robbery. Contractor property damage is not easily repaired leaving a house unsalable and even unlivable. Resolving the issues can mean a near complete tear-out of the work and the complete loss of expensive materials and labor. Regalado created a design that did not meet code, as an example one set up steps is 8.5 inches and 9.5 inches and are awkwardly located. The steps will have to be completely removed, rebuilt and new hardwoods installed. I created a website with “Before Regalado” and “After Regalado” the destruction.
Although frustrated with the Shoreline Police Department and disappointed that government agencies do nothing to protect the citizenry, I’m not going to sit back and do nothing. I have a webpage www.aprilbrown.com/manny-regalado-construction-fraud and I am populating it with all the information and victim stories I find. I’ve filed a police report hoping he will be charged with embezzlement for the nearly $11,000 in unauthorized charges for tools, food and items he bought for himself. Even crooks have to pay taxes, and the Internal Revenue Service wants theirs so I, along with other victims are filing the payments we’ve made to him with the IRS. He has four children and may be Los Angeles County Child Support Enforcement is looking for him. I also talked to local hardware stores. While notifying Home Depot and Dunn Lumber I discovered he put my name and credit card on those accounts. My name now removed, they now have my story. I’ve contacted all the sub-contractors and told them my experience and they shared theirs. They pegged Regalado right away and one by one they dropped away. I often over-heard arguments. He had a story for the subs too. He told them he was working for free and that I was his girlfriend, despite the 30 year age difference. The contractors assumed I knew him intimately so they kept their mouth shut. The drywall contractor told me his boss said, “he’s going to take her for every dime she has”.
This story is not over. I want justice and I want to prevent this company from harming others. He targets seniors, charities and low income, the very people who do not have the resources to fight back. This is unacceptable.
