Clients who say they were scammed out of $100K sue North Myrtle Beach real estate company
A North Myrtle Beach property management agency is under fire after selling a portion of its business to someone accused of embezzling thousands from clients.
Twenty-five property owners who rented condos through Keye Beach Rentals are suing parent company Keye Real Estate over the sale. Walter Pigg bought Keye Beach Rentals in May and has been arrested twice since the purchase.
Keye Real Estate should have known Pigg, who was the subject of numerous lawsuits and complaints regarding proper business practices at the time of sale, had an “unscrupulous history and was financially unfit” to purchase and manage Keye Beach Rentals, according to the lawsuit.
Upon the sale of Keye Beach Rentals, the lawsuit claims Keye Real Estate wrongfully gave more than $500,000 of trust funds to Pigg and unlawfully assigned the condo owners’ rental agreements to Pigg without their knowledge or consent, leading to acts of fraud, damage, and theft by Pigg over the course of several months.
The owners say the ordeal will hurt future sale prices of their condos.
The lawsuit claims Keye Real Estate had a duty to review Pigg’s financial stability, history, reputation, insurance claims, business entities, competency, and civil and criminal claims history prior to selling Keye Beach Rentals and transferring their clients’ trust accounts to Pigg.
‘Walter Pigg’
Police launched an investigation into Pigg, a Little River resident, after North Myrtle Beach officials received nearly three dozen complaints earlier this year outlining his suspected misconduct and unethical business practices since purchasing Keye Beach Rentals, a 55-unit rental agency located at 601 Hillside Drive, last May.
Pigg is suspected of stealing more than $100,000 from clients, according to a Freedom of Information Act request and clients.
Pigg officially closed his agency in February after his property manager’s license was suspended by the S.C. Real Estate Commission. He later surrendered his business license to the city.
Pigg, who is currently a suspect in numerous cases, has been under investigation by North Myrtle Beach, S.C. Law Enforcement Division and other agencies for several months. The investigation has led to North Myrtle Beach arresting Pigg twice in as many months.
Pigg was arrested on June 7 and charged with breach of trust with fraudulent intent after allegedly stealing over $17,000 from a Homeowners Association for personal use. According to police, Pigg withdrew the HOA money through ATM and debit purchases, without HOA approval, to spend at The Big “M” Casino in Little River and Harrah’s Casino in Cherokee, North Carolina.
He was arrested again on July 1 and charged with six counts of breach of trust with fraudulent intent after withholding nearly $25,000 overall in rent from six property owners over the last year. According to police, Pigg collected rent through personal checks and credit cards, but as of June, had not paid any of the property owners.
Pigg deposited a renter’s $2,000 check into his personal account and spent it at The Big “M” Casino and Harrah’s Casino. One condo owner reported not receiving any payments since last June, while others said they haven’t been paid since November.
Pigg was released from J. Reuben Long Detention Center both times on bond.
Pigg could face additional charges as police discover more victims, according to North Myrtle Beach Safety Director Jay Fernandez.
‘Property owners’
About a dozen property owners who rented condos to Keye Beach Rentals told The Sun News in February how Pigg failed to pay them on time when he first bought the business, and later refused to pay them altogether. Pigg also restricted owners from overseeing rental activity, double-booked units, charged renters higher rates without the condo owners’ knowledge, and left units dirty, despite charging owners for cleaning services, owners told The Sun News.
Pigg reportedly continued to showcase their rentals and make reservations through the Keye Beach Rentals website even after losing his license and owners taking their business to another rental agency and changing their locks.
The Sun News also spoke with several vacationers renting condos through Keye Beach Rentals who arrived on various weekends to the vacant rental agency only to discover they had nowhere to stay despite having their vacations paid in full. Vacationers traveling from New York, Ohio, Michigan and Canada said they rent condos annually and planned their vacations a year in advance.
According to police reports filed from January through April, vacationers also found their credit cards were repeatedly charged but their reservation was either canceled, double-booked or the unit was no longer associated with Keye Beach Rentals.
The Sun News spoke to Pigg’s lawyer, Kirk Truslow, in February, when he attested that Pigg had done nothing wrong and those who filed complaints were seeking vengeance.
‘Lawsuit’
The lawsuit was filed Tuesday in Horry County circuit court.
Clients contend they weren’t notified of the sale between Keye Real Estate and Pigg, which is required in their rental agreements.
Keye Real Estate violated the South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act, according to the filing.
The suit requests a jury trial, saying the sale was a result of negligent misrepresentation that resulted in lost rental income, unwarranted charges, consequential damages, intangible losses and injuries, outrage, emotional distress, inconvenience, diminished income capacity and future profits.
The filing asks for an unspecified amount of money.
