Cross Purposes

Misplaced Trust…

“I hope you can read my heart in this, as my intention from the beginning and through all the land and house hunting that we have done here for you folks was to help you as much as possible and that we three love you both and are doing our best to keep you from getting scammed and taken for a ride, plus we are trying to negotiate the best possible deal that we can as though it was our money that was being spent. We haven’t asked the contractor for a dime, if you buy his house, we have been doing what we have done with a servants heart, we are here to serve and that is what I do, no strings attached! You have faithfully covered my expenses and I feel that if I stay out of the money end from either side I can be a negotiator that is not biased and free to barter what is right for both sides. You folks are friends and we don’t charge friends and family for helping them. My gas and other expenses are covered by your offerings and so all is well for us in whatever decision you make, you will not offend me at all.” The minister.

I am not easily fooled. But I was taken in by an expert; a Christian minister whose allegiance was to a pagan and whose sales pitch was well honed and convincing.

Several years ago my wife and I tried to purchase property in Argentina. We flew to Santiago, Chile then over the majestic Andes Mountains to Mendoza, Argentina. The rental car we reserved was not available so we bused south to San Rafael where we looked at several properties. One we liked and would have purchased except the pricing for Gringos was in dollars instead of the common but less valuable Peso. In dollars it was a bad investment and since we could find no way to purchase Argentine real estate in the common currency we had a very enjoyable trip but did not find property.

A year or so later we met a man from Costa Rica at our church. He and his family had been living in Central America for several years and he said he could help us acquire property in Costa Rica valued in their common currency. A couple of years went by before we were able to explore his offer.

In June, we flew to Costa Rica and stayed in a hotel in the San Jose suburb of Escazu. Street signs are scarce in Costa Rica and in a generous gesture the minister drove 30 miles to the airport, met us at the car rental office, and led us to our hotel. It was a vacation for us but we reserved time to drive to the town where the minister lived to look at real estate.

When we arrived it was lunch time and we offered to buy lunch. They took us to an upscale restaurant where he and his son ordered several expensive items which they consumed with relish. I picked up the tab.

Our objective had not changed from our trip to Argentina; we wanted a complex that would provide a place for us to use and some income property that would support the investment. We had a budget.

The minister lived up at the top of a steep, rocky mountain road. Though he drove an old car and the rental property was not fancy it was well appointed with television, internet, and some new, expensive appliances. He took me aside and told us that some of the Christians he had tried to help had not offered to cover his expenses. We donated to his ministry generously more than once.

Down the hill from his house he took us to meet with a contractor who had a home for sale. It was new and well built with concrete block and stucco. We liked the house but the backyard was a mess and the asking price was above our budget.

The minister and his son both emphasized that we needed to understand that things in Costa Rica are done differently than in United States. “I already assume that you have this mindset, but, I just want it said so that there can be no misunderstandings later! You are not in the US when you come here to buy anything and as such you need to be open to the customs of this country.”

We then drove to the nicely appointed home of a local Real Estate Agent. He joined us in the minister’s car and directed us to several properties; only one was attractive and it turned out to be too expensive.

As we were about to leave the real estate agent said that he could build three apartments on a lot and keep the cost within our budget. I said I would be interested. We returned to Florida.

Shortly after our return we received a CD that contained detailed pictures of all the properties we had visited.

I was still interested in the three apartments and the minister provided lengthy emails detailing the extensive work he and his son were doing to find property for us. His work was efficient with pictures of properties to be considered and detailed information on the status of each property.

We sent him our criterion: “As we evaluate lots we need to keep in mind that the lot must be near public transportation so renters can get to work; it must be on a paved road and not be precipitous or in a tacky or industrial neighborhood.”

He found a lot and sent pictures. I sent him this email: “Here is where we stand. If this lot is as good as it seems and we can construct the three apartments on it and stay under budget I will come down. However, I do not want to spend the money coming down only to find that the cost is going way over budget. I must depend on your judgment.”

Shortly after, I received this email: “Are you interested in this lot? You haven’t advised me….if not, I’m wasting a lot of time and fuel in checking it out. If so the owner has asked me multiple times if you are interested and I don’t know what to tell him…my son thinks that he wants to know so he can start letting others know about it and if he goes that route he will be selling for more now that he is clearing the land and preparing to put in the road between the properties. I think we need to give him some kind of answer soon just to be fair with him, he has done everything we asked so far as the clearing of the lot was our suggestion to him as a way to help you see what the actual lot looks like.”

This lot soon fell by the wayside and I was urged to fly down immediately because the contractor who owned the house down the hill was now willing to build two apartments behind the house for a price within our budget. We were told that he needed the money for another transaction and was only willing to make this deal if he could get the money immediately. I could not leave immediately and as it turned out the urgency was not necessary as he was willing to wait until the end of the month.

We were interested in this proposition because we had seen and liked the house and even though we had not scrutinized the entire property we believed the minister would properly evaluate it for us. I emailed back, “I want to purchase this property but please understand that I will not leave loose strings that may or may not tie together following the purchase.”

Almost immediately a contract to purchase the property arrived by email and a phone call came to wire $2,000 to bind the contract and hold the property until I could fly down and sign the final draft. These are the words of the next email. “If you can read Spanish it is a straight forward option to buy at a fixed price with a description of what is promised by the seller. It also says the the deposit paid today was $500 with a promise to pay the remaining $1500 by no later than Monday. It is for the normal time period of 30 days as that is pretty much what was agreed upon. With you coming down the end of this month this is more than sufficient time to secure the property until you get here.” I cannot read Spanish but we had the contract translated and it seemed legitimate. (Stupid me – I wired the money.)

At the end of the month, I few to Costa Rica. The minister had been called to a conference in the States and was not there. His wife and son picked me up at the airport and took me to a local hotel. It was lunch time and, though I had not offered, they drove me to the same fancy restaurant for lunch. I picked up the tab.

The next day we met at the property with the contractor. There were several loose ends and some serious questions. The house was an excellent buy but it had been built on land that had been created by piling tons of dirt behind a retaining wall. The retaining wall had been built with concrete block but the exterior concrete and stone facing had only been finished about half way to the top, reinforcing bars were protruding through the concrete. There were drainage problems and the stone wall that surrounded the property was in need of repair. The back yard had a large hole in the ground and several structures that had not been completed; they did not match the house. We determined the builder was putting in a hot tub, a wet bar, a half bath, and a storage room. Finishing the items would add at least ten percent to our budget and would still leave several expensive problems. Costa Rica is an earthquake zone and I was concerned about the integrity of the retaining wall and the safety of the house itself.

We had been urged to accept the ways of Costa Ricans but since we were providing the money we expected the properties to conform to our expectations. I declined to go forward with the purchase. The minister had about $3000 of our money and I had out of pocket expenses of a thousand or so more. At his urging I had put money into a property I had not fully evaluated. It was a foolish thing to do.

Much of this fraud involved my failure to see through some expert manipulations. The real estate market is dead in Costa Rica just as it is in the States and I suspect all the urgency was contrived. I was depending on being protected by a man who told me that his loyalty was divided between me and the individuals he was attempting to “lead to Christ”. My trust was misplaced. The $2000 I wired to bind the contract was sent to and signed for by the minister. I should have picked up on the excesses at the restaurant or on the manipulative urgency to secure the deal. In retrospect it is easy to see the mistakes that contributed to being defrauded but when one is intent on an accomplishment there is a strong tendency to overlook important warning signs. I was foolish and I was fooled.

In spite of the pressure sales tactic and an apparent intent to defraud, this minister may not think he has done anything wrong. Antinomian Charismatics can easily fall into the sin of pragmatism because they do not understand that in God’s Kingdom the end does not justify the means. God expects obedience to His legal standards; He expects the means to justify the end. He is not pragmatic. Fraudulent works produce rotten fruit. He is wrong to believe he can serve both buyer and seller; attempting to do so creates an untenable conflict. Defrauding gringos to enrich domestics in the Name of Christ cannot produce good fruit.

The procedures used have been practiced over a period of several years and others may have fallen prey. If you are involved with a Christian minister in Costa Rica be very careful. Do not send money until you have personally seen and evaluated everything! Those that seem to be Christian sheep sometimes turn out to be pagan wolves.

The friendship expressed at the beginning of this article did not survive the deception; we have not heard from the minister since my return to the States.