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Latest victims of investment fraud? Retirees

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  • Description

    Bob Massi's warning for your savings

  • Duration 3:33
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This transcript is automatically generated

Welcome back sixty minutes past the hour if it sounds too good to be true it usually is don't we know that a new problem.

Hitting -- retirement community it deals with real estate investments.

Thousands of retirees are pouring their life savings into real estate being told.

It's a safe place to put their money but that's not the case.

Joining me right now and more Fox News legal analyst Bob -- Bob good to see you.

Good morning alright -- fantastic first up tell us what is in -- -- REIT.

Yet there's a lot of our viewers that haven't been involved in this it's what's called a real estate investment trust and simply put mean they've been around a long time.

And it's where investors are basically brokers go to investors to put money.

It to this corporation -- this speech for us -- -- a lot of tax benefits but the reason behind it Juliette.

Is to be able to golf and by investment properties commercial properties things that maybe we could not afford individually.

But by -- it into this large.

Corporation or trust dependent upon how was set up we put this money and and then the read actually go out and buy the properties which of the income producing.

And therefore bring revenue to those investors and they have been around it's one of those things I wanted to talk about.

There is so realistic prices were a lot of people have been scammed but that -- wears a scam park again.

Well here's what's happened.

A lot of elderly and senior citizens over the years have been hustled.

By a lot of financial managers and I I guy I don't say that disrespectfully but those of them out there are no.

Who they are who they bed and basically what's happened is is they've made the representation.

To a lot of the elderly people that these were conservative investments right that they were safe investments when in fact.

They were risky investments and so over the years there have been enormous lawsuits that's happened.

Against -- reach for fraud and non disclosure issues and people who lost.

Millions of dollars in these -- and so as a result of that the target.

Has been and will continue to be at times the elderly and senior citizens what -- conditions were paid to these guys.

Yet this is what's -- and managers the breakers yet.

Everybody's -- -- to be paid for whatever they do.

A lot of the brokers were paid up to 15%.

Commissions.

And you're talking about a lot of money here but there but here's where a lot of the lawsuits came from Juliette.

There are hidden.

Non disclosed -- right inside of these -- that you and I hypothetically is an investor.

We're never told about so some very very sharp lawyers that investigated this and that up following.

Lawsuits and arbitration saying wait a second not only were these people scam.

Up high risk investments but in addition to that.

They're all these non disclosed fees -- they paid.

That nobody ever to hold them about and so as a result of that this has been -- that's been going on for the last few years.

We're lawyers have gone after these people for the loss of money that they put in.

And the reason really why I wanted to cover this is I really did get a lot of emails where people put money into these reached.

And they asked me to discuss it -- -- sophisticated thing.

But I want our viewers to understand what you hear about a -- Nothing wrong with it but be careful and give good advice before you invest it and -- -- Matthew thank you very much for joining us and giving us the information.

Did you -- yes you are at.

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