The Morris Properties Scandal and Why You Should Watch Out for the Property Scammers!
Bursting the house price bubble
I was sent a link to the BBC’s Panorama Program ‘Bursting the House Price Bubble’ which is an exposé of the fraudulent dealings of Simon Morris’s Morris Properties company.
This interesting and eye-opening program describes how Simon Morris’s company sold property to investors at vastly over-inflated prices, with vastly over-stated rental income promises.
Unfortunately, many property investors have been conned out of large amounts of cash by Simon Morris and in some cases have even lost everything, which is very terrible indeed. This is an extreme example of what can go wrong if you don’t keep your wits about you when buying or investing in property. I have two pieces of advice on this which are:
- Don’t trust anyone. There are very few times in life that you need to trust anybody 100%. Keep your eyes and ears wide open. If a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably isn’t!
- Take responsibility for your own actions - it is you who will ultimately carry the can, if you’re not happy with a property deal - walk away.
Missing the main point
There was a significant point in the BBC’s program that was glossed over, when really it has a major significance as regards the burden of trust. As a property investor myself I expect mortgage lenders, property valuers and solicitors to do a good job and look after my interests. The BBC focused mainly on informing the world about the appalling, fraudulent conduct of Simon Morris, when it would have been equally appropriate for them to complain about the surveyors who carry out property valuations and the mortgage lenders who use their valuation.
Land registry fuels house price rise
Apparently property valuers look at valuations of similar properties on the land registry site to help in valuing a property. Because Simon and his mates have sold properties at inflated prices and had the values recorded on the land registry site, other properties have also been over valued by valuers looking at those figures, fuelling house price inflation.
Surely the guys that carry out property valuations are savvier than that! Surely mortgage lenders have more in their locker than that! Don’t they? Isn’t this the big crime? Without the phony valuations - Simon Morris couldn’t have been able to sell property at over inflated prices. Without phony valuations - mortgage lenders wouldn’t lend money to see such fraudulent transactions go through.
Read more on the Morris Properties fraud:
Property Disaster - BBC Inside Out report on Simon Morris and the Morris Properties scandal
Well Stuart - I think your last paragraph is very apposite, and maybe it is about time that the whole industry had a good shake up. Certainly I don’t believe that the Simon Morris’s of this world would succeed had it not been for the co-operation of others involved in the transactions. The Panorama programme is undoubtedly just the start of what will finally come out about this story.
Comment by Sarah Adams — February 10, 2008 @ 2:03 am
I’m a professional freelance copywriter, and to my eternal shame I wrote five of the brochures that Morris Properties used to con people. At the time I didn’t realise quite how bent the company is, although a few of the signs were there in the changes that they made to my copy before printing the brochures (eg, understating travel times). However, I was so taken in that I even considered investing some of my own money!
They then refused to pay my invoices, claiming my copy was “littered with errors” - if only I had known how true that was. I sued and eventually settled for 80% of what I was due.
I doubt very much if bastards like Simon Morris will get caught, but I live in hopes. If he does, I hope they put him away for a very long time, AND throw the key away.
One thing it does show, however, is the truth of your first point: if a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Comment by languedocfox — February 26, 2008 @ 4:17 pm
Morris is a scumbag. He needs those body guards to follow him when he is in his SLR or his Rolls or his DB9. How can the authorities let him get away with this?? I tell you this someone will put a stop to him soon its on the cards!
Comment by John Anon — June 10, 2008 @ 11:49 am
Morris, what a tirrant. a sick individual who needs locking up for a long time. It seems that he got rid of his personnel in the compnay down to bare minimum so these people cannot be questioned by the police. all the other companys he has under his name are now going bankrupt and money is filterning back across the waters allegedlly. He treats people like a peice of crap on his shoe. allegedly fraud everyone out of money. allegedly leans on people who he wants out of the way. get his own auditors to come into the business and sherks past the tax man. this is a tax mans haven if they would have the balls to investigate him. allegedly people after him with death threats and other things. The police need to look at this mans business rather than wasting there time in other areas of criminal activity. He is the biggest criminal going but as he knows the law and has avoided it for so long he can put up the smallest of smoke screens to put the police off there cent. There are too many people like this who have fall guys as he can keep clean to live another day.
Tax man and Fraud squad please look in to this man, you will be amazed at what you find. But dont leave any books unturned.
Comment by danny — June 19, 2008 @ 11:15 pm
The sad truth is that this property fraud is continuing in sheffield by shevell and pimlico properties owned by Lee Jones an associate of Simon Morris. Properties can be registered on the land registry for £100,000 one day and be registered for nearly £200,000 the next. How can that be right? Investors can’t all be blamed for being greedy or mindless when they are dealing with so called registered companies and associated professionals. Why should this be allowed to happen with no recourse - if they can get away with this why not everybody join the fraud wagon. Thats the joke when these people can just get away with daylight robbery by ruining other peoples lives. Still what goes around comes around that really is the truth!
Comment by pinklon — June 24, 2008 @ 1:51 am
They will never catch Simon Morris.
If I could have done it I would, but i would have been much more fair along the way.
I wholly blame the investors for being thik and they deserve to loose their money for not doing their research. Who buys a house and doesn’t check what similar ones in the area are going for?? Firstly (NOT ME)………………Yes the valuers may have been bent, but it only gets to that stage by first you agreeing that the price to pay is acceptable.
Apologies if I have pissed people off with this, but i think you will all agree!
Comment by Dave — August 1, 2008 @ 11:00 am
Pinklon - can you get in touch re-Shevell?
Comment by CDBF — August 27, 2008 @ 10:23 pm