Its seems to be crime-week here at Curbed LA. First, we read about the Craigslist scamcharged with ripping off 23 New Yorkers in a real estate scam. The author of "Dating Your Money" claims she was also bamboozled by her alleged accomplices:
Also charged were Carla Zimbalist, 62, a Mercedes-driving Beverly Hills real estate broker, and Pam Chanla, 33, an Alhambra, Calif., mom. Wilkov was introduced to Chanla by her sister-in-law, who met the woman at a "Mommy and Me" playgroup in Los Angeles, prosecutors said.
Zimbalist, who was arrested Tuesday in Los Angeles, and Chanla, who is still being sought, allegedly recruited Wilkov to find people to invest in buying homes in the Los Angeles area to fix up and flip for big profits.
Of course, the "investors" thought they were putting their money into a sure thing - LA real estate. Um, we have a lovely fixer-upper for them in the up and coming neighborhood of Compton. Never mind the burnt innards, its all about location.
· Love-&-money writer hot for others' cash: DA [NY Daily News]