Chimene Van Gundy, the self-proclaimed “Queen of Mobile Homes,” has been hit with a lawsuit from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The lawsuit alleges Van Gundy committed fraud through a “Ponzi-like” scheme in which she embezzled funds to pay existing investors, pay undisclosed sales commissions and fund her lifestyle, the San Antonio Express-News reported. The lawsuit claims she raised about $18.5 million from at least 600 investors.
Van Gundy paid herself a weekly salary of $7,000 and spent $5.7 million in investor funds to pay for a nanny, private school tuition, vet bills, boarding costs for horses and car payments, the lawsuit alleges.
The SEC filed a civil complaint Wednesday in a San Antonio federal court, seeking a permanent injunction, return of investor funds and civil penalties. Three salespeople employed by her New Braunfels-based company, Outstanding Real Estate Solutions, were also named as defendants.
Van Gundy allegedly told investors their money would be used to buy, refurbish and sell mobile homes and that they would receive annual returns of 15 to 20 percent, the outlet said. But the SEC claimed that of the 248 mobile homes connected to Van Gundy and her company between June 2018 and November 2021, they owned just six.
“To give the appearance of legitimacy to … transactions, Van Gundy used identification numbers of mobile homes owned by other mobile home retailers, presenting them to investors as mobile homes [the company] purportedly bought through investor funding,” the SEC’s lawsuit says.
On at least 23 occasions, Van Gundy and her company solicited investor money for a mobile home that was already connected to a previous investor, the lawsuit claims. She even sold the same mobile-home investment to as many as five investors in some cases, it states.
Van Gundy also falsely told people that the Federal Emergency Management Agency awarded her a contract to sell mobile homes for people displaced by hurricanes, the SEC alleges. Plus, the lawsuit claims Van Gundy and her employees acted as unregistered brokers.
Van Gundy rose to prominence through appearing on podcasts, magazine covers and her YouTube channel. Her downfall began last summer when investors started suspecting her of fraudulent activities. Some investors sued her, leading a Comal County judge to appoint a receiver to take control of her company, her personal assets and financial records, the outlet said.
Van Gundy filed for Chapter 7 liquidation the day after her alleged misdeeds were made public, listing herself as jobless and having no income besides her monthly unemployment check of $600. A bankruptcy judge granted a motion to dismiss Van Gundy’s case in September because she had not complied with court-ordered obligations.
—Quinn Donoghue
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