EasyKnock takes victory lap after $153K arbitration ruling
The sale-leaseback proptech mired in legal action celebrated a win that absolved the firm of wrongdoing and awarded it over $153,000 for past due rent and fees.
Sale-leaseback and "buy-before-you-sell" proptech EasyKnock scored a victory in its various legal battles. This week, the company announced a $153,000 win in arbitration in a case brought by Dallas homeowners who claimed that the company attempted to defraud them out of their home via a "disguised loan" by EasyKnock.
What the court determined: According to court documents, which EasyKnock has publicly shared, the court-ordered arbiter determined that Randy Sitzman and Anne Sadovsky Sitzman — a couple who had entered into a sale-leaseback with EasyKnock back in 2019 to avoid foreclosure — owed EasyKnock $147,723.98 in past due rent as well as $6,106.00 in legal fees, bringing the total judgment to $153,829.98.
"In sum, this Arbitrator finds that the Sitzmans have not suffered loss or damage as a result of the transactions with EasyKnock," the court record states. "To the contrary, the transactions have resulted in significant net economic benefits to the Sitzmans. It has also enabled them to achieve their desired objective of avoiding foreclosure and continuing to live in the home that Ms. Sadovsky-Sitzman originally built in 1985."
What EasyKnock said: In an announcement on the legal victory, EasyKnock co-founder and CEO Jarred Kessler said that the ruling "affirms the integrity of EasyKnock's business model" which "provides a valuable, lawful option for homeowners to access their equity." Additionally, he applauded the Texas court for upholding the legality of the sale-leaseback transaction and lease term with the Sitzmans.
"EasyKnock's sale-leaseback solution continues to provide a non-lending alternative for homeowners facing financial difficulties," Kessler further added. "This ruling reaffirms that our model is not only innovative but also entirely legal. We are committed to helping more homeowners secure financial stability through our transparent, fair sale-leaseback agreements."
One down and others still to go: While EasyKnock took a victory lap this week after the Texas ruling, the company has remained stifled by ongoing litigation from individual homeowners and criticism from government regulators.
EasyKnock reached a settlement with the State of Massachusetts late last year, agreeing to discontinue its sale-leaseback program in the state, and is also currently being investigated by Michigan's attorney general. A June profile by NPR revealed that the company was facing legal action from over two dozen people just in Texas alone.