Realtytrac.com

The member registered for a 7-day free trial of RealtyTrac on 1/19/The terms of the trial are clearly stated on the registration page prior to submitting a form of payment for the monthly subscription feeThe terms state that if the trial account is not cancelled during the trial period, the
account automatically converts to a monthly subscription and the monthly fee of $will be charged to the account information supplied by the new memberThis account was not cancelled within the day trial period, and the account was charged the monthly subscription fee beginning on 1/26/
The member spoke to a representative on 8/28/to inquire about the chargeThe representative explained the terms of use that were agreed to upon signup, which states that charges on accounts are non-refundableThere was no previous record of cancellation or phone calls from the member prior to 8/28/There is no automated method of cancellation as the member claims in the complaintAll members are required to call in and speak to a representative to cancel the serviceThe representative processed the member’s cancellation request and provided a confirmation number for her records both verbally and automatically via email as all members receive upon requesting cancellation.
The member called again on 9/22/2014, this time demanding a full refundThe representative explained there had been no calls or emails from the member prior to 8/28/when they requestedThe representative explained that although the monthly membership fee is considered nonrefundable, a refund request would be submitted for further review The member disconnected the call before the representative could explain the refund request process
Although no refund was due, RealtyTrac issued a refund of $on 9/22/as a one-time courtesy

Member registered for a 7-day free trial of RealtyTrac on
" line-height: 115%;">1/27/
The terms of the trial are clearly stated on the registration page prior to
submitting a form of payment for the monthly subscription feeThe terms state
that if the trial account is not cancelled during the trial period, the account
automatically converts to a monthly subscription and the monthly fee of $
will be charged to the account information supplied by the new memberThese
terms must be agreed to by the registrant prior to continuing with
registrationThe Terms of Use are summarized on the registration page as
follows, “Cancel before
your trial ends and you will not be billedIf you want to keep your account
after the trial, do nothing and we will enroll you in a monthly subscription
for just $per month until you cancel.” The Member’s account
was not cancelled within the day trial period, and the account was charged the monthly
subscription fee on 2/3/
The Member called in and requested cancellation 2/12/2014,
after the trial period had expiredThe representative advised the member of
the charge and that they would have access until 3/3/The member claimed to
not understand why she was charged and the representative advised the member of
the Terms of Use agreed to upon registering the account including:
Member acknowledges and agrees that NO refund, offset or
credit will be given for any cancellation of a special introductory promotional
offer membership or for subscription downgradesIf Member registers for a free
Trial Membership, Member agrees to be enrolled into a pre-paid month-to-month
membership at the end of the free trial period if Member has not canceled the
Trial Membership prior to the expiration thereof
The
foreclosure properties listed on our website are not necessarily "on the
market", as RealtyTrac is providing access to the foreclosure information
filed against these propertiesRealtyTrac does not always know immediately
when a property is no longer available because we are not directly involved in
the saleHowever, we are checking this information on a regular basis, and
once we know that a property is no longer available, we will list it as Sold on
the Property Details pageTo have the best results in pursuing the properties
on RealtyTrac, we recommend you focus on the most recently listed properties
Each property has the date it was recorded at the county and the date it was
entered into RealtyTrac’s database
RealtyTrac
provides access to foreclosure information and leaves the following disclaimer
on all properties: The information at this
site is provided solely for informational purposes and does not constitute an
offer to sell, rent, or advertise real estate outside the state in which the
owner of the site is licensedThe owner is not making any warranties or
representations concerning any of these properties including their
availabilityInformation at this site and its property ratings are deemed
reliable but not guaranteed and should be independently verified
We invite the Member to contact our Customer Support Team
at ###-###-#### for assistance in utilizing the service she paid forWe also
provide Guides, Videos and answers to our frequently asked questions for our
members at support.realtytrac.com for those that prefer a self-service option

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I appreciate RealtyTrac.com's reminders to me of the service I have received thus far, and their offer of 3 months complimentary website access. However, I never used my initial 3 months of membership, so I find it unlikely that I will use another 3 months. If one checks the login data on my account, they will find that I did not log in once during the 3-month period that I was billed for, until the day I discovered the error and called to cancel my account. A department store allows me to return an unworn shirt, so I do not find it unreasonable to request a refund for 3 months of unused services. My primary concern is the lack of communication and transparency provided by RealtyTrac.com to their "customers"--whether witting or unwitting--and I would appreciate some explanation from the company as to why they provide no communication when they begin charging customers. 
Regards,[redacted]

Member registered for a 7-day free trial of RealtyTrac on 5/10/2015.
The terms of the trial are clearly stated on the registration page prior to
submitting a form of payment for the monthly subscription fee. The terms state
that if the trial account is not cancelled during the trial period, the...

account
automatically converts to a monthly subscription and the monthly fee of $49.95
will be charged to the account information supplied by the new member. These
terms must be agreed to by the registrant prior to continuing with
registration. The member’s account was not cancelled within the 7 day trial
period, and the account was charged
the first monthly subscription fee on 5/17/2015.
The member called to request cancellation on 10/23/2015,
after the trial period had ended. All calls made to RealtyTrac are recorded but
there is no record of attempted calls from the phone numbers provided by the
customer prior to 10/23/2015.  All
members receive an email containing a confirmation number when an account is
cancelled.
Although no refund was due, a credit of
$49.95 was processed on 10/23/2015 in an attempt to resolve this complaint.

The member registered for a 7-day free
trial of RealtyTrac on 3/28/2015. The terms of the trial are clearly stated on
the registration page prior to submitting a form of payment for the...

monthly
subscription fee. The terms state that if the trial account is not cancelled
during the trial period, the account automatically converts to a monthly
subscription and the monthly fee of $49.95 will be charged to the account
information supplied by the new member. This account was not cancelled within
the 7 day trial period, and
the account was charged the monthly subscription fee beginning on
4/4/2015.
The member spoke to a representative on
5/5/2015 to inquire about the charge. The representative explained the terms of
use that were agreed to upon signup, which states that charges on accounts are
non-refundable. The representative advised the caller a refund request would be
submitted for review. As a courtesy, the refund request was approved on 5/5/2015
for the last charge of $49.95, prior to filing this complaint.
Although no additional
refunds were due, we have processed an additional credit of $49.95 on 5/11/2015,
for a total credit of $99.90.

Member registered for a 7-day free trial of RealtyTrac on 1/10/2016.
The terms of...

the trial are clearly stated on the registration page prior to
submitting a form of payment for the monthly subscription fee. The terms state
that if the trial account is not cancelled during the trial period, the account
automatically converts to a monthly subscription and the monthly fee of $49.95
will be charged to the account information supplied by the new member. These
terms must be agreed to by the registrant prior to continuing with
registration. The member’s account was not cancelled within the 7 day trial
period, and the account was to be charged
the first monthly subscription fee on 1/17/2016.  
In the complaint the customer claims to have called twice
and in an email received by the customer on 1/17/2016 they claim to have called
three times. Our records show the number 773-706-4917 called one time on
1/17/2016 shortly after receiving email notification the account had been
charged despite the claims made by the customer. The representative processed
the cancellation and notified the customer of the charge. There was no request
for refund made during the recorded phone conversation.
The customer’s email was sent immediately following their
call. The email was processed on 1/18/2016 by the online support team. Because
there was no usage on the account following the trial and the charge fell
within a grace period, a refund was processed in the amount of $49.95 despite the
customer’s failure to cancel during the trial period per the terms of use
agreed to at the time of registration.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
[I do not accept the response b/c the terms of conditions are not clear.  They do not state clearly what this response says.  Seems like this is a lost cause.  I still believe I am owed money and hope that they will not charge my card ever again.]
Regards,
[redacted]

Our records indicate the address [redacted] was recorded as Bank Owned 12/26/2012. The property is not marked as being for sale in any section of the website and there has been no updates to the property since 1/10/2013. RealtyTrac does not always know immediately when a property is no longer available because we are not directly involved in the sale. However, we are checking this information on a regular basis, and once we know that a property is no longer available, we will list it as Sold on the Property Details page. To have the best results in pursuing the properties on RealtyTrac, we recommend you focus on the most recently listed properties. Each property has the date it was recorded at the county and the date it was entered into RealtyTrac’s database. Subscribers can use the 'Property & Loan Info' section of the property details page to check for all the data records RealtyTrac has for a property. Subscribers also can sign up for daily notification service that allows them to receive notification by e-mail whenever new listings appear that match their criteria.All customers agree that the promotional memberships are nonrefundable. RealtyTrac does not offer any proration when a customer takes advantage of the heavily discounted rates.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
All I have asked is that  Realty Trac to remove my credit card information from the website which you can access from the internet.  First of all and I reiterate there is nothing in the privacy policy or terms and conditions that states that my credit card would be kept on file permanently.   Even if there was a policy then surely you can keep the business record without it showing up on the internet.   Once I again I am asking Realty to remove or allow me to remove my credit card information from their online website.  If Realty trac provided a good service they would not have to resort to these schemes to get and keep customers.  Your 7 day trial did not meet my needs and I see no reason you should keep my credit card information permanently on file as I will not be doing business with your company or affiliates in the future.
This is not a complicate issue to resolve and I am not going to go away.   Until my credit card information is removed from the internet, I will continue to make these request.
Regards,
[redacted]

The member registered for a 7-day free trial of RealtyTrac on 8/27/2014. The terms of the trial are clearly stated on the registration page prior to submitting a form of payment for the monthly subscription fee. The terms state that if the trial account is not cancelled during the trial period,...

the account automatically converts to a monthly subscription and the monthly fee of $49.95 will be charged to the account information supplied by the new member. All members receive an email welcoming them to the service and explain the date the trial will convert to a monthly subscription as well as cancellation directions should the member choose not to continue past the 7 day trial period. This account was not cancelled within the 7 day trial period, and the account was charged the monthly subscription fee beginning on 9/3/2014. 
 
The member spoke to a representative on 10/3/2014 to inquire about the charges. The representative explained the terms of use that were agreed to upon signup, which states that charges on accounts are non-refundable. The representative explained to the member that the account had been accessed and property information viewed as recently as 9/28/2014. The representative submitted a refund request for the last charge to the account dated 10/3/2014 on the member’s behalf as a courtesy. 
 
Although no refund was due, RealtyTrac issued a refund of $49.95 on 10/6/2014 as a one-time courtesy. We regret that we are unable to process any additional credits to the account. However, we can accommodate the member with complimentary exclusive website access for up to 2 months. This offer has been noted on the account; please contact our customer service department at 800-550-4802 or [email protected] to take advantage of this offer.

The Hot Opportunity feature provides the following
definition on the details page for the property on [redacted]:“This Bank-Owned
property has been identified as a Hot Opportunity because there is significant
margin ($217,139) between the property’s estimated market value and the bank’s
break-even amount.This is no guarantee
that you will be able to buy the property below market value. However, it does
mean that the bank needs less than the market value of this home to break even,
creating a potential opportunity for any buyer to purchase below market value.”The foreclosure history describes the event on 8/6/2012 as, “Sold
to bank for $356,200 (transfer value).” This is informing customers that the
property transferred ownership to the bank on 8/6/2012. No further sale has
been detected through public records at this time. The property details page
does not indicate that this property is available to purchase and the listing
status is clearly labeled as Pre-market. RealtyTrac is not an MLS, our service
is primarily to list foreclosure information. Many customers use this
historical data for various reports and statistics. If we are notified a
property has sold and the information is confirmed, the property will be
deactivated. It is not uncommon for properties to sit with the bank for several
years; therefore removing properties after only 30 days would create inaccuracies
in the data.
The Property Details pages received a large update to
version 4.0 on 5/28/2015 which now includes a Transaction History section to provide even more detailed information on each property’s history.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I did not accept the offer at the time I was billed. At the time this vendor bills a customer they must get a "Confirm" from the customer verifying the purchase. 
 
This 7 day bait, wait, and secretly charge a credit card without getting a "confirm" at the time of purchase is suspect and should be scrutinized by the Attorney General. I will continue to demand that this vendor must offer consumers an honest transaction. 
Regards,
[redacted]

The Hot Opportunity feature provides the following
definition on the details page for the property on [redacted]:
“This Bank-Owned
property has been identified as a Hot Opportunity because there is significant
margin ($217,139) between the property’s estimated market value and the bank’s
break-even amount.
This is no guarantee
that you will be able to buy the property below market value. However, it does
mean that the bank needs less than the market value of this home to break even,
creating a potential opportunity for any buyer to purchase below market value.”
The foreclosure history describes the event on 8/6/2012 as, “Sold
to bank for $356,200 (transfer value).” This is informing customers that the
property transferred ownership to the bank on 8/6/2012. No further sale has
been detected through public records at this time. The property details page
does not indicate that this property is available to purchase and the listing
status is clearly labeled as Pre-market. RealtyTrac is not an MLS, our service
is primarily to list foreclosure information. Many customers use this
historical data for various reports and statistics. If we are notified a
property has sold and the information is confirmed, the property will be
deactivated. It is not uncommon for properties to sit with the bank for several
years; therefore removing properties after only 30 days would create inaccuracies
in the data.
The Property Details pages received a large update to
version 4.0 on 5/28/2015 which now includes a Transaction History section to provide even more detailed information on each property’s history.

Member registered for a 7-day free trial of RealtyTrac on 1/1/2017. The terms of the trial are clearly stated on the registration page prior to submitting a form of payment for the monthly subscription fee. The terms state that if the trial account is not cancelled during the trial period, the...

account automatically converts to a monthly subscription and the monthly fee of $49.95 will be charged to the account information supplied by the new member. These terms must be agreed to by the registrant prior to continuing with registration. The member’s account was not cancelled within the 7 day trial period, and the account was to be charged the first monthly subscription fee on 1/8/2017 at 3:03 PM PDT.   The customer sent an email to the Technical Support team on 1/8/2017 at 6:56 PM PDT claiming to have cancelled on 1/2/2017. There were no calls or emails requesting cancellation prior to 1/8/2017 and there were no logins on the date the customer claimed to have cancelled. The email was responded to on the following business day explaining there was no previous record of cancellation and advised the customer to call the Membership Services team to discuss the charge. The customer called the Membership Services team on 1/10/2017 and a refund request was submitted for further review. After reviewing the account, although no refund was due, RealtyTrac issued a refund to the account of $49.95 as a one-time courtesy on 1/10/2017.

Member registered for a 7-day free trial of RealtyTrac on 5/10/2015.
The terms of...

the trial are clearly stated on the registration page prior to
submitting a form of payment for the monthly subscription fee. The terms state
that if the trial account is not cancelled during the trial period, the account
automatically converts to a monthly subscription and the monthly fee of $49.95
will be charged to the account information supplied by the new member. These
terms must be agreed to by the registrant prior to continuing with
registration. The member’s account was not cancelled within the 7 day trial
period, and the account was charged
the first monthly subscription fee on 5/17/2015.
The member called to request cancellation on 10/23/2015,
after the trial period had ended. All calls made to RealtyTrac are recorded but
there is no record of attempted calls from the phone numbers provided by the
customer prior to 10/23/2015.  All
members receive an email containing a confirmation number when an account is
cancelled.
Although no refund was due, a credit of
$49.95 was processed on 10/23/2015 in an attempt to resolve this complaint.

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.  I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.
Regards,
[redacted]

Member registered for a 7-day free trial of RealtyTrac on 10/1/2014. The terms of the trial are clearly stated on the registration page prior to submitting a form of payment for the monthly subscription fee. The terms state that if the trial account is not cancelled during the trial period, the...

account automatically converts to a monthly subscription and the monthly fee of $49.95 will be charged to the account information supplied by the new member. These terms must be agreed to by the registrant prior to continuing with registration. The member’s account was not cancelled within the 7 day trial period, and the account was charged the monthly subscription fee on 10/8/2014.
 
All members agree to call during business hours (Monday - Friday 7:00am - 6:30pm Pacific Time and Saturday - Sunday 8:00am - 4:00pm Pacific Time) should they choose not to continue the service.  The member called to request cancellation on 10/14/2014, well after the trial period had ended. The representative processed her cancellation and advised she would have access to the service until 11/8/2014 at which point the account would terminate. The representative explained the terms that were agreed to upon signup, which states that charges on accounts are non-refundable. 
 
The account is not eligible for a refund due to the Terms of Use agreed to by the member. However, we can accommodate the member with complimentary exclusive website access for up to 2 months. This offer has been noted on the account; please contact our customer service department at 800-550-4802 or [email protected] to take advantage of this offer.

Member registered for a 7-day free trial of RealtyTrac on 1/9/2015.
The terms of the trial are clearly stated on the registration page prior to
submitting a form of payment for the monthly subscription fee. The terms state
that if the trial account is not cancelled during the trial period, the...

account
automatically converts to a monthly subscription and the monthly fee of $49.95
will be charged to the account information supplied by the new member. These
terms must be agreed to by the registrant prior to continuing with
registration. The member’s account was not cancelled within the 7 day trial
period, and the account was to be charged
the first monthly subscription fee on 1/16/2015.  The customer sent an email to the Technical Support team on
6/27/2015 requesting a refund of all charges. The email was responded to on the
following business day advising the customer that the department they are
emailing does not have access to make changes to account billing information
and was instructed to call the Membership Services Team along with their phone
number and hours of operation. Our call records show the customer attempted to call on
6/28/2015 at 10:37 AM Pacific Time, listened to the phone menu for 15 seconds
and disconnected the call without speaking to a representative. All calls are
monitored and recorded. There was no further contact from the customer until
2/11/2016 when they called and spoke with a sales representative. The
representative explained why the account had been charged, the Terms of Use
agreed to by the customer and offered to submit a refund request for further
review. The customer was transferred to Customer Service for further
explanation of the Terms of Use and the refund policy which states that the
monthly fees are nonrefundable. The customer service representative explained
that the previous sales representative had cancelled the account, sent an email
containing a confirmation number, and submitted refund requests for charges
that fell within 90 days of disputing the charges.In the case of billing disputes, members must contact the
billing department within 90 days of the disputed charge in order to receive
consideration for a refund:“…In no event may Member dispute any charge or account
billing hereunder later than ninety (90) days after such questionable account
billing or other discrepancy should have been or could have been reasonably
discovered by Member. Otherwise, except as required by applicable law, any and
all such Member complaints are waived by Member.”
After reviewing the account, although no refund was due,
RealtyTrac issued a refund for the last charge to the account of $49.95 as a one-time
courtesy on 2/11/2016.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.I still believe they are being deceptive in the advertising on their website. Here is another example: This property was listed as a "HOT OPPORTUNITY" which is defined as:"Get insight into the best potential foreclosure deals in your area. Sign up now for a 7-day free trial to view our r Hot Opportunity foreclosure listings."  [redacted] ** [redacted] "get full address with free trial"  "sign up for more details" Now, that I have fallen for this deception before, and have been given the disclaimers over the phone and in writing! I am aware of checking for the latest listing dates. Which in this case with the above property, is the top and newest, listing for bank owned homes in Dublin, Ca. The top listing is dated 8/24/2012! Almost three years old. Now looking further down under "Price History" it was sold on 8/6/2012. It was recorded as sold even before RealityTrac even listed it. I feel that I can look at the site all day long and not find one actually still bank owned. FORECLOSURE HISTORYFind out if this property has any current or prior foreclosure actions. Sign up for free or current members may log in.This is also from the website. And again screaming "Sign UP!"  "Find out if this property has any current or prior foreclosure actions" The average person would look at the word "current" as meaning up to date information. Am I reading to much into the "HOT OPPORTUNITY" stamp at the top of the list?I do not understand why they are not tied to a multiple listing service or some other way for them to keep track of all these "Properties" instead of just posting a disclaimer. "Sorry, we didn't know it was sold" Where do they get this information? From other websites? This company takes NO RESPONSIBILITY for its own content.Would you like your real estate agent to drive you around to different properties and then say, "Sorry, I didn't know it was sold" (two years ago!) I would fire him immediately! This is RealityTrac's business to list and sell CURRENT property INFORMATION!If nothing else they can at least program listings to fall off and get "reviewed" every 30 days. 
Regards,
[redacted]

Member registered for a 7-day free trial of RealtyTrac on 6/14/2014. The terms of the trial are clearly stated on the registration page prior to submitting a form of payment for the monthly subscription fee. The terms state that if the trial account is not cancelled during the...

trial period, the account automatically converts to a monthly subscription and the monthly fee of $49.95 will be charged to the account information supplied by the new member. These terms must be agreed to by the registrant prior to continuing with registration.
The member’s account was cancelled 6/23/2014, after the 7 day trial period, and the account was charged the monthly subscription. The member was issued a refund of $49.95 as a one-time courtesy on 6/23/2014.  
There are no items available to purchase on the site and the user will not be charged unless they choose to reactivate a paid subscription.
The information entered by the member at the time of registration is considered a business record and may not be removed from the system. The free trial is intended as a one-time offer and we want to prevent people abusing that and signing up for the free trial multiple times with different names and e-mail addresses. The information is stored in an encrypted server as RealtyTrac meets the encryption requirements set by the P.C.I. council.