What does a self-proclaimed reality show villain know about real estate? Apparently, quite a bit.
The CBS News Texas I-Team found one star's success has locked hundreds of North Texans into contracts that will end up costing them thousands of dollars, and it's all legal.
The company, MV Realty, marketed its "homeowner benefit agreement" to people across the country. Homeowners could get up to $5,000 up front for agreeing to use MV Realty as their agent when or if they decided to sell their home.
The contract has some unconventional terms: It lasts 40 years, and if the homeowner dies, it is passed to their heirs. Breaking the contract involves paying a hefty termination fee, equal to roughly 3% of the home's value. The company can prevent homeowners from selling or refinancing by filing a memorandum against the property.
The memorandum is not technically a lien, but it has the same effect as one, according to real estate attorney Jennifer Nachtigal.
"Texas' Constitution has strong protections for the homestead, and they don't allow certain liens to be filed against the homestead," Nachtigal said. "Even if they're voluntary, even if the homeowner signed the lien themselves."
But, she said, a memorandum can have the same chilling effect on any real estate deal because it raises questions of a possible lien.
The I-Team searched real estate records and found MV Realty has filed memorandums against more than 500 properties across DFW, with more than 1,200 in all of Texas. Dozens of homeowners have complained to the Attorney General's Office. While Texas has yet to take any action, 11 other states are suing MV Realty for unfair or deceptive practices.
It's a lot of legal drama, but the company's founder has said she is used to being a villain. Amanda Zachman, a real estate agent, made a name for herself as a confrontational houseguest on season 15 of the CBS reality show "Big Brother," which aired in 2013.
After losing the competition, she returned to her home in Florida and founded MV Realty. The company appeared to focus on Texas in 2022 when most of the agreements were signed.
Tanya Shaw said the company approached her that year, and since she had no plans to move, she felt safe signing the agreement for a payment of about $1,000. The next year, after a family emergency, Shaw and her husband needed to refinance but couldn't because of the memorandum filed against the property.
That's when she decided she had to sell. The contract allows MV Realty six months to get the home under contract, but Shaw said she needed to move faster. At that point, she hired another real estate agent, which was against the rules of the contract. When the home was sold, Shaw had to pay MV Realty about $11,000 on top of the buyer and seller agent fees.
"I felt stupid," Shaw said. "Because even though desperate times call for desperate measures... I could have kept my home if I was able to refi."
In Glenn Heights, John and Barbara Reliford are still trying to figure out how MV Realty entered into an agreement with John's mother; she had dementia, he said, and he was her power of attorney. Still, she somehow signed the contract without his knowledge.
According to the contract, MV Realty paid his mother $687. If the Relifords sell, they will owe nearly $9,000.
"There's no way my mother read through all of this and understood what she was doing," Reliford said.
Neither Zachman nor MV Realty responded to calls and emails from the CBS News Texas I-Team. The company filed for bankruptcy in September 2023. In a bankruptcy hearing, MV Realty said it no longer offers homeowner benefit agreements, but estimated it had 38,000 properties under contract nationwide.
In the last two years, 22 states have passed laws against this type of real estate fee agreement. This year, two Texas lawmakers filed legislation to do the same thing, but both bills died in committees.
It is unclear what, if anything, the Texas attorney general's office is doing about MV Realty. The AG's office did not respond to questions from the I-Team.