CARLSBAD, Calif. (KGTV) — It’s been a long six years for Kevin and Nicole Noar.
In 2020, scammers stole nearly $800,000 they saved to buy a home in an elaborate wire fraud scam.
The Noars sued, and the jury recently found one of the companies involved largely at fault for what happened.
ABC 10News first spoke to the Noars in February 2020. At the time, they were first-time parents with a one-year-old.
The couple ended up wiring money for a home they wanted to buy to a scammer. The Noars blamed their escrow and real estate company, filing a lawsuit that same year.
According to the lawsuit, the scammers impersonated the Noars’ real estate agent and “asked Power Escrow to share sensitive financial information detailing the final closing estimate.” The company didn’t realize it and communicated back.
“They gave them our personal information, our buyer’s closing statement … so we lost a lot of money,” said Nicole Noar.
They sued multiple parties including Power Escrow and HomeSmart for negligence, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract and liability. The Noars argued the companies’ lack of security and protocols “aided the theft.”
“It was negligence on top of negligence,” Kevin Noar said. “It was a long haul. It was six years fighting every day.”
It was a stressful situation testing their relationship and their family.
“I don't think that we were the parents we should have been having that heavy weight on our shoulders,” said Nicole, recalling raising young children and dealing with the loss of their life savings at the same time.
After numerous delays, their lawsuit found Power Escrow 85% liable and the Noars 15% liable. It did not find HomeSmart responsible.
A jury ruled Power Escrow owes the Noars roughly $1.2 million.
The attorney representing Power Escrow and HomeSmart told ABC 10News that “the case is currently ongoing and likely headed towards appeal.”
Attorney Eric Ginder said that “it would be inappropriate to comment on the ongoing litigation.”
“It was vindicating,” Kevin said of the decision.
They are warning other people looking to buy a home to use extra caution with any company they choose to work with.
“If it can happen to us, it can happen to anybody,” Kevin added.
“Typically, when you're buying a home, the seller gets to choose the escrow company. We weren't told this, but you can disagree, so I think it's really important to do your research once they pick one,” Nicole said.
For now, the Noars are looking ahead, focusing on their family and each other.
“Justice was served. The next step is seeing what they do next and how we move forward,” Kevin said.
The Noars said during the initial scam, they put up a GoFundMe page to help recoup some of the money. They received about $20,000 from that effort.
They said once they receive their judgment, they plan to make a donation in that amount to one of their favorite charities, Make-a-Wish.
