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Scheming developer adds to stockpile of vacant housing

A complex real estate scheme has direct connections to vacant houses the area. Today’s RTD profiles the woe of Donald Lacey, whose companies were “to have bought and renovated fixer-uppers using investors’ money” but instead apparently burned through millions of dollars of investor money on vacation homes, boats, and expensive cars.

Check out the video on the RTD site for the story from one investor and a tour inside the vinyl shell of the house at 1320 North 22nd Street:

Richmond businessman Allan Mullian received interest payments every month for about 10 years from his real estate investments. He invested in Richmond-area properties that Donald C. Lacey was to fix up and rent or flip at a profit. […]

He discovered that $140,000 of his investments were secured by a dilapidated house at 1320 N. 22nd St. in Richmond’s East End. Other investor money was attached to the house as well, which is assessed by the city at $76,500.