Delaware Real-Estate Agent Agrees to Pay $80,000 to Resolve False-Claims-Act Allegations Involving HUD Home Purchase

WILMINGTON, Del. - Lauren Janes, a licensed real-estate agent residing in Delaware, has agreed to pay $80,000 to resolve allegations that she violated the False Claims Act by falsely certifying to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that she would live in a home she bought from the agency.

HUD sells homes it acquires in foreclosure after homeowners default on Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans. To expand affordable homeownership for low- and moderate-income buyers, HUD first offers these homes exclusively to owner-occupants, who must agree to live in the property as their primary residence for at least one year. Investors may bid only if no owner-occupant buyer comes forward.

According to the settlement, Janes bid on a HUD-owned home on Bonwood Road in Wilmington, Delaware, during the owner-occupant period in December 2021. On December 15, 2021, she signed a HUD sales contract to buy the property for $110,000, checking the box identifying herself as an owner-occupant rather than an investor. In a purchase addendum, she certified that she would live in the home as her primary residence for at least 12 months.

Janes never lived at the property. After taking ownership on January 14, 2022, she renovated the home and, less than six months later, agreed to sell it for $202,000. The sale closed on July 22, 2022.

Under the agreement, Janes will pay $80,000 and has agreed to a 48-month voluntary exclusion from participating in federal procurement and non-procurement transactions, including any other purchases of HUD-owned properties.

"Lauren Janes made false statements to HUD to skip the line and purchase a HUD-owned home before other investors could bid on it," said U.S. Attorney Benjamin L. Wallace. "My Office and its law-enforcement partners will not allow anyone to cheat federal programs, especially affordable-housing programs meant to protect American families."

"Lauren Janes used her mortgage industry expertise to exploit the FHA program, misrepresenting her home's occupancy to secure more favorable financing for herself," said Special Agent in Charge Shawn Rice with the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General (OIG). "As a licensed professional, she understood the program's requirements yet chose personal gain over professional integrity. HUD OIG remains committed to working with our law-enforcement and prosecutorial partners to hold accountable those who abuse HUD programs and put taxpayer resources at risk."

Janes admitted the facts set out in the statement of facts attached to the settlement agreement at the end of this release.

The matter was investigated by HUD Office of Inspector General. The settlement was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Claudia L. Pare.

The claims resolved by this settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.