Case study: Predatory rent-to-own practices
In the late-2010s, rent-to-own company Vision Property Management found itself in serious legal trouble in multiple states, including Wisconsin, New York, and Pennsylvania. New York regulators also went after Atalaya Capital Management, a hedge fund that had provided financing to the property manager.
State authorities alleged the company had a practice of misleading low-income, would-be homebuyers with predatory sales practices. In an interview with a local Wisconsin TV station, a former Vision employee admitted to placing tenants in homes they could not afford and asking them to sign agreements they did not understand.