They’re under water.
“Below Deck” star Captain Sandy Yawn and her wife Leah Shafer emptied their savings three years ago to build their Florida dream home. Instead, they contracted into a nightmare that has them on the financial brink.
“It’s been horrible,” Yawn told The Post from a book signing at the Miami Boat Show Thursday. “We used all the money we had, and we still don’t have a home.”
The reality show fixture is one of more than a dozen victims who purchased land in scenic Nocatee, a booming planned development near Jacksonville that regularly appears on lists of best places to live in Florida.
Buyers paid Pineapple Construction to then build their homes — some of which cost well over $2 million.
But the firm and its CEO, Spencer Calvert, suddenly went AWOL, leaving them with unfinished husks and debts mounting into the millions.
Yawn bought the home for $1.6 million three years ago — and it hasn’t been worked on in a year. NBC Universal
Yawn and her wife, Leah Shafer, thought they were buying their dream home in Florida. Instagram/leahraeofficial
“We want some accountability,” Yawn said. “This has been very difficult, financially and emotionally. This was supposed to be our dream home.”
Of the 33 homes Calvert was paid to build, 18 were actually finished — leaving 15 buyers high and dry. He still owns roughly a dozen parcels in the area, sources said.
Yawn said she was immediately drawn to the north Florida hotspot, famed for its manicured landscapes, water parks and golf cart paths.
She and Schafer paid $1.6 million cash for their house more than three years ago, but now has to cobble together another $800,000 to actually complete it.
The property hasn’t seen a shovel or hammer in over a year, Yawn said.
“We don’t have that money” she said. “We’re in a position now where we have to try to get a loan.”
The ordeal has left some in financial ruin, compelling them to seek out therapy to deal with their sudden destitution.
“We did everything right,” said one bilked buyer. “We saved, we worked hard for years and years. But one bad move with one bad actor and we don’t know what we’re going to do. It’s hard to describe it to you.”
One victim plunked down more than a million dollars for land and a deposit on their new home’s construction — but Pineapple has yet to even file permits on the empty property a year later.
Three years after emptying their savings, Yawn and Shafer still don’t have a livable residence. NY Post
The parcel next to Yawn’s property has not progressed past a concrete foundation. NY Post
A tour of the area Thursday revealed plot after plot of unfinished work, with some parcels sitting dormant with moldering foundations and piles of discarded soda cans from bygone construction workers.
Contractors have also been scrambling in the wake of Pineapple’s collapse, telling homeowners that they completed hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of work for Calvert and were never paid.
Calvert’s current home, a $3.3 million mansion in Jacksonville, recently entered contract for sale.
Buyers said construction company owner Stewart Calvert has gone AWOL. The Pineapple Corporation
Yawn and others told The Post he indicated he didn’t have the funds to complete their projects, and continually asked for more money.
“He’s a good talker,” Yawn said. “He’s the kind of guy who tries to make you feel sorry for him.”
Another buyer said Calvert seemed increasingly nervous towards the end of their communications before disappearing.
Mereddy Danger and her husband paid more than $2 million for the completion of their new home, and have since been forced to come up with another $600,000. Despite that infusion, they still have a pool to complete.
Danger also placed blame for the debacle on the overseers of the planned development, The Parc Group. She said the organization has declined to provide relief for homeowners despite green-lighting Pineapple to conduct the work.
“Some people really stretched to pay for their homes,” she said. “And now they might just have to walk away because they can’t afford to finish them. It’s a really bad situation.”
The St. John’s County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the case, and a group of homeowners have retained prominent Jacksonville attorney James Gonzalez to represent them.
“This is life changing for these people. Think about it. Even if you can weather the storm your plans for the future are completely altered,” he said. “As a result, maybe you don’t retire when you thought you were going to retire. This is not a small thing.”
His attorney, Austin Calhoun, did not respond to a request for comment.
Yawn said she is now having to toil ever harder at events like book signings to help come up with the funds needed to finish the house.
“I’m exhausted,” she said. “I just want to go home.”
Source link: https://nypost.com/2024/02/15/us-news/below-deck-star-sandy-yawns-dream-home-left-unfinished/