YouTube’s popular ACE Family claims they were scammed by a shady contractor who took millions of dollars from them, abandoned their unfinished home, and left them unable to get a certificate of occupancy.
The family vloggers, who boast 18.9 million followers on the platform, made headlines in October when it was reported that their $10 million Los Angeles mansion – which features heavily on their channel – was in foreclosure.
DailyMail.com’s mom Catherine McBroom tells DailyMail.com now that Austin and she were victims of an untrustworthy contractor. used a fake license, took their money, and ran off before he finished building their house.
“They took the money to complete the house. They disbanded the company in a matter of weeks.” She said that they ran off with the money, but never returned.
For more than two years, the McBrooms were paying a $70,000-per-month mortgage for an unfinished home that didn’t even have gas – meaning no heat or hot water.
‘When you don’t have gas, you don’t have heat. The winters are getting colder now due to global warming, and I have two babies and I’m pregnant and I’m freezing because I have a glass home with tile floors,’ Catherine said.
Let’s hope it all works out., they were told they couldn’t get a certificate of occupancy – required for living in a house – because the home couldn’t pass inspection.
YouTube’s ACE Family, a popular YouTube channel that is known for its YouTube videos made news in October after it was revealed their Los Angeles home valued at $10 million was being foreclosure.
The family says they can no longer live in this house in Woodland Hills, California because they got scammed by a contractor
When the property was originally being built, it had two houses. They then asked the contractor whether he would make it one larger.
Austin McBroom was married to Catherine. They began their search for a house after the previous home they had been living in was broken into.
She explained to her three-year-old daughter that the original plan for building two homes on the same piece of land was to build them as separate houses when she discovered it at 4838 Calderon Road in Woodland Hills.
It was immediately loved by the entire family. The contractor was willing to transform the two properties into one for the family.
According to DailyMail.com, Avi, the builder who was present on-site, was very kind and helpful.
“We were asking him at the time if it would possible to build only one house on this property since we loved it.
‘It’s a two-acre property in Los Angeles – beautiful view, a beautiful property. It was just the right property for our family.
“We were impressed by the modern style of his houses so we approached him to combine them, sort of as a joke.
Rumours circulated that members of the YouTube family with 18.9million followers were being forced out because they could not afford their monthly bills.
DailyMail.com has learned that Catherine McBroom and Austin McBroom were both victims of a fraudulent contractor who obtained a fake licence
She claimed that he stole their money before building their home.
Catherine claimed that she invested millions in the construction needed to combine both homes.
‘But he ended up coming back to us a week later and saying, “Oh yeah, I can actually do it, I can get the permit for it and we can do it.”
“I wanted to find the perfect place for me and was desperate. I’m so excited to make my home and customize it to my liking.
Catherine claimed that she spent millions on the construction needed to combine both homes. Avi paid her directly for this money. He didn’t finish it. She said he took their money and fled – but he never came back.
She explained that she had invested a few million dollars in the property and then added another couple million to complete the property.
Avi paid us for these changes. Him and his wife had made an LLC or a corporation under a random name, and I didn’t know that at the time.’
After she transferred Avi money, Avi’s company collapsed within weeks. She claimed they have never spoken to them since.
Despite the house not being finished, the influencer explained that she and her family – they had two kids, two daughters named Elle and Alaïa, at the time – had to move in because they were already paying the mortgage on it, and the lease had ended on their last home.
According to her, after she had transferred funds to the contractor that they were dealing with, the company disintegrated within weeks. They never heard back from them again.
The unfinished house was left empty, so they had to stay there for two years.
Meanwhile, the McBrooms were paying a $70,000-per-month mortgage
The unfinished house was without gas, so they had to stay there for two years.
‘I got pregnant [with son Steel]Two months later, I had moved in to the home. It was hard for me because I had to get accustomed to all of the things I didn’t have in my home,’ Catherine explained.
‘For example, I couldn’t do laundry, I couldn’t dry my clothes. You could hang or use the washing machine.
‘Mind you, I’m living in a $10 million home, and this is so unacceptable. But my personality type is, I get accustomed to things because I’ve lived in every kind of scenario you can imagine.
‘I’ve always been very grateful to even have a home. So when all of these things were happening, I was just like, “I’m going to see the positive in this.”
It was something I never thought about, but it didn’t bother me. Only our closest friends and families knew.
‘When you’re paying $70,000 a month on a mortgage, you would expect to have the best. And I didn’t have the best and I wasn’t happy.
Austin McBroom and two of their kids, Elle and Alaïa, are pictured inside the home
‘When you don’t have gas, you don’t have heat,’ Catherine (pictured with Elle) said
This home had an incredible closet and heat, although it was extremely luxurious.
‘I’m freezing and the home isn’t built right, and that’s not fair, that’s not right. That was a really difficult situation to live with for so many years.
They began to look into Avi and discovered that he wasn’t even licensed as a contractor.
‘I didn’t know this at the time but come to find out later on that Avi wasn’t actually a licensed contractor, he was using someone else’s license to make this happen,’ she claimed.
‘The real contractors, the real people who owned that land – their name is T&L Construction. It’s an older gentleman and his son, they came to our property while we were there but they never introduced themselves as the actual owners and the contractors of the company.
‘What Avi worked out with them was, “Hey, this is a family, they’re well off. I know how to talk to them, I’ve already built a relationship with them, let me handle everything and you guys make the money on the back end.”
“Come to discover that Avi stole all of the money, and they never received any payment. While they also got cheated, the truth is that they were part of the entire scheme.
‘The winters are getting colder now due to global warming, and I have two babies and I’m pregnant and I’m freezing because I have a glass home with tile floors,’ she recalled
After a long home tour together, the couple featured their property heavily on their YouTube channel.
The certificate of occupancy was not received by them so the house ended up in foreclosure.
A second problem was the inability to obtain a certificate for occupancy. This is necessary in order be allowed to live in a property.
Catherine said: ‘Really early in the whole thing, we found out we didn’t have a certificate of occupancy. Avi kept saying, “I’ll get it, I’ll get it.”
“He has left the property and I have not received the certificate of occupancy. The certificate of occupancy is required to reside in your home. The certificate of occupancy was not something I got, nor did I ever get it.
“Every time that we asked the city for an inspection to receive the certificate, they never showed up.
“And when they finally had someone show up, they claimed that because the builder did such a poor job, there were many mistakes. It would not pass inspection even though I paid millions.
The certificate of occupancy was not received by them so the house ended up in foreclosure.
‘All the money went down the drain, and the house went under foreclosure because I didn’t have a certificate of occupancy,’ she continued.
After their contractor, whose name is Avi, disappeared, they discovered that he was not even a licensed contractor and that he had lied to them. Alaïa is pictured inside the home
The house was not subject to inspection so they could not obtain a certificate or occupancy.
Because the city said that the man did not do the job well, the certificate of occupancy could not be issued. So they moved out.
It was in foreclosure when we realized that the only way we could save it, was to invest another million dollars.
‘I still wouldn’t have had the certificate of occupancy so I still wouldn’t legally be a tenant at that home. So my husband and I decided, let’s not put more money into this. This is a money pit, let’s just let it go and find a new house and move forward.’
Catherine wants to share her story.
‘Unfortunately before we were able to speak up and talk about the issues with the home, the narrative was that the house was under foreclosure because we didn’t pay our bills, but that was so far from the truth,’ she said.
‘That tarnishes and taints my image and that makes it seem like I’m doing something wrong, and that effects my real life.
“The truth is the truth.” The truth is that we never got a certificate of occupancy, it’s not that we didn’t pay our bills.’
Catherine and her family recently began renting their home. Catherine claimed that no one wanted them to sign the lease because of the false rumors about their inability to pay the mortgage.
‘We found this beautiful home that we love, it’s a new building, new structure,’ she said.
‘The owner is an older gentleman, and his son, he’s my age, in his 30s, and he’s a lawyer. He was like don’t rent it out to them, I just looked them up on social media and they didn’t pay their mortgage, that’s why they went under foreclosure.
Catherine stated that she is happy to leave the house and considered the entire experience a learning lesson.
It also had a swimming pool, basketball court and miniature golf.
Avi was already a bankruptcy filing so they didn’t press charges.
They charged me more for that than I would have paid. In order to allow me to stay in my home, they required that I pay six months upfront. Which is so unfair, the narrative wasn’t real.’
Avi’s case was settled by the authorities. He had filed bankruptcy papers.
‘The thing is, the guy went under bankruptcy, and when you go under bankruptcy there’s really nothing you can do about it,’ she added.
‘At that point, I was like, we’re not going to sue him. We don’t have to sue someone for nothing.
“At that time my goal was to obtain a certificate of occupancy. I wasn’t planning on living there for ever, but I did plan on rectifying the errors made by the contractor.
“I had invested millions into my house to save it. But when we never got the certificate of occupancy that’s when we realized, we’re not going to ever move forward with this, there are way too many mistakes.’
Catherine stated that she was content to give up her home, and that the entire experience had been a learning lesson.
Catherine stated that the Ace family now has a home.
Catherine shared her story to tell the world that rumors about them not being able to afford their mortgage “tarnishes” her image. Catherine and Austin outside their home
“All the years that I lived there, I hoped that I would get the certificate d’occupation, it was something I longed for all my life,” she said.
‘When the house went under foreclosure that’s when I realized, “Okay, this is not savable and there’s no going back. This is what it is.”
“This was my breaking point. But then, I realized how unhappy I was in that home from the start. The outcome was certain to be divine.
“I accepted it, then lost all attachment to it. When I moved, it was so easy for me to lose all attachment.
“I have never felt so content. Realizing that this was not meant for me was huge for me. The experience was only temporary. It was also a learning opportunity.
‘I don’t want anyone to feel sorry for me, at the end of the day that was a learning lesson to me.
‘I didn’t have the right team, I didn’t have the right people looking through my stuff. All of them were there to make money. That’s something I had to learn and I’m already passed that.’
To anyone who was considering buying a home, she advised: “Have the right people – not just those who care about you. Find people who are able to do this as a profession.
“Speak with a house manager to review all items. We had people that we love – our family – looking over things but they’re not professionals.
Recently, rumors circulated that their finances were in shambles after TikToker learned they had sold their furniture online. Catherine stated that the couple is just downsizing.
‘Don’t be so naive and trust people because they say that they’re good or because they invite you to dinner and they’re around your family and kids, that was one of the things that I had to learn.
‘Don’t trust people just because they say they’re trust worthy or because they say they have a license. It was a lesson that I learned.
Recently, rumors circulated that these YouTubers had lost all their money when TikToker saw them selling old furniture online.
Catherine clarified that Catherine is getting rid of the item because she and her husband want to move into smaller homes.
“Yes, we’re selling our furniture. The 17,000 square foot house we had was sold and the new home is 8,000.
“The home we have just moved in, had a professional designer design it. The furniture I had was no longer necessary as I have purchased new pieces.
‘Not to mention the old furniture actually low-key gave me some negative a** vibes so I just wanted to get rid of it.
“People are simple-minded. We live in an age where people think the worst of us, when we’re just human beings living our lives.”
“We made bad investments, got screwed over and life goes on.”