Veteran fights to keep his home after lawsuit from a cash-for-homes company

Originally Published: 24 MAR 26 14:27 ET

By Lorien Nettleton

Click here for updates on this story

    BURLEY, Idaho (KIVI) -- A 77-year-old retired veteran in Burley is fighting to keep his home after a cash-for-homes company filed a lawsuit against him over an electronic contract he says he never understood.

Ron Paget, who has lived in his Burley house since 2013, has until this Thursday, March 26, to formally reply to the lawsuit in court. He is currently trying to raise enough money to hire a lawyer.

"To me, it’s been a whole scam all the way through," Paget said.

In January of this year, Paget received an estimate for roof repairs that would cost him about $100,000. He commented to the roofer that it would make more sense to sell the house.

"And he says, 'I’ll give you $350,000 for it,' and I says 'Well, fine, I’ll give you a week to come up with it,'" Paget said.

After a week had passed, Paget called the roofer as a courtesy to tell him he was going to list the house with a realtor. The roofer told him he had a realtor friend who could help sell his house.

That is when Paget started getting documents in his email asking for signatures. He said he did not realize he was signing off on the agreement simply by clicking through each page.

"It would only take you through the little places where you’re supposed to sign in, so you push on that and sign it, and then when that’s done, it all disappears. That’s the stuff I couldn’t even read," Paget said.

Paget changed his mind about selling altogether because of the hassle and sought to cancel the agreement. He then started receiving emails from someone named Char Hiaring.

"I never opened any of his emails because I figured I didn’t even know who he is. Why would I open his e-mails if I don’t know who he is?" Paget said.

Hiaring describes himself on social media as a multi-millionaire real estate investor and influencer. He is also listed on the Secretary of State's website as the principal contact for Sell My House Idaho, LLC. Both Hiaring and the company are named in the lawsuit filed against Paget on March 6.

Teresa Loya, who has 25 years of experience in the real estate industry, said there are a variety of red flags in how this sale progressed.

"Typically, you know, in a real estate transaction, the seller and buyer are both aware of who each other are," Loya said.

"Pressure to sign quickly, pressure to sign in a manner that you’re not comfortable with, if that’s a lot of times, that can be an electronic signature situation," Loya said.

A GoFundMe fundraiser is hoping to help the fixed-income veteran cover costs for an attorney.

Neighborhood Reporter Lorien Nettleton has tried to call and email Hiaring and his businesses to understand their side of the deal, but has yet to hear back.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. KIVI verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.