Brazen fraudsters are prowling Facebook groups to snatch up prospective buyers' life savings as they desperately search for their dream homes in a crushing housing market. 

As people look for more affordable ways to achieve the American Dream of buying their own property, more are turning to compact living, and tiny homes have become hugely popular, especially amongst those who are low-income. 

Kerry Hopkins, 60, of Mississippi, got scammed out of 20 percent of her income on a down payment for a beautiful $20,0000 tiny home, while Kayla Morgan forked over $13,000 – her life savings – for one. 

Only for both of them to figure out too late they got caught up in a scam that is sweeping the nation.  

'It happens so often, and it's not being talked about,' Nikki Cheatham, the co-founder of Movable Roots Tiny Homes in Melbourne, Florida, told the Daily Mail.  

Cheatham's company has been targeted by fraudsters who steal photos of their legitimate listings, that cost between $100,000 and $250,000, and share them online as their own, but for unrealistically low prices, like $20,000.

The rise in popularity has brought forth scammers looking to cash in, such as the ones Hopkins and Morgan got caught up in. 

'I thought I had better instincts than that,' Hopkins, who was living off $1,100 disability checks at the time, told the Daily Mail. 'And, you know, I knew better, and I just did it anyway because I want one.' 

Cheatham spends hours flagging Facebook posts to Meta from scammers who have lifted her company's tiny home photos to list them next to an unbelievable price on Marketplace. 

She said the scammers ask for a down payment in the low thousands to entice desperate buyers, and then will disappear into thin air, often blocking the victim, who is left with no legal avenues to get their money back. 

Some scammers even promise delivery in their listings, which Cheatham said is unrealistic and a massive red flag. 

Others have been bold enough to give out her firm's Melbourne address when pressed, which has seen duped Facebook users turn up on her doorstep asking to see their home.

'They're taking advantage of people who need something affordable,' Cheatham told the Daily Mail. 

'[Customers] see these unbelievably low prices for a tiny home, and they're like: "I could make this happen,"' she continued. 

Tiny homes are built to be movable, making them affordable options that are not set in stone where one finds them. However, Cheatham said delivery costs would always vary depending on the final location. 

This is often not factored into scammers' postings, and many customers are blinded by the too-good-to-be-true prices to see the glaring red flags, she said. 

'Delivery's going to vary from place to place,' Cheatham told the Daily Mail. 'We couldn't include delivery costs... That's unrealistic.'

And all of their products are built-to-order. They do not have an available inventory to purchase on site, although Cheatham said some companies do. 

Regardless, the process takes months to acquire the tiny homes of customers' dreams. To build it from scratch with no customization would take Moveable Roots six to eight months. With customization, it would take up to 10 months. 

Even if a customer was able to purchase a home on the spot, it wouldn't be a done deal, as they'd need 'permitting for placement and you still would need site work,' Cheatham told the Daily Mail. 

'You can't just walk away and be like: "I'm taking this home with me."' 

Hopkins began communicating with a man who went by the name Frederick Brad on Facebook about a tiny home she wanted to purchase for $20,000 in May 2025. 

Hopkins had always dreamed of being a homeowner one day, but never thought it would be in her future, until she saw the 16ftx28ft tiny home Brad had listed. 

'I just never thought I could afford it. And then I discovered the tiny homes, and I thought: "Oh, I could do that,"' Hopkins told the Daily Mail.

Brad, whom Hopkins believes is an alias for a man overseas, swindled $800 out of her after months of communication – money she had collected over four months in Apple gift cards as he requested. 

'I took pictures of them, and I sent them to him,' she said. 

In hindsight, Hopkins admitted the payment method was suspicious. 'Apple gift card, really?' she reflected. 

But Brad had led her to believe he was a legitimate seller and lured her in with assurances that he empathized with her situation and wanted to cut her a deal if she promised to promote where she got the home to others. 

He even sent her a two-page application, which Hopkins printed, filled out, and sent back photos of the completed work. 

When the scammer asked her for more money, she finally refused. The $800 alone was roughly 20 percent of her total income for the four months. She simply couldn't afford to give a cent more. 

'I told him no more money, and he just blocked me,' she told the Daily Mail. 'I wasn't going to put out any more money without getting something.'

'It was pathetic,' she admitted of the entire five-month process. 'It was stupid on my part,' she admitted. 

She reported Brad to the Mississippi attorney general via phone call and claims she was told there was nothing they could do if a scammer is overseas. 

'They said: "Just don't talk to them,"' Hopkins said. No investigation was launched. The Daily Mail has reached out to the Mississippi attorney general, who said it had no record of Hopkins' report. 

'These people call you somewhere over in Timbuktu, outside the country, so they really can't trace it or anything, so that's what they tell me, anyway,' Hopkins told the Daily Mail. 

Hundreds of others found themselves in the same position as Hopkins, but often with a much bigger financial fallout than the Mississippian. 

Kayla Morgan, like Hopkins, was duped by a scammer and told News 6 about her ordeal. 

She had handed over $13,000 for a down payment on a two-bedroom, one-bedroom $52,000 tiny home, only for the seller to disappear after sending the money. It was her life savings. 

Since then, Morgan said she and her son have been living in hotels and hostels as they currently don't have a home to go to.  

However, in Morgan's case, the alleged scammer, Ian Stewart, was detained in March. He has pleaded not guilty to fraud and grand theft. The Daily Mail has reached out to his attorney for comment.

Stewart has a history of deception. In 2014, he was convicted and sentenced to six years for defrauding two people of more than $100,000 in a mortgage fraud scheme.  

While Stewart has been arrested, many of the alleged scammers are faceless swindlers who are difficult to trace.  

A quick search on Facebook Marketplace brings up hundreds of tiny homes for sale and dozens of groups promising newly built, customizable homes for cheap. 

A Facebook group designed to call out fraudsters has recently highlighted a profile that goes by the name Michael Strickland. He has often been flagged by users as a potential scammer. It is not believed he is using his real name or photo.

A four-bedroom, two-bathroom tiny home in Texas was recently listed for $50,000 by Strickland, who asked for a down payment of just $7,000. 

In the Tiny Houses for Sale group, where Strickland is an admin, he offered a 'gorgeous' one-bed, one-bath home that is customizable for a low cost of $38,000 with a $4,000 down payment. The price includes 'delivery and set up.' 

Strickland posts multiple homes a day, which Cheatham warned is also a red flag. The Daily Mail has reached out to Strickland for comment.

Cheatham said she has spent endless hours filing copyright claims with Meta and contacting the scammers, who just block her from the groups. 

The scammers, she suspects, are stealing names and profile photos, so the crime is faceless. 

'It's hard to go to the police when you don't have an actual name or face behind who's doing this,' she said. 

Moveable Roots Tiny Homes have made several buyers-beware posts on their Facebook page, warning customers of the red flags to look out for when buying a home.

Cheatham is working hard to educate customers on what to look out for and said there are three main things. 

Firstly, if a seller is asking for payment by Venmo or Zelle, that should raise eyebrows, as that is two payment methods her firm would never accept. 

Secondly, reverse search the advertisement images to see where they're actually coming from. 

And thirdly, if a deal looks too good to be true, then it probably is. 

'There's definitely steps that you can take to protect yourself,' Cheatham said. 

The Daily Mail has reached out to Meta for comment.