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The statement of fact that "all tree owners will reap big rewards" should be challanged because there is no proof that that will ever happen. Hasn't happened yet and there is absolutley no proof that it will happen in the future. The TATF website makes a lot of projections that have not been met. This company does nothing to make anyone believe there will be big rewards coming from TATF for any treeowners. I do not believe anything that Steve told you.
You should pay more attention to the postings on this site and the other one. The owner initially made all of those wonderful promises to each and every one of us. The promises have not been met. Almost 17 years and I still have not received one penny. The letters that you read....for the first several years I would have written a wonderful, glowing letter about TATF and their wonderful owners. In fact, one of the letters that you viewed might have been mine. But, after waiting all of this time and receiving no payments from TATFand seeing that TATF continues to post knowingly false projections on their website, I do not believe one thing that Steve, Sherry and TATF have to say. Steve and Sherry have both looked me in the eye and told me that all of the wonderful things that they were saying would come true in the time frame that was projected. I am still waiting for that to happen. I hope that Steve holds to the promises that he has made to you. I will believe what they have to say when I have a check in my hand, it actually clears the bank and I have the money in my hand. Until then I do not believe anything that anyone representing TATF has to say. I know that receiving an actual check from TATF still does not mean that you will get any money. I do not have any faith in Steve and Sherry living up to their end of the bargain. I hope that it works out better for you. I no longer count on TATF as part of my retirement plan. Instead, I have become part of Steve and Sherry's retirement plan. I do not mind them profiting from me, but I want them to hold up their end of the deal. They have not done this yet and I no longer expect them to. By continuing to knowingly post the totally false projections on their website, I no longer believe that I will receive any return on my investment with TATF. As I have stated previously, I bought trees very early in the life of TATF. If people have been paid I should be close to the front of the line. Until I actually have money in my hand, I too am duped by Steve, as are we all. I include you in this group. Good luck to you in your dealings with this company. I hope that after 17 more years with this company you have money in your hand. I have been with for almost 17 years now and I do not expect to have anything from them even if I wait another 17 years.
I just called the TATF office in Costa Rica. The phone was answered by the machine.
How could telling us how to contact Steve and Sherry possibly get you in trouble in court? I am not an attorney but telling us how to contact to Steve and Sherry could not be an illegal action.
I still have my head but Steve and Sherry have our money. How do we contact them in Monaco or wherever they are hiding? I am not interested in doing anything illegal. I want to legally procede to catch the crooks. Since you are the only one who seems to know where they are please help the rest of us catch them. You have cajoled and infuriated everyone on this site. At the very least you can now help us. If you really are "Honest John" then you should have no problem helping us catch the "Dishonest Steve and Sherry Brunner." Please help the rest of us.
So, now we are all dupedbysteve. Please tell all of us how to contact Steve and Sherry. I will borrow the money to go talk to them. I hope that everyone including the FBI goes with me. If what you are NOW saying is the truth, Steve and Sherry need to be blessed with our current attention. Do you really think that they are honest people? What a total load of crap. If they have sold the farms where is our money? We investors paid for the farms.
I beg to differ with you. TATF has yet to meet my 7, 10 or 13 year projections. How in the world can they honestly say that the payouts from their projections are based on past experience? I HAVE NOT RECEIVED ONE PENNY FROM THEM. How can sending no money and not even telling me that they are waiting for someone to buy the wood be construed as meeting their projections? The projections on the website are nothing but falsehoods or lies as some would call it. Also, no, I have not attempted to sell my wood. TATF has always told me that they would do that. That is part of the deal that is offered to all investors. TATF selling the wood has always been part of the deal. How can the wood not being sold be my fault? Steve and Sherry always said that they would sell the wood. Please explain to me how my not receiving any money from at least 3 thinnings shows that TATF has met all of their projections. If they had met their projections I would be on here telling everyone what a good investment this is. I have received no money from them. To me, that means that they have not have not met their projections with me or anyone else that I know. I would love to be on here telling everyone that this company is reputable and honest. But my pockets are still empty and they tell me everyday to get on here and let everyone know that this is a bad investment with a dishonest company and owners.
Running a fraudulent operation has to be having a negative effect on Steve's health. I do not wish anything bad for Steve but I do believe that if he suddenly became honest with his current and future investors he would experience a positive effect on his health. Dishonesty has a very negative effect on people.
Honest Bob
A long time investor with TATF who has still not received one penny return on my investment with TATF.
Dupedbysteve:
I sincerly hope that your big investment pays off for you considering the amount of work that you have done and continue to do to promote TATF. Time will tell. So far my time with TATF and Steve and Sherry Brunner has given me nothing but empty pockets. Steve and Sherry have my money as well as everyone else's and are now able to live in Monaco, spending the money they have stolen from all of their unsuspecting investors. Time will tell.
Honest Bob
A long time investor with TATF who has still not received one penny from TATF
Future investors:
TATF continues to post knowingly false projections on it's website in an attempt to lure in more unsuspecting new investors. Here is a direct quote from the TATF website: "The projections below therefore reflect our actual results from our earliest thinnings together with historically based data for the subsequent thinnings and final harvests." I have been invested with this company for almost 17 years now. According to the projections on the TATF website which are based on their "actual results for our earliest thinnings" I should have already received payments totaling $7887 for every 100 teak trees that I own. To this date, now almost 17 years after first investing with TATF I have received $0 in payments. I invested in this company within the first year of their existence as did several of my friends. My experience with this company is not a singular experience or a mistake that is completely out of the ordinary for other investors. If people have been paid I and my friends should be close to the front of the line. I still have not received one penny from TATF and neither has anyone else that I know that is invested with this company. If anyone has been paid it is only Steve and Sherry's friends and family, not anyone who is not part of that group.
This really has become a fraud. TATF and everyone on this message board knows that the projections TATF continues to post are completely false, inaccurate and misleading. Earlier in my experience with TATF I was willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. I didn't believe that they were knowingly misleading investors. I believed that Steve and Sherry Brunner were honest people. It is now VERY, VERY obvious that TATF and Steve and Sherry Brunner are now knowingly posting totally false information in an attempt to get more unspecting investors involved. Do not be taken by the seeming honesty of the Brunners.
The projections are completely false and TATF and the Brunners know this fully. They are now seem to involved in a situation that is illegal at best.
FUTURE INVESTORS: DO YOUR HOMEWORK!! WHILE TRYING TO DO SOMETHING GOOD FOR THE WORLD AND FOR YOURSELVES, YOU WILL BE MAKING A MISTAKE INVESTING WITH THIS FRAUDULENT BUSINESS AND IT'S CRIMINAL OWNERS. THE OWNERS OF THIS COMPANY HAVE LEFT COSTA RICA AND NOW LIVE IN MONACO. THAT SHOULD SPEAK LOUD AND CLEAR TO ANYONE INVOLVED WITH THIS COMPANY OR ANYONE WHO IS THINKING OF BECOMING INVOLVED WITH THIS COMPANY OR STEVE AND SHERRY BRUNNER.
Honest Bob
A long time investor with TATF who has yet to receive one penny from TATF.
Once again you have been duped by Steve....and Sherry. I sincerly hope that your investment turns out better than mine has for me. I want TATF to succeed but it is looking more and more as if that is not the case. If everything was going the way that it was supposed to, I really don't think that Steve would be living in Monaco. He would be in Costa Rica welcoming his investors with open arms and showing the investors how well things are going. The last time some of my friends went to Costa Rica, Steve and Sherry would not even come down from their house to say hello. These people traveled from the U.S. to Costa Rica and spent their hard earned money to go there. Steve and Sherry were very well aware that they were coming. Steve and Sherry were there at the farm but would not even come down to see their supposed friends from the U.S. 5 minutes is all that it would have taken. I knew something was wrong then. It hasn't gotten any better. I find this very interesting: When this operation first started, Steve and Sherry would call on the phone and we could call them too. Now, you had to go to Europe to see Steve. This stinks to high heaven. If this isn't a scam, what are Steve and Sherry running from?
Honest Bob
A long time investor who has still not received any money from TATF.
Alright!!! At the very least we stopped another person from being duped by steve. Alright!! I feel like I have lost my money but at least someone else didn't. Truth is a wonderful thing.
Honest Bob
A long time investor who has not received one penny from TATF
Perhaps the reason that I have not received a check is because there have been none written with my name on them. Or maybe a bird flew in and stole my checks. Or maybe the paper disintegrated before it arrived at my house. Or maybe the check was written with invisible ink. For whatever reason,I tend to believe my first sentence, I and my friends have yet to receive any money from this company and we are now invested with them for 17 years.
Honest Bob
A long time investor who has yet to receive any money from TATF
That is not the sales pitch that TATF continues to throw out there. I want my money too.
Honest Bob
An investor that has yet to receive any money
Why would Steve waste our money flying his employees to Europe to talk about harvesting trees in Costa Rica? I would love to visit Europe but I can't because Steve and Sherry Brunner and TATF have all of my available money. I starte to make plans to visit Europe but I then realized that the money that I had been planning on having from TATF is not in my pockets. I can't pay the plane fair. But in the meantime Steve and Sherry have continued to purchase new farms but failed to pay their investors. Now they are flying their employees to Europe? Why doesn't Steve fly all of the investors to Europe and then we can all discuss the harvesting of OUR trees.
TATF has and has had my current address for the last 17 years. If there are checks waiting for me why hasn't TATF attempted to contact me regarding. My phone number and address have not changed for a very long time. The real reason that I have yet to receive a check is that there are no checks available for me to receive. It is not my fault that TATF has not yet paid me or my friends. The fault belongs to TATF and their failed business practices.
Thinking of investing in trees? Please check out TATF and you will find that eventhough they have been in business at least 18 years they have failed to meet the projections that continue to be posted on their website. I want to TATF to succeed but they have a VERY long way to go before they can be considered a good investment for your future.
Of course Steve has been paid by TATF (money came from duped investors) but no one else has.
That is only because that time has not yet come. Every other projection that they have made and continue to make has not been met. I have been involved in this for 17 years and have not received on penny back from this company. They have failed to meet the projections that should have been met by now. Even if they meet the final projection date they have consistently failed to meet all earlier projections. Again, I will state that they have not failed to final projections because that time has yet to come, not because they are a reputable company.
TATF continues to post knowingly false projections on their website. I have been involved with this company for 17 years now and I have not received one penney of return on my investment. New investors please do your homework. You will see that so far this investment has only been profitable for the owners of the company. ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK!! THIS RISK IS CONSIDERABLE!!!
THIN ICE AHEAD!!! PLEASE DO NOT GO ANY FURTHER!!!
I and several of my friends purchased some of the oldest teak trees that TATF has ever offered. As of yet none of us have received any payment from TATF for 1st or 2nd thinnings. There is no way that I believe that there are piles of letters from people who are so happy with their return on their investments. My friends and I have to be very close to owning trees as long as anyone has. Our empty pockets are still hoping to be even partially filled by a payment from TATF. My pockets would sing with joy and make me get on here and write about receiving money from TATF. Instead my pockets are still empty and I am writing out of hopelessness and despair. So far, after almost 17 years of being involved with TATF, I have to say that this investment is a total bust. If any new investor is thinking about buying trees from this organization, do your homework. Read the entire amount of posts on this site. You will know the true story. I do not own another tree farm and only wish for the success of TATF. So far TATF does not look anything like a successful company for anyone but the owners.
TATF continues to post knowingly false projections on their website. This is an attempt to lure unsuspecting investors into this failing investment. The projections have not been met by this company and investors continue to have empty pockets because of this. Do not be taken in by these false projections. Read all of the posts on this site and you will see the true story. I am not an owner of any other farms and have no desire to see TATF fail, but that does appear to be what is happening. I have been a treeowner since 1994 and still have not received one penney back from this investment. Please do your homework before you invest with this company.
This is not a personal attack on anyone. I have been a tree owner for almost 17 years now. I have not received one penny back on my investment. Do not believe the projections that are posted on the TATF website. TATF continues to post knowingly false projections. Future investors: Please look for somewhere else to invest your money. Do not be taken in by the projections posted on the TATF site. I am not someone out to get TATF. I want them to succeed but so far they have not lived up to the projections that were on given at the time I purchased my trees and they are still not living up to the projections that continue to posted on their site.
I gave all of my extra money to Steve and Sherry or I would sue.
If you are not Steve and are not working for them (eventhough you continue to post stating that you have spoken to Steve and implying that you have his blessings for what you write)please stop speaking for TATF. If you are no one connected with them please stop misleading everyone by implying that you know what is going on with them. I don't really believe anything that you write. WARNING: TATF SEEMS TO BE A SCAM AND DUPEDBYSTEVE IS PART OF THIS CONTINUING FARCE. I HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN THIS VENTURE LONGER THAN ANY OF THE POSITIVE POSTERS ON THIS SITE AND I STILL HAVE NOT RECEIVED ON PENNY RETURN ON MY INVESTMENT. I DO NOT WORK FOR ANY OTHER FARM, I HAVE NEVER APPLIED FOR A JOB WITH TATF AND I HAVE NOTHING TO GAIN BY POSTING. PLEASE DO YOUR INVESTIGATION BEFORE YOU SEND ANY MONEY TO THIS SEEMINGLY VERY DEEP HOLE. YOUR MONEY WILL NOT COME BACK TO YOU. APPARENTLY OUR MONEY IS NOW RESIDING IN MONACO. THIS IS NOT A WORTHWHILE VENTURE. DO NOT SEND YOUR MONEY TO THIS OPERATION. YOU AND YOUR CHILDREN MAY VERY WELL ALL BE DEAD BEFORE YOU SEE ANY RETURN ON YOUR INVESTMENT. THIS COMPANY CONTINUES TO POST KNOWINGLY FALSE PROJECTIONS. THIS IS A VERY POORLY RUN COMPANY THAT WILL TAKE YOUR MONEY AND RETURN NOTHING. DO NOT BE SUCKED IN BY FALSE ADVERTISING. YES THIS POSTING IS NEGATIVE. I HAVE BEEN INVOLVED WITH THIS VENTURE FOR ALMOST 17 YEARS NOW AND I HAVE NOT RECEIVED ANY MONEY IN RETURN FOR MY INVESTMENT AND I DO NOT HAVE ANY HOPE OF EVER RECEIVING ANY PAYMENT FROM MY INVESTMENT. DO NOT BELIEVE THE COMPANY WEBSITE. DUPEDBYSTEVE BEGAN ON THIS SITE AS AN UNHAPPY INVESTOR AND HAD TO THREATEN TATF WITH A LAWSUIT BEFORE THEY GAVE HIM ANY MONEY BACK. DO NOT INVEST WITH THIS COMPANY.
Still no refutation of the truth about TATF. They are not honest and it appears that this very non-reputable company and it's unscrupulous owners have taken everyone's money under very false pretenses. The website still calls us treeowners but it would appear, with Steve's blessing, we are now benefactors. Maybe you can inform us as to how to deduct this from our income tax as a charitable gift. TATF, its' owners and you are a joke.
You in no way refute the other things that I said about TATF or the website. The only current positive poster is you. Anyone who reads this site can see that.
I am not making things up. If you are not an agent for TATF why do keep posting messages that say "Steve says" or "Steve will"? Also, Steve calls you to thank you for your work on his behalf. I am not making things up but it does seem like the TATF website is making up many, many things and making false projections.
All Currrent and Future Investors in TATF:
Someone who seems to be posting as a spokesperson for TATF is now saying that signing a contract with TATF will land you in jail in Costa Rica. Future investors: Please be aware that this information is not posted on the now obviously fraudulent website that TATF maintains. Any investor is now being called a benefactor, any money you pay for trees is being considered a gift to TATF and the projections posted on their website should now say that you might be paid someday. I have been a tree owner for over 16 years now and I have not received one penny in payment for my investment. No projection of payment has been met by TATF. TATF has very bad management and so far has not lived up to their projections for any returns on your investment. If you are considering investing in this operation be aware that you are throwing your money down a very deep hole with apparently no chance of ever receiving any payments in return. Also, if you want to see your trees that you would supposedly own, the current spokesman for Tropical American Tree Farms now says that you will be arrested when you reach Costa Rica. Does all of this sound like the workings of an honest company or honest company owners?
What??? I want to advise you that I have been to Costa Rica and did not get arrested by anyone. Also, Steve and Sherry have already taken my principle. I have lost that already and didn't even have to go to court. There is no legitimate company that would knowingly have their INVESTORS sign a contract that would put either party in jeopardy of being arrested. If what you said has any truth to it, TATF is a very poorly run business with very, very bad management.
To see if WE have broken the law????????????? Let's try Steve. I can not even come close to believing what I am reading!!!!!!!!! I am totally incredulous!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am going to keep reading. Even if you are not Steve it is very obvious that you are at the least working for him. And just like you said, you have built companies that require employees to be all for the company. Basically to spout the company line. That means that what you are saying is with blessing of TATF. This is now a charity?????????? There really are no legal contracts???????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Really??? You believe that Steve will pay us SOMEDAY????? Please tell Steve to change the company website to reflect what you have written!!!!!!!!!!! How many benefactors will reply to that? Plus the wonderful promise of MAYBE getting paid SOMEDAY??????!!!!!!!! Because Steve is such a nice guy????????? It seems that Steve will soon be inducted into the ROBBER'S HALL OF FAME!!!!
Why should we have to pay Steve, again, to make a contract legal when it was supposed to be legal in the first place. If we signed a contract that wasn't legal, isn't that a total breach of contract on Steve and Sherry's part? Why would an honourable man ask us to sign a contract that is not legal and binding on his part? This really looks like more and more like a scam from the inception. If this contract was not legal in the first place I do not believe that Steve was not aware of this. He had himself covered in so many ways, there is no way that he would not have known that this was not legal. I am an honourable person too. I have held up my end of this deal. When will Steve and Sherry hold up their end of the deal rather than just holding us up without even using a gun? If these contracts are not legal, we are now supposed to trust that Steve is honourable and will honor a contract that is not binding even after he had us sign contracts that were not legal. It's hard to trust a lawyer who would knowingly have people sign contracts that are not legal and binding. It's just really hard to have faith and trust in that. And now we will be expected to pay him more money to make this deal legal? Really??? We are all still waiting for the money that Steve and Sherry were already supposed to pay us. I have looked everywhere for my money but so far it has been on a one way trip to Costa Rica.
Is it really true that contracts written in English are not valid in Costa Rica? If this is the truth then we all need to contact someone to get the ball rolling to expose this scam. I have always given Steve and Sherry the benefit of the doubt. I have always believed that this wasn't a scam at first but has now become one. If our contracts are not valid in Costa Rica, surely a lawyer which Steve is, would have known this. Was this really a scam from it's inception? Would people who claim to be good religious people (who cares what faith) really start out to scam people? If this is true we all need to make this stop and expose it for what it is.
I am not in a state of panic and my feelings and opinions are based on my own personal experience. I am simply resigned to not seeing any return on the hard earned and very valuable money that I sent to Steve and Sherry and I am not happy about it. Someone, anyone, including Steve, Sherry, dupedbysteve, TATF and Raleo, please prove me wrong.
I have been to see them. I have never said that the trees don't exist. They do. I am saying that TATF has not held up to their end of this deal and you and they continue to attempt to lure more people in when they know that the bait they hold out is no more tasty than a rubber worm. Please future investors, do not be fooled by this artificial lure.
When I saw my trees they looked as good or better than any others that were growing.
The logical reason that Steve has for not paying us is that he may never have to pay any of us unless we all threaten to sue.
It worked for you.
You still got your money back for trees that should be worth less than my trees and many older trees that are owned by investors. I want my money too. Please release the information that you have in a format that we can all see and believe. Why does Steve not want this information to be released to all of us? Again, does it take the threat of a lawsuit to be informed or paid? What a load of BS this is.
I didn't miss it at all. I said that you threatened a lawsuit, which you say that you did, and Steve responded to this by returning your initial investment and profits to boot. Again, is that what we all have to do? That wasn't the deal that I signed up for. Why do we all not have access to the information that you say you have in your safe? Why is this information not allowed to see the light of day? Do we all have to threaten lawsuits like you did in order to get our money back and see all of this wonderful and enlightening information? Your non-responses are becoming a real joke. Please turn all of us on to the influential people who helped you get your money back. PLEASE help all of us to feel good about this investment. If you have all of this wonderful information make it available in some way, other than your current words that we are supposed to believe, at least until you change your tune again.