DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--HomeVestors of America, Inc. announced that it has settled a second trademark infringement lawsuit against Sean Terry of Phoenix, AZ, who operates several websites that advertise to buy distressed residential real estate. The settlement resulted in an agreed judgment and significant monetary damages in HomeVestors®’ favor. The settlement agreement also prohibits Terry from using HomeVestors’ well known trademarks in future advertising.
“HomeVestors and our franchisees are the only entities legally allowed to call ourselves the ‘We Buy Ugly Houses®’ people. Imitators cannot use our intellectual property to feign our record of success,” said David Hicks, chief executive officer of HomeVestors. “It is our conscientiousness in business and each of our markets that has built the credibility and appeal of the ‘We Buy Ugly Houses’ and HomeVestors brands through the purchase of more than 110,000 houses nationwide over the past two decades. We are pleased that this settlement reinforces our commitment to protecting those trademarks for the sake of our franchisees and the communities they serve.”
HomeVestors has been America’s number one homebuyer for several years, and over the years, has spent significant amounts of time and resources in developing its brand and maintaining the goodwill it has built into its trademarks. HomeVestors and its network of more than 1,150 franchises have spent over $298 million on advertising making the valuable brand readily and widely recognized in the industry and among the general public. In 2020, HomeVestors’ independently owned and operated We Buy Ugly Houses® franchises purchased almost 10,000 houses, generating sales of more than $1.6 billion.
About HomeVestors of America, Inc.
Dallas-based HomeVestors of America, Inc. is the largest professional house buying franchise in the U.S. with more than 110,000 houses bought since 1996. HomeVestors recruits, trains and supports its more than 1,150 independently owned and operated HomeVestors® franchisees that specialize in building businesses based on buying, rehabbing, selling, and holding residential properties. Most commonly known as the "We Buy Ugly Houses®" company, HomeVestors strives to make a positive impact in each of its 176 markets. The company ranked on the 2020 Inc. 5000, has appeared for 12 consecutive years on the prestigious Franchise Business Review's "Top Franchises”, for nine years on the annual Dallas 100, and ranked 94th on the 2020 Franchise Times Top 200 Franchise Chains by Worldwide Sales. HomeVestors has also been regularly recognized by Entrepreneur Magazine, which most recently ranked it 16th “Top Growth Franchise”, named it as one of the top 200 franchises of 2020, and placed it at number 30 on its annual Franchise 500. For more information, visit www.HomeVestors.com.
