Ownership of Sea Cliff home triggers SF city lawsuit

A monthslong saga regarding the ownership of a million-dollar Sea Cliff home has prompted a lawsuit filed by the San Francisco city attorney for real estate fraud.

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On Friday, San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu announced that he had filed a lawsuit in California Superior Court against Brandon Aadee and Diana Peng, accusing the pair of attempting to use forged property deeds to claim ownership of 250 32nd Ave. , filed Sept. 8, alleges Aadee and Peng passed ownership of the home back and forth eight times through a series of fraudulent deeds, at least five of which Chiu’s office says are fraudulent. The complaint further alleges that Aadee and Peng planned to use the forged documents to make millions by selling the home for a profit.

“This unfair business practice undermines the legal real estate market and wastes scarce government resources,” Chiu said in a news release. “We are asking the court to declare these deeds invalid and stop this fraudulent scheme.”

According to the complaint, the deed to the home is in the name of Wei Wang, who, the San Francisco Standard reported, bought the property with her spouse in 2013 for $2.4 million. But Wang has since vacated the property and moved to China and owes the city more than $320,000 in back taxes, according to the city attorney’s news release. 

Both Aadee and Peng have “criminal histories that include fraud‑related offenses,” the news release says. Chiu’s office alleges that though the deed transfers were notarized, they were done so fraudulently. 

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“Several notaries have said defendants forged their signatures or illegally altered the deeds,” Chiu said. “That is fraud, and they are trying to profit off that crime.”

The house is in Sea Cliff, a wealthy Bay Area neighborhood with Golden Gate Bridge views once home to celebrities like Eugene Levy, Sharon Stone and Robin Williams. The abandoned home was already an eyesore. Someone filed a complaint alleging black mold and raccoons living inside the home. And a BMW in the driveway was green with algae and grass around its tires, according to the San Francisco Standard, before Peng and Aadee began to occupy the property. Neighbors began reporting suspicious activity, including strange visitors coming and going at all hours. The outlet also reported that Aadee had called a San Francisco real estate agent about putting the property up for sale.

Chiu is asking that the judge rule to bar Aadee and Peng from “committing unlawful, fraudulent, and unfair business practices” involving the property, including claiming ownership of the property or occupying it. He is also asking the judge to cancel any falsified deed transfers and require a city employee to supervise any new deed transfer paperwork. Aadee and Peng could end up paying up to $2,500 for each violation of California’s unfair competition law.