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In an effort to be able to afford a place to live in the notoriously expensive housing market of the Lower Mainland, BC teacher Kara Vanderwoude decided to buy a tiny house.

In February 2019, she handed over $53,000 to Your Tiny Homes owners Shawn Glen Cameron and Michelle Lynn Cameron – who goes by the name Michelle Ordowski – who promised to build her a custom tiny home. The couple live in Vavenby, an hour and a half north of Kamloops, where the work would take place.

The company's slick website said it took pride in each build and that "affordable housing is now at your fingertips."

Vanderwoude had found a site to put her tiny home, and a friend who was an architect had drawn up the plans.

But five years later Vanderwoude doesn't have a tiny home, instead, she has a court order for more than $90,000.

"He screwed me over," Vanderwoude told iNFOnews.ca.

Vanderwoude said Cameron was very charming to start with and communicated promptly and frequently about the project.

It was supposed to take three to four months but suddenly there were delays. As the months continued and the tiny house didn't materialize, the excuses began.

"Once he got (the money) then it was just a whole different story with him," Vanderwoude said. "He was barely available. And then it was excuse, after excuse, lie after lie... that's when it started falling apart."

He said he hadn't called back because he was at his kids' soccer game or was out dirt biking.

"And then all of a sudden, he just... disappears, his name disappears, website disappears, my house disappears... it's just gone," she said.

Vanderwoude ended up taking Your Tiny Homes to arbitration.

In a lengthy 37-page decision, arbitrator Craig Ferris said much of Cameron's evidence was "untruthful and not credible."

In one example, the arbitrator said Cameron failed to explain why he said he had lumber at one instance, but two months later said he couldn't obtain it.

"Shawn’s explanations for his failure to communicate meaningfully with Kara from essentially late April to early June are equally unbelievable. It is difficult to believe that his continued excuses were anything other than falsehoods designed to cover the fact that he had made little or no progress on (the tiny home)," the arbitrator said.

Your Tiny Homes was ordered to pay $53,000 plus $50 a day compensation for failing to build the tiny home. With interest, it totaled $93,000.

Cameron argued the contract stated the money was non-refundable, but the arbitrator pointed out it wasn't a refund, it was damages.

And Vanderwoude isn't the only victim.

In January 2020, Squamish resident Debbie McHugh had just retired and used all her savings to pay Cameron and Ordowski $50,000 to build her a tiny home.

They never did.

"I've been homeless since... because I was supposed to have my tiny house," McHugh told iNFOnews.ca. "I'm 71 years old. I should enjoy my retirement... they stole it."

In a scathing 2022 BC Supreme Court decision, Justice Geoffrey Gaul said Cameron and Ordowski had "repeatedly and intentionally lied" to the senior about the progress of her tiny home and had "engaged in conduct which amounted to constructive fraud."

"Ms. McHugh is a senior citizen. She is also an Indigenous person who is struggling to secure a stable home for herself. (Cameron and Ordowski) knew this, yet they continuously misled her about the construction of her tiny home," the Justice said.

The judge's harsh words continued.

"The fact of the matter is, (Cameron and Ordowski) took Ms. McHugh’s money... held on to everything for an extended period of time and delivered nothing in return."

McHugh said the entire situation made her sick.

"From worrying about where I'm going to live," she said.

In 2022, the court ordered the couple to pay $58,000. The justice tacked on $24,000 in damages for the couple's "outrageous behaviour" and "mistreatment" of a senior.

"They knew Ms. McHugh was in a desperate situation and eager to purchase a tiny home. They knew she was of limited financial means, that she was a retiree, and that she was drawing on her pension funds to finance the purchase of her... tiny home. They also knew that she suffered from physical ailments which explained why she was asking for special conditions or special modifications to the home.... knowing all of this, (Cameron and Ordowski) intentionally misled Ms. McHugh as to the status of her home. Not only did they mislead her, they strung her along, offering her false hopes that the home would be ready and delivered, only to dash those hopes every time a completion date came and went, unfulfilled," the Justice said.

At one point McHugh got a garnishing order from Your Tiny Homes TD Bank account, she said. However, there was no money in the account.

In 2023, McHugh agreed on a settlement of $55,000 after Ordowski sold her home. However, she reneged on the agreement, saying there was "no contract" and that she "did not agree to sell."

McHugh had a court-ordered judgment against the couple for the money, but they still haven't paid.

Instead, Cameron and Ordowski bogged the court down in endless paperwork.

On Oct. 10, BC Supreme Court Justice Tina Dion declared the couple "vexatious litigants" barring them from taking any more court action without permission in McHugh's case.

"They refuse to accept judicial criticism of them and to comply with orders of the court, while continually misrepresenting the facts to the court. They act habitually and persistently in the face of judicial direction," the Justice said.

Justice Dion said the couple would go to "great lengths" to avoid orders from the court and that their "sole purpose" of repeated filing of court documents was to delay the court procedures.

'CONSTRUCTIVE FRAUD'

It's much the same tactic the couple used during the arbitration with Vanderwoude a few years earlier.

"Shawn and Michelle failed to comply with the procedural orders made in advance of this arbitration. They did so, in my view, in an effort to derail this arbitration and prevent a determination of this dispute," the arbitrator said in the 2021 decision.

McHugh and Vanderwoude aren't the only ones who handed over vast amounts of cash for a tiny home they never received.

Court documents show five others have sued Your Tiny Homes alleging they paid money but the company never delivered.

The claims total roughly $400,000.

A Notice of Claim filed in June 2020 by Vernon resident Stacey Mee says she paid $61,843 for a tiny home.

Mee paid the cash in March 2019, for delivery by July.

"Following a site visit in or about July 2019, (Your Tiny Homes) repeatedly asked for multiple extensions for the work of the property, including extension of the delivery date to August 2019," the court document reads.

She was then "assured" it would be done by September. It wasn't, and she agreed to a refund. But that didn't materialize either, she claims.

"The defendant has failed and refuses to complete or deliver the property or to refund the plaintiff," the court documents reads.

In response to the court filing, Cameron said the contract stated the payment is non-refundable and any disputes need to go through arbitration as per the contract.

The company has yet to pay the two people that successfully won at arbitration.

In 2018, Iesza Robson-Smith paid Cameron and Ordowski $48,000 for a tiny home that was supposed to be completed by August 2019.

When it wasn't, she went to the site to see for herself, only to find "there was substantial work" left to be done.

In May 2020, an arbitrator found that the couple had "fundamentally breached" the agreement and ordered them to pay $52,000.

They didn't pay up and Robson-Smith took more court action.

By Cameron's own admittance, he still hasn't paid.

Court documents say that in 2021, Kamloops residents Guy and Angela Spencer paid Cameron $34,000 for a tiny house to be put at Adams Lake.

It never happened and a year later the BC small claim court ordered Your Tiny Homes to pay the Spencers $34,000.

Another court filing shows Richmond resident Ashley Davis paid $33,000 to Your Tiny Homes towards two units she planned to rent out.

Like the others, she never got them but did come to an agreement for a refund in installments.

However, after receiving $10,000, Cameron and Ordowski stopped paying, she alleges.

'REPEATEDLY AND INTENTIONALLY LIED'

When reached by phone, Cameron adamantly denied he was scamming customers and instead painted himself as the victim.

"I disagree that I owe anybody any amount of money," Cameron told iNFOnews.ca. "These people either didn't have the money to pay to finish it, refused to pay when a bill was due, or just decided to walk away from the project."

During a lengthy phone call, Cameron strongly rejected the allegation that he had no intention of building the tiny homes and planned to just pocket the money.

He's steadfast that he's done nothing wrong.

"These people were to pay on certain days. They were to follow the contract just like Your Tiny Homes did. And they failed to uphold their end of the bargain," he said. "It's non-refundable... they agreed on it."

iNFOnews.ca asked Cameron multiple times if he was going to pay back the $400,000.

He never directly answered the question and kept referring back to the contract and then blaming the customer.

In McHugh's case, Cameron repeatedly said she won a default judgment so he wasn't given the chance to argue in court. His statement is contrary to what the court found.

"Ms. McHugh had no right to bring this action to court without first going to arbitration," Cameron said. "Ms. McHugh owed the company a debt of $10,000."

Again Cameron's arguments were debunked by Justice Gaul who called his actions "constructive fraud.”

He said the court was "biased and one-sided."

When asked whether he cared that he had taken people's life savings he replied: "Well, of course, but I also care about not working for free."

When reached for comment, Ordowski replied in an email that she had "no knowledge" of "these people".

It's hard to believe because she was named in four of the lawsuits and their home in Vavenby – which has been ordered to be sold – is in her name.

Court documents also show she sent emails about the McHughs case as recently as February.

Ordowski also says she left the company in July 2019 and separated from Cameron at the same time.

However, this statement is also contradicted in an email sent in November 2019 where she calls herself Cameron's wife and discusses details of McHugh's tiny house saying “we currently have the perfect trailer for you on our property waiting to be built."

Cameron ran another company, C3 Designs, more than a decade ago that also left a trail of angry customers.

At least three customers took him to the small claims court looking to recoup roughly $15,000.

A handful of angry customers also left him some dreadful reviews for his cabinet-making business.

When asked whether C3 Design was a scam, Cameron replied, "No, absolutely not."

And it wasn't just clients who went after Cameron for money.

Two employees took him to the Employment Standards over $5,400 in unpaid wages.

Again, Cameron blames his customers for not paying him as to why employees' cheques bounced. He doesn't address why they were then forced to take legal action to get paid.

'WORRYING ABOUT WHERE I'M GOING TO LIVE'

It is unclear whether any of the people who took Cameron to the small claims court got any money, but court records appear to show he went bankrupt in 2014.

No criminal charges have ever been laid.

Court documents say that in September 2021, McHugh did contact the RCMP, which visited Cameron, and he said he would return "all of the money" she paid to Your Tiny Homes.

Vanderwoude also said she reported Cameron to the Kamloops RCMP but they refused to address it, saying it was a civil matter.

Kamloops RCMP didn't return our request for comment when asked why they hadn't at least looked into his pattern of behaviour.

While Cameron is steadfast that he's done nothing wrong, he has wanted to keep his legal affairs out of the public eye and applied for a publication ban. He never filed it, and bans are rare in civil matters.

After iNFOnews.ca published its first story about Your Tiny Homes: 'Judge calls BC builder's conduct 'outrageous' after ripping off senior over tiny home’  Cameron emailed saying we'd broken a publication ban.

"MUST BE REMOVED Immediately - If not we will seek legal action," the email read.

He included a screenshot of his application as proof.

Ordowski sent a similar email asking for the story to be taken down “before further action is taken.” She also states they’ve been divorced since 2019.

There is no publication ban.

The outcome of McHugh’s case it not yet known. She is believed to be first among the victims in line. BC Assessment valued the two-acre property and trailer on Hoirup Road in Vavenby at $147,000.

Court documents show there still a $105,000 mortgage on it, and the bank gets the first dibs.

Vanderwoude is resigned to the fact she won’t get her money back.

She used all her savings hiring a lawyer to get the $90,000 the arbitrator had ordered Cameron to pay. But she hasn’t seen a penny.

iNFOnews.ca asked Cameron repeatedly whether he would pay the money Vanderwoude won at arbitration and didn’t get a straight answer.

When asked if he had any conscience about all the money that he has taken from people he replied: “I wish these people would just follow their contract that they signed.”

For Vanderwoude, she knows it’s hard to get blood out of a stone.

“He knows this… he just laughs, he walks away laughing… and he gets away with it,” she said.

— This story was updated at 10:48 a.m. Monday, Oct. 21, 2024, with a different photo.

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