Here's where we stand as of today. From beginning to near end;
Prior to meeting I did as much research as I could on skypiea/thinkfenix and was satisfied that I would be dealing with who they claim to be.
Late Dec we met 3 times physically to hammer out what services I needed to use with the original date of finalizing NLT Jan 26
After the first week of Jan I started receiving word that we needed to finalize sooner due to possible tax liens that would attach to the property, from here I asked if we could move it to Jan 15th. We changed from check in mail to wire transfer.
As Jan 15th came closer the final paperwork was not received and communication was hit and miss.
Jan 15th came around some paperwork was received but I had sent a typo so we had to correct that. I got word that night that the wire was sent but it wasn't received the next day and as we know, wires are instant...onto the frenzy
Jan 16th was when I went into full panic mode, wire hadn't been received and I wasn't able to get a hold of J or anyone else for that matter. So I finally was left with no alternative but to send someone to find him, I sent a future business partner to check the only address we had on file. Turns out he wasn't ignoring my calls, emails or text but he was bed ridden sick, I know how that is because initially I pushed back our meeting date by 3-4 days while I was bed ridden with the flu. I asked him what the deal was and he explained everything. He understood my frustration and concern seeing how there is substantial amount at stake here.
Throughout the whole process I never felt like I was being scammed or ripped out but there was/is a good amount of frustration and stress involved in this kind of business transaction since it takes a lot of trust on the client (me) side.
Jan 17th There was a miscommunication which I should have clarified on my end that has caused a bit of delay on their end. Now I'm the asshole. I stated we needed a wire but I didn't say not an ACH, the receiving escrow company says they do not accept ACH and since the majority of the transaction was sent through ACH we have a bit of a problem. Now J did do his research before sending the ACH and showed me on the routing # where it stated they do accept ACH and he did send it to the correct ACH address but now we're awaiting word from the escrow agency to see if no really means no.
One thing I do know is he (J- President of Skypiea) is who he says he is, I've confirmed it by bank account, miicard, physical address, internet and DL background check. He has deep ties to where he's at and no sensible person would pack up and disappear over something as small as this. So being scammed hasn't really been too much of a concern, more of less it's just that everything is done correctly.
I will keep this updated, I'll be fair and impartial on my review as I believe that is necessary for both future customers and for Skypiea. There will be some criticism but if everything works out in the end then that is all that REALLY matters to me. Most of the deficiencies spotted thus far with Skypiea are starting business woes that will iron out once things become a little more established.