A group of investment entities has filed a lawsuit in Texas state court against Alan Stalcup, his wife Loren, and former GVA vice president David Graham Bass. The plaintiffs allege that Stalcup and his associates engaged in fraudulent practices at their company GVA, including misrepresenting bad debt as assets and bonds.
The complaint accuses the defendants of an “egregious criminal pattern of fraud, theft, and deceit.” According to the lawsuit, GVA falsely inflated rental income and profits by reclassifying bad debt, concessions, and operating expenses as assets or capital expenditures. This practice allegedly made the company’s portfolio appear more valuable than it was.
“In 2023 alone, the GVA Defendants falsely overstated the reported rental income across its entire portfolio by over $20.6 million, which in turn served to inflate values of the properties in its portfolio by hundreds of millions of dollars,” plaintiffs wrote in their petition.
Stalcup responded to these allegations by stating: “This is an extortion attempt from a disgruntled investor.” He added that he intends to countersue. Bass did not respond to requests for comment.
GVA operates as a syndicator that gathers funds from individual and institutional investors to purchase and manage underperforming apartment complexes. Investors would buy interests in shell companies created by GVA for property acquisitions and pay management fees to GVA. The business model worked when interest rates were low but became strained after rates increased.
The plaintiffs allege that when financial conditions worsened, Stalcup issued capital calls under false pretenses. They claim that instead of using new investments to stabilize properties or meet debt obligations, Stalcup used some funds for personal purposes. In one instance cited in the suit, approximately $3.4 million was allegedly misappropriated to repay GVA’s own bridge loans.
The group filing suit includes Hill Country Hillside Ltd., River Retreat 1228 LLC, Hill Country Meridian LLC, and Sierra HC LLC. At least two are linked to Texas real estate investor Bryan Kastleman. The plaintiffs claim losses exceeding $15 million after investing in ten real estate projects managed by GVA.
This legal action is not the first involving Stalcup or his firm. Earlier this year, lender Benefit Street Partners accused GVA of misusing insurance proceeds and commingling tenant security deposits on a $346 million loan backed by 19 multifamily properties; those allegations remain unresolved with Stalcup denying wrongdoing and stating loans had been paid back or were performing.
In addition, Starwood Capital Group filed lawsuits against Stalcup over unpaid interest payments and property liens on several properties this summer; those cases are also pending.
Further details about these ongoing disputes can be found at:
Starwood goes after syndicator Alan Stalcup for $110M in personal guarantees
GVA’s ill-timed buying spree has syndicator on shaky ground
Syndicator Alan Stalcup personally liable for $285M, Benefit Street alleges
