Charles Dobens Review: The “Multifamily Attorney” Settled an SEC Fraud Case. His Students Should Know Before They Pay.

Two decades of coaching, a new hotel-conversion fund, and a 2012 SEC settlement over apartment deals that the agency said never paid investors what they were promised.

Multifamily Coaches · Updated October 15, 2026 · Sources listed at the end

Charles Dobens is one of the longest-running names in multifamily education. He has sold coaching under several brands over two decades, markets himself as “The Multifamily Attorney,” and more recently moved into hotel-to-apartment conversions. Before you buy his coaching or invest in anything he promotes, here is what the public record shows.

Who is Charles Dobens?

Dobens founded the Multifamily Investing Academy and later MultifamilyOS. Podcast hosts have introduced him as a practicing attorney who started Dobens Law to serve apartment investors. He says he has taught multifamily for more than 20 years, personally bought, sold and traded over $50 million in property, and coached clients into more than $3 billion of apartment deals.

What sets him apart from most coaches is the legal angle. In interviews he has said he reviews students’ contracts himself and runs short sessions to draft agreements between deal partners. For new syndicators who are nervous about paperwork, that is a real selling point.

What his programs include

Owner Forum, MultifamilyOS and the cohort program

His flagship coaching has carried several names. The Owner Forum promised close to 1,000 hours of recorded training plus direct access to an attorney who specializes in multifamily. A later Multifamily Cohort Program grouped students into partner teams with a roadmap and mentorship.

Today, the Multifamily Investing Academy site forwards to MultifamilyOS.ai, an AI platform that searches properties, runs deal math, drafts letters of intent and purchase agreements, and includes an “AI coach.” A 7-day free trial is available. Paid pricing did not load when we checked.

The H2A Conversion Summits and Incubator

In 2023, Dobens teamed up with David Peters of First Floor Equity and economist Alexander Cartwright to run Hotel to Apartment (H2A) Conversion Summits in Fort Lauderdale, Chicago and Las Vegas. Early-bird tickets for the Chicago event were $1,997 and covered three days of training, meals and networking.

Two details stand out. The summit page described the event as education, not pitching, yet listed “the opportunity to participate in a fund” for hotel-to-apartment conversions as a ticket benefit. And the follow-up H2A Incubator only shared its costs and terms with people who contacted the organizers directly.

The SEC case every student and investor should know about

In March 2010, the SEC filed a civil fraud lawsuit in federal court in Massachusetts against Charles T. Dobens, his wife and business partner Kathleen S. Dobens, and their partner Joseph A. Roche. According to the SEC:

• About 60 investors put roughly $3.5 million into companies the three controlled, starting as early as 2007.
• A company called Silex Group told investors it owned more than $20 million of apartment property and had $27 million more under contract, while offering notes with guaranteed 9% or 12% returns. The SEC said Silex owned no real estate at all.
• One investor was told their $60,000 would sit in escrow. The SEC said it went into a new company account instead, and most of it was paid to an earlier investor within days.
• Two apartment syndications, Preakness Apartments in Lexington, Kentucky and Cherry Hills Apartments in Fort Worth, Texas, were marketed with 9% yearly returns and a 123% five-year “conservative” projection. Neither made money, according to the SEC, and Cherry Hills was foreclosed and auctioned in January 2010.

In January 2012, the case settled. Without admitting or denying the allegations, Charles Dobens, Kathleen Dobens and Roche accepted permanent injunctions against future violations of federal securities antifraud and registration rules. Together they were ordered to repay $284,399 plus $20,775 in interest, and Charles and Kathleen Dobens were each ordered to pay an $80,000 civil penalty.

An SEC settlement “without admitting or denying” is not an admission of guilt, and the allegations were never tested at trial. The settlement itself is public record.

We did not see this history mentioned in the coaching or summit materials we reviewed.

Fact check: his claims against the record

What students say

Independent reviews are scarce. We checked Trustpilot, the BBB, Reddit, Quora, BiggerPockets and podcast directories.

• The most detailed review comes from a BiggerPockets member who joined the academy around 2013. They liked that the teaching was numbers-based rather than motivational, and felt the membership paid for itself, but cautioned that it suits people who already have some property experience.
• In another BiggerPockets discussion of coaching programs, a member said they were drawn to Dobens’ program because he is a lawyer.
• We found no complaints on Trustpilot, the BBB or Reddit, but also no independent reviews from recent years, and none at all for the H2A summits or fund.

Pricing and refunds

Coaching prices aren’t listed publicly. The only confirmed figure is the $1,997 early-bird price for the 2023 Chicago H2A summit. The old Owner Forum FAQ said unhappy members could “shake hands and part friends,” but didn’t say whether fees would be returned. Get the price, payment terms and refund policy in writing before you sign up.

Pros and cons

Is Charles Dobens’ coaching worth it?

If you only want education or software, the risk is limited to what you pay. Start with the free MultifamilyOS trial, ask for pricing and refund terms in writing, and compare what you’d get with other programs.

If you are thinking of investing money in a fund or deal he sponsors or promotes, the 2012 SEC settlement is directly relevant: it involved promised returns that didn’t materialize and investor money the SEC said was misused. That is why our overall verdict is Red flag.

Questions to ask before you commit

1. What is the full cost, how is it paid, and what is the refund policy?
2. Has the H2A fund filed a Form D, and what has it bought and paid investors so far?
3. Which apartment deals has he closed since 2012?
4. In which states is he currently licensed to practice law?
5. Can I speak with two or three students who joined in the last year?

Compare other multifamily coaches

• Wheelbarrow Profits Academy review
• Rod Khleif’s Multifamily Coaching and Bootcamp review
• David Lindahl Multifamily Coaching review
• How to choose the right multifamily mentor

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• SEC Litigation Release No. 21437, March 4, 2010
• SEC complaint, Case 1:10-cv-10360-MLW, D. Mass.
• SEC Litigation Release No. 22222, January 10, 2012
• H2A Conversion Summit, Chicago
• H2A Conversion Summit, Las Vegas
• MultifamilyOS About page
• Owner Forum FAQ
• MultifamilyOS.ai
• BiggerPockets: Multifamily Investing Academy thread
• BiggerPockets: best multifamily mentor programs
• Kevin Bupp podcast, Episode 6
• FlipNerd interview