Hoarding goes beyond compulsive collecting, affecting finances and other areas of the hoarder’s life. Unable to stop buying records, Zero Freitas, a wealthy Brazilian businessman, follows a therapeutical quest to acquire precious and neglected records that haven’t been preserved or transferred to digital files. This post examines what is going on with the world’s vinyl records and the similarity of the behavioral aspects of hoarding that relate to the fraud triangle and red flags.

Questions:
1. Based on the New York Times article, do you think that Freitas will fulfill his dream of a nonprofit venture to shift his collection over to Emporium Musical? Why or why not?
2. According to Tracy Rose, what are some of the financial burdens related to this type of collecting obsession?
3. What is a cash hoard and why is this corporate phenomenon in the news lately? How is this concept different from Freitas’ situation?
4. What is disposophobia? What characteristics or red flags do hoarders exhibit that are similar to fraud triangle traits? Give an example.
5. Find a recent case where hoarding may have played a role in the continuance of a fraud. Discuss and describe the case.

Source:

Reel, M. (2014). The Brazilian Bus Magnate Who’s Buying Up All the World’s Vinyl Records. The New York Times, Aug. 8 (Retrievable online at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/10/magazine/the-brazilian-bus-magnate-whos-buying-up-all-the-worlds-vinyl-records.html?src=me&module=Ribbon&version=origin&region=Header&action=click&contentCollection=Most%20Emailed&pgtype=article)

Rose, Tracy. (2012). The Economic Impact of Hoarding. Suite IO, June 27 (Retrievable online at https://suite.io/tracy-rose/61ga26p)