An 83-year-old Brownsville man says a phone call nearly cost him $26,000.

Jose Oliva received a call on Jan. 29, 2026, from someone claiming to be a contractor offering home repairs. Oliva says he didn't need work at his home but mentioned his daughter's property.

The next day, contractors showed up.

"They kept insisting that if I qualified for a loan, my daughter wouldn't have to pay interest, because if it were in her name, she would have to pay interest," Oliva said.

They told him they would check his credit but never clearly said they were applying for a loan.

"I didn't think it was risky. They started asking me my age and my social security number," Oliva said. "That day, they brought their tablet, and I signed on that tablet and everything."

Weeks later, letters started arriving. A finance company was asking for payments of about $500 on a loan totaling $26,000.

Oliva says he never agreed to the loan.

He tried calling the contractor but got no response.

"There was no further communication," Oliva said.

Oliva called the finance company directly to cancel the loan. The company told him he did not have to pay anything.

Channel 5 News reached out to the contractor company using multiple numbers, including one from the Better Business Bureau and another on social media. No one answered.

Hilda Martinez with the Better Business Bureau of South Texas says cases like this are becoming more common. She says people should ask for a business card and not sign anything before verifying.

"We always recommend to communicate also if it is going to be financing to even check who the finance company is, you know, because we don't know what kind of history that company has as well," Martinez said.

Oliva has filed a report with the Cameron County Sheriff's Office. Channel 5 News reached out to the sheriff's office for an update on the case and is waiting to hear back.

Oliva says he hopes others won't fall into the same trap.

"Don't get caught up in it. Don't let yourselves be fooled," Oliva said.

Watch the video above for the full story.