Tag: Real Estate Fraud
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Tennessee Deed Fraud Law Update
If you hang your hat in Tennessee, watch out for a potential law that changes the way deeds are submitted and verified. Somebody nearly stole Elvis Presley’s Graceland home in Memphis through deed fraud. Brent Taylor, a Republican State Senator in Memphis, says such activity is what lawmakers want to “put a stop to.” When…
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Title Thieves Are Robbing the Dickens Out of Homeowners
Richard Helbig is a 75-year-old retired home renovator. Now, Helbig is back to work—as a dishwasher. What happened? He lived in his four-bedroom home in North Carolina for 16 years. He redid the kitchen and bathrooms. He paid off the home loan and accumulated $200K+ in equity. But a couple of title pirates took it…
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Five Key Steps To Protect Senior Deed Holders From Scams
Older homeowners, especially those whose mortgages are paid off, can be targeted for deed theft. The crime involves someone else pressuring a vulnerable senior or forging documents to gain control over the property’s value. But good, timely planning can protect the senior—and, ultimately, protect the senior’s heirs in turn.
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Operation Hard Money: How a Team of Mortgage Scammers Exploited Los Angeles Seniors Through Title Fraud
The FBI recently arrested 11 people in Los Angeles. The investigation involved people who went after more than $17 million in deed theft, say prosecutors. To get that money, they repeatedly attempted financial fraud. The swindlers allegedly took over the titles to their victims’ homes so they could exploit them for loan collateral. Older adults…
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New Deed Fraud Law Advances in Arizona
Arizona is fed up with deed fraud. Con artists who target deeds go for “a person’s home, their savings, and the work of a lifetime,” says Representative Selina Bliss. Now, a bill in Arizona’s legislature is poised to better protect deed holders from manipulators who take homes out from under people. House Bill 2080 passed—unanimously—out…
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Mortgage Fraud Risk Rises, as White House Moves to Banish the Watchdog
Mortgage applications with signs of fraud have increased more than 8% since this time last year. The news comes from the property analytics firm Cotality. The firm runs algorithms through applications, pinpoints possible fraud, and maintains the National Mortgage Application Fraud Risk Index. Cotality notes that real estate fraud rises as more investors take out…
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Why Would Scammers Collect Recordings of a Real Estate Pro’s Voice?
The short answer: to create voice impersonations for future fraud. Most people look to real estate professionals when buying or selling a home. Imposter agents can do tremendous damage. We’ve already discussed AI-enabled deed fraud. Voice-cloning raises the stakes. Here’s the latest.
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AG James Nails First Criminal Conviction Under NY Home Equity Theft Protection Act
Recently, a New York real estate agent pleaded guilty in a deed theft case. Yes, a real estate agent. Oscar Dais used to be a real estate agent in Rockland County, New York. But no more. Oscar Dais admitted to a property theft that involved falsely signing a deed to his own company, while pretending…
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Game-Changer for Deed Transactions: Biometric Identity Checks
Fidelity National Financial (FNF®), the leading U.S. title insurance and settlement services company, will now integrate a biometric security system. FNF is partnering with CLEAR (Clearme.com), the airport security group. The goal? To protect home buyers, sellers, and agents from impersonation, malicious messages, and wire fraud. A safe deed is a wonderful thing. Then again,…
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When Protectors Become Predators: Exposing Professionals Who Exploit Their Senior Clients
A few months ago in Miami, a real estate agent misused the power of attorney against a client. The agent bequeathed himself $1.6 million in oceanfront real estate that belonged to this customer, according to investigators. Also this year, in Western Kentucky, an elder law specialist pleaded guilty to exploitation of an older adult, and…
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Time’s Up! MV Realty Ordered to Lift Its Claims From Thousands of Property Records
The party’s over! States are now rushing to ban listing agreements that tie deed holders to particular brokerages to sell their homes in the future. One big reason for this appears to be their residents’ complaints about a certain “MV Realty” company. Several states are acting on MV Realty agreements as you read this. The company has…
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Quitclaim Deed Fraud Spikes, Prompting Boston FBI Action and a New Law in Maine
In the real estate world, people continue to talk about an alert published by the Boston Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Its April alert flagged a spike in the improper use of quitclaim deeds. Why the spike? Certainly more boomers are leaving their homes, making theft easier to carry out. And perhaps more…
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Will Pennsylvania Criminalize Deed Theft?
Deed fraud, or deed theft, is the improper transfer of property ownership by deceit. In most states, it’s a very rare incident. But when it happens, it’s devastating. State criminal laws do generally deal with theft, forgery, and fraud. And yet, many don’t have a specific law for deed theft. In Pennsylvania, Representatives Christopher…
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Opinion: Who Really Wins? New York’s Deed Fraud Bill Protects Title Insurers, Not Homeowners
New York lawmakers have introduced Senate Bill 7732 as a response to the growing crisis of deed fraud — a real and rising threat to property owners across the country. On the surface, the bill looks like reform. But a closer look reveals what it really is: a convenient liability shield for title insurers.
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Meanwhile, in Ohio…Seniors Get Warnings of Deed Wholesaling Scams
In Ohio, seniors are being warned of unexpected offers from real estate marketers who want to buy homes. The state’s Real Estate and Professional Licensing body as well as the Department of Aging and Richland County are all working to warn deed holders about the growing problem of wholesaling schemes. Older homeowners are impacted the…
