{"id":862,"date":"2020-04-27T08:04:39","date_gmt":"2020-04-27T12:04:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.deeds.com\/articles\/?p=862"},"modified":"2024-04-25T23:20:31","modified_gmt":"2024-04-26T03:20:31","slug":"viral-fraud-more-deed-crime-targets-in-the-coronavirus-economy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.deeds.com\/articles\/viral-fraud-more-deed-crime-targets-in-the-coronavirus-economy\/","title":{"rendered":"Viral Fraud: More Deed Crime Targets in the Coronavirus Economy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Well-known schemes are being repackaged for the time of COVID-19. Here\u2019s an overview of how real estate fraudsters are approaching their targets \u2014 and how to avoid becoming one.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Scams flare up during natural disasters and financial crises,\nso we can expect a spike in deed fraud in 2020 and beyond. Battered by the\npandemic, facing snowballing debts and possible defaults, many people are now\nconsidering risks they would have rejected in the past. Deed fraudsters can be\ncounted on in times like these to aggressively seek new opportunities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Any wiring directions or changes to money transfer requests over\nthe phone or by email should arouse suspicion today. Rather than act or answer,\nrecipients should call the company and deal with a real person. And rather than\nuse phone numbers supplied in messages, recipients should take the extra step\nof visiting the company\u2019s website, copying the published number, and calling\nthat number. Personal details should be volunteered only after the identity of\nthe party making the request if verified, or by physically going to the\ncompany\u2019s office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, COVID-19 itself is making in-person meetings less\npossible or at least less palatable. Part of the fraud risk involves the way\nonline transmission of our personal and financial data can be so easily and rapidly\nhandled.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Doing Business Online: Special Caution Needed<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Real estate deals are becoming more convenient for buyers and sellers alike, as transactions move online. County recording offices, to varying degrees, have continued<\/a> to support and facilitate deed filings through the pandemic. New York made remote notarization possible through an executive order \u2014 expressly to address the coronavirus lockdown<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The shift to online transactions, helpful as it is, also\nopens new fraud vectors. If a deed can\u2019t immediately be recorded at the close\nof a transaction, for example, there\u2019s a temporary gap in the public record that\nscammers can exploit to resell a house. And duplicity in the online market is\nall too common. Some scammers go so far as to lift images and property descriptions\nfrom real estate sites, then pretend to be legitimate sellers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Melissa Pippin-Carson and Roger Carson, who have both served as officers for the Santa Fe Association of Realtors, relay<\/a> the story of an online home sale in which the scam artist was the buyer. To close on the New Mexico property, the buyer sent a cashier\u2019s check, which happened to be written out for a $20,000 surplus over the agreed-upon price. The title company found the mistake, and wired the excess payment back to the buyer. The $20,000 ended up at a closed bank account with no available contact information. The cashier\u2019s check turned out to be fraudulent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Voiding Fraudulent Deed Transfers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In one form of ongoing deed fraud, amounting to hundreds of\ncases a year, distressed property \u201cconsultants\u201d seek out people facing\nfinancial setbacks, offering to help them modify the terms of their mortgage\nloans. Some owners inadvertently sign their home deeds over to these \u201cmortgage\nrelief\u201d specialists. The homeowner may believe assurances that the consultant\nwill take care of the mortgage payments and the homeowner\u2019s credit rating will\nimprove if the owner would just transfer the deed temporarily, and stay in the\nhouse as a renter for a few months. The scammer\u2019s intent is to evict the swindled\nowners and keep their deeds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, the people who hand over their deeds under\npressure are rarely in the position to hire lawyers and go to court to have an\nill-gotten deed voided.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is why New York enacted a deed theft bill<\/a> in 2019. Now, when the District Attorney\u2019s office convicts a swindler, the DA can also have the fraudulent deed voided, to help make ripped-off owners whole again. The new bill also toughens New York\u2019s Home Equity Theft Prevention Act by:<\/p>\n\n\n\n