Guide to Real Estate Fraud

Foreclosure Rescue Scam

You’ve probably seen advertisements for foreclosure rescue specialists claiming that they can save your home and if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. They might appear to be totally sympathetic, but they’re only there to get the title away from you. So-called foreclosure rescue specialists will ask you to sign a warranty deed, quitclaim deed, grant deed, or other sorts of property deeds while making promises that they will be unable to fulfill. Read the rest of this entry »

Trusting Your Realtor

Realtors offer good advice as to what to do to avoid any legal or financial problems. They also provide you with several financing options to make the real estate transaction smooth and efficient, and give you information about the value of the property you are interested in purchasing, the market, and what approaches to take. Unfortunately, people who choose not to hire a realtor get duped into scams made by realtors.

There are still ways where you can avoid becoming a victim of a real estate scam. First, make sure that the realtor you want to hire is a member of your state’s realtor association. Also inspect his or her background by asking for referrals. Referrals will provide you with information about his or her performance and how satisfied his or her clients were. Keeping yourself informed is the best way to protect yourself from a scam.

Mortgage Fraud on the Rise

More and more cases of mortgage fraud are being reported the world over as life gets harder and homes are not selling like they used to. The scam has an individual making an offer for a new home while leaving an existing mortgage to default, filing for a mortgage before it does then allowing full foreclosure of the old home taking the refinancing cash and mortgage loan filed for the new home with them. This leaves the prospective seller losing their investment on the supposed sale, left to deal with the repercussions of their scrupulous buyer who disappears without a trace. Such activities should be reported to the many fraud agencies that are designated to handle such cases so others do not suffer the same fate as you do, making sure to pursue legal action so you can get your investment back in case of a scam.

Insurance Fraud Rages On

Insurance fraud seems to be one of the ways people have found to stem the effects of the recession and sadly the occurrence is a common one in today’s cash strapped ones. People lured with prospects of easy money are drawn into such scams giving them more than they bargained with, leaving them to deal with the law whilst the true criminals who dragged them in escape with the booty. People who are desperate to get some extra cash, with the economic stimulus proving to be not that effective risk having their credit scores damaged due to such fraudulent activities and even end up in jail. Career criminals know when to bail out of such activities when the law gets a tad bit too close, but those who are there due to their last hopes get hooked in, having to deal with the full brunt of the law and the consequences that follow. These people need not suffer should the proper safeguards for an industry that has seen better days have been better and more responsible, hopefully with lessons learned such practices would be outlawed to spare the millions of people out on the streets who lost their homes to the recession for the coming recovery that is still to come.

Metro Dream Homes – Charged with $70 Million Fraud Case

The company promised dreams come true with their catchy “Dream Home Program“, which took in more than a thousand investors. The primary suspects charged had the makings of a Madoff style life, lavish lifestyles, chauffeur driven fleet of cars and to polish their reputations,they make generous donations to charity. The mortgage scam covered a period from 2005 till 2007 that spanned a lot of lavish ad programs in areas the likes of Beverly Hills and other high end hotels. In the end, the true colors shone with the victim investors getting nothing more than a $70 million nightmare. Read the rest of this entry »

Cash back at Closing

Though the action or ploy has been ruled out as illegal for a long time but people simply cannot resist the promise of cash when they do closing deal. The promise of a win-win situation for all concerned is the main bait for such fraudulent activities which is just too good to be true, it often is. The crook can be any of the many players in the home sale game, from the buyer, seller, agent, loan officer and even the lender and the victims can also be either of these individuals. The situation has a seller being called upon by a prospective buyer who gets a loan at a higher rate that what the home is actually worth. Read the rest of this entry »

Of Fake Titles and Title Insurance Firms

Land titles are deemed to be the ultimate proof of ownership of a parcel of land which is generally accepted the world over. From various land management and title insurance firms come a risk of fake ones which have managed to pass through all the screening and verification processes that are put in place to check for such fake titles. Even with the event of digitization, most land management authorities still rely on the paper forms which signifies ownership and any other fact that may have to do with the land in question. Read the rest of this entry »

Fraud on the rise with the hard times

With these hard times upon us all, more and more people are looking for ways to help boost their current financial situations. Often times it’s these people who fall pray to scammers looking to take advantage of the situation. It is important that you ignore or immediately delete any suspicious emails asking for personal information. Any legitimate financial institution what needs that kind of personal information will not just send you an email. Also, be wary of companies offering loans even for those with low credit ratings the modus operandi is to have people pay them a supposed processing fee, and once that fee is paid, then the customer doesn’t hear from the company again. It’s a sad fact that many people are taking advantage of the situation, but you need to always be alert and careful when dealing with your money.

Buy and Rent to Own Options

The package includes firms who offer to purchase your home in return for allowing you to stay while you pay them rentals plus additional fees for future ownership. This is welcome news for homeowners who face foreclosure but these people are advised to be wary and to take a serious look at the contracts they are signing. Scam artists are using such platforms to get people to sell them their homes thinking they are under a rent-to-own basis finding they have lost everything due to the home being sold to a different buyer. Scams are at a record high especially with desperate homeowners trying to stave off losing their homes. The federal government has taken up the call and have employed the whole spectrum of media from the internet, movies, print and others just to get the news out to prevent them from being victimized by such enticing yet fraudulent acts.
People who have fallen prey have lost homes and ended up with nothing even their savings as they have used the bulk of it for their monthly rentals, surprised by eviction notices from the new home owner as they lie stunned from the fast evolving events that are unfolding right before their very eyes.

不動産のマルチ商法

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最近の「詐欺師」は、ますます創意に富んで来ました。 不動産詐欺の一つに、「新しい」マルチ商法会社によるらしいものがあります。 関連会社の「安息地」である国々には、これが特に顕著で、退職者、外国労働者、家屋を持ちたいと思う人達、主婦、特に貯蓄を持っていて大金を稼ぎたいと望んでいる人達、必死で貯めたお金を事業に注ぎ込みたいと考えている人達などを引き付けています。 これらの会社は、多額の資金を投資する意思のある、態勢の整った関連グループの人達を引きつけます。各新メンバーには、社内で一定の営業レベル職に到達し、また、「夢のマイホーム」であるそのレベルまで、その新メンバーの現金投資から稼ぐことを告げられます。 これが詐欺販売のしくみです。 もしメンバーが職務を完了しなかった場合、すなわち会社の、関連会社、信頼度、信用性、商品の分配能力（すでに建設され、入居可能な実際の家）を含む、会社経歴に関する身元調査が会社に対して行われなかった場合、投資額の損失に言及されずに、ショックを受け落胆する事になるでしょう。なぜなら、供給される実際の家も土地も存在していないからです。これらの会社は、通常、開発者/建設業者とタイアップし、家を建設できる見込みのある投資家を見つけます。 しかし、通常のシナリオは、その関連会社が、人の投資額を、その他の事業に資金投資する為に利用するというもので、有害影響を作り出す方法です。 多くの投資家が、「夢のマイホーム」の資格条件を全て満たしますが、最終的には、家が立てられ与えられる事はありません。なぜなら、実際には、それに利用される資金は存在しないからです。 結局、メンバーの夢のマイホームは、夢のままに終わるのです！