Source: Banker & Tradesman —
While late-night TV scams and robocall schemes are coming under increased scrutiny by state and federal officials, new real estate-related swindles continue to come to light.
The latest is what title company executive Thomas Cronkright calls the “owner-not-present” ruse in which fraudsters claim to be the owners of vacant lots and unencumbered properties to shoot for a quick sale by offering below-market prices.
Cronkright, who also owns CertifID, a company which works to uncover and prevent wire fraud, says the crime has “grown quickly” into the second-largest risk category of real estate fraud.
The scam first hit his radar last summer when a ring out of Germany was discovered to be focused on non-owner-occupied houses. But “now we’ve seen enough of it to realize there is a definite trend growing around vacant and unimproved property without mortgages.”
Here’s how the scam works.
The swindler searches public records to find real estate that is free of mortgages or other liens – often vacant lots or rental properties – and identifies the true owner. Then he poses as the owner and contacts a real estate agent to list the property for sale.
That’s exactly what happened to a lot owner in Nantucket, who found out his land was being targeted when someone who had seen the listing on Zillow called to see if he would take a lower price. He immediately ordered Zillow to remove the listing, and no harm was done.
But he’s lucky. Most owners don’t find out they’ve been had until they discover their taxes haven’t been paid.
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