Scammers are tricking people out of enormous payments as they’re about to close on a house
- A new variant of wire fraud schemes is increasingly targeting homebuyers.
- Buyers are tricked into wiring their downpayment on the day of closing to a fraudulent offshore account, often by criminals who have spoofed or co-opted their real estate professional’s email account.
- Losses from these scams are typically not covered or reimbursed by the bank. Since the wires go overseas, it’s nearly impossible for victims to recover their money.
- Victims have lost six-figure sums and had to cancel transactions on their dream homes due to this fraud.