Jun 4, 2008 7:37 pm US/Eastern
Brooklyn DA Warns Homebuyers Of Real Estate Fraud
BROOKLYN (CBS) ―
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With housing prices skyrocketing in recent years, swindlers stepped in, fraudulently acquiring property. CBS 2 reveals how it's done and steps to prevent it. It was a series of arsons in Crown Heights that made investigators suspicious of fraud.
CBS
With housing prices skyrocketing in recent years, swindlers are stepping in, fraudulently acquiring property. CBS 2 reveals how it's done and steps to prevent it.
It was a series of arsons in Crown Heights that made investigators suspicious of mortgage and real estate fraud.
"It shocked me when I first realized how easy it is to lose your property," said Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes.
The Brooklyn DA on Wednesday indicted two suspects for swindling eager home buyers, charging them with grand larceny, insurance fraud and falsifying business records.
"This is sort of like the new bank robbery, but no gun involved," said Assistant DA Richard Farrell.
Officials say you can protect yourself in a few easy steps:
- Learn what a deed looks like.
- Check your property records on the Automated City Register Information System (ACRIS) on the web.
- If routine bills stop - property tax, water bills, electric - contact authorities.
- Understand anything you sign when hiring someone to work on your house.
Authorities say the two defendants encouraged a man to buy a building, then proceeded to steal his identity and acquire the property. The building then mysteriously suffered a fire. They then claimed the insurance and sold it.
Another defendant, 40-year-old George Marks, is charged with acquiring a home on East 54th and another building around the corner, by filing forged deeds and supporting tax documents.
Prosecutors say the tax form used for transferring property was a fraud, backdated to 2001, on a form that wasn't printed until 2004. But it was notarized, and the recording office thought it was legit.
"If it looks good, it's getting recorded," said Farrell.
The DA says the statute should be amended so that the last known owner of a deed is contacted before the deed is re-recorded.
Authorities also say to beware if a broker suggests you inflate your earnings or inflate your bank account, which could be signs of mortgage fraud.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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