Mortgage Fraud
Seven more arrested for mortgage fraud
Police arrested seven new suspects, accused of taking out loans on phantom properties and using stolen identities to get loans, as a Miami-Dade County anti-mortgage-fraud group unveiled a proposal for a law to increase criminal penalties for people convicted of real estate fraud.
The proposal would allow property appraisers to revalue assessments in neighborhoods plagued with fraud, where inflated values have driven up property taxes for nearby homeowners. It would also create a statewide anti-fraud task force or even a ”mortgage fraud czar” to coordinate statewide efforts.
Cash Back at Closing Investigated in South Florida
Recently, I have been noticing a large amount of sales in my market closing at higher sales price than list price. I this find alarming as our market is correcting and the typical informed buyer is not willing to pay above list price. This article recenlty featured in the Palm Beach Post explains what is going on in the South Florida Market. As a buyer, make sure that your appraiser is not utilizing sales of this nature in their reports when estimating your market value. For more information on appraisal services visit: www.FastFloridaAppraisals.com
Slow housing market speeds up scam
Predatory buyers are borrowing more than what a house is worth, pocketing the difference, then foreclosing.
By JEFF OSTROWSKI
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Even after the South Florida housing market peaked in 2005, Johnson Cuffy knew how to score big profits in real estate. First, the Broward County real estate investor found a Fort Lauderdale house for sale for $245,000. Then, inflated appraisal in hand, he convinced the lender that the home was worth $340,000.
Cuffy, a 29-year-old who works with his father and siblings at a family-run mortgage company, landed a loan for $340,000, paid the seller $245,000 and pocketed the $95,000 difference, state investigators say. Profits secured, Cuffy let the home go into foreclosure.
He was arrested in July after the seller alerted officials to the scheme.
