Ethical violations and criminal activity in various industries have impacted the economy over the past decades, especially in banking, finance and housing. When it comes to financial crime, mortgages present ample opportunity for bad actors to steal, cheat, and overspend. Explore the complex ethical and criminal issues surrounding mortgage fraud. Common personal mortgage scams include identity theft and income/property falsification, but industry experts can use valuation fraud and airline loans to trick the system. Predatory loans, foreclosures, and mortgage foreclosure fraud all contributed to the 2007 Great Recession. Mortgage fraud continues to be a problem in America. According to Core Logic data for September 2018, 1 in 109 mortgage applications has evidence of fraud. MORTGAGE SCAM Make sure you understand everything you are signing. Don’t sign anything you don’t like. If you have any questions, be sure to consult a lawyer. Also, be careful with documents that contain spaces. This can make you a victim of fraud. Review all loan documents to ensure all information, including your name, is accurate and truthful. Check your ownership history to find out how many times the property has been sold and resold. The value of the property may have been erroneously inflated, indicating that the property was illegally flipped. Mortgage recovery is possible by handling the fraudulent assets and take over the property. MORTAGE FRAUD According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), it is defined as “material misrepresentation, misrepresentation, or omission of property or potential mortgages on which the insurer or lender relies to finance, purchase, or secure ...
