Featured News 2013 Spotting Common Real Estate Scams

Spotting Common Real Estate Scams

You and your spouse may be considering buying a new home. Perhaps you are looking to upgrade because you just received the news that you are having a baby and need more space, or maybe you just got a raise at work and are financially able to upgrade to the neighborhood of your dreams. Maybe you are a single individual who is just looking to changer up the scenery or move into another state, whatever the case may be buying a new home or apartment can be an exciting time. Unfortunately , as with any good thing, there comes someone who is trying to corrupt it. Because of this many people are being scammed in the real estate industry, and in some situations they are getting hit hard and losing a lot of money as a result. In order to help you prevent the tragic happenings of a real estate scam, consider hiring a skilled attorney in order to help you protect not only your wallet, but also to help you make wise legal decisions in regards to your property. Here are a few scam to be aware of when you are in the market for new property, whether as a home owner or an investor.

You may have seen on television shows in which teenagers would find abandoned homes in their neighborhood and use their empty pools as skating parks or even host parties in order to look cool. While that might sought a little foolish, they are kids and a lot of times make stupid mistakes. However, what you would not except is for people to use these empty houses for scams as adults. What happens today is that people will actually "rent out" property to potential buyers that are not theirs to sell in the first place. Perhaps they found an abandoned property that has had to users for a very long time, scammers will advertise these properties like regular real estate, though perhaps for a little bit of a cheaper price. These con artists can steal from the renters in more ways than apart from the obvious. For example, they may have the locks changed on the homes so that they can break into the home and steal your items, or they will just leave you to pay them funds until someone returns finding strangers in their property.

Another scam that may happen is that a con artist will pose as a real estate agent at a house that actually for sale by advertising that it is for rent instead. What happens in this situation is that the fake agent will advertise the property as being much cheaper than it should be, in order to have many offers on the property come in at once. When the potential renters ask questions about the extremely low price, they will often use the excuse that the owner is looking to move out quickly for work, or something along those lines. As a result, the fake realtor will accept multiple deposits on the rental property, along with various documents for the agreement. Once this happens they will usually disappear putting the property back in normal selling condition, leaving the renters without their money and now exposed to possible identity theft later on. Sadly, this scam will often times involve many individuals, not just one potential buyer.

Protecting yourself from a scam like this is so important, not only for the sake of your wallet, but also for your personal information. In large scams like the one above, many people often lose so much more than their initial check for the down payment, these con artists may seek to take everything from you. Contact a real estate attorney in your area to help protect you from a scam like this from ever happening!

Related News:

How to Sell Your Home in 2015

If you're planning on selling your home in 2015, listen up! Selling your home is a strategic process, so it's important to do your homework before putting your property on the market. View ...
Read More »

Does Your City Have a View Ordinance?

Do you live on a hillside or on a lot where you have a breathtaking view of the ocean or the city below? If so, you may be wondering if there is a law in place that prohibits your neighbors from ...
Read More »

Preparing for the Paperwork at Escrow

As the home buying process finally nears to a close, there is still much that needs to be done, especially addressing a great deal of paperwork. Before you are faced with this flurry of documents, you ...
Read More »