Stealing real estate is so annoying because you can’t just physically take it, and you can’t hide it anywhere. As proof that anything’s possible if you put your mind to it, scammers have figured out how to steal properties by bypassing the physical world.
After the pandemic, real estate transactions that occur entirely online have skyrocketed in number, making it much easier to fraudulently take title to a property. You don’t even have to directly involve the owner or the unknowing buyer in your scam at all–the owner can stay living in their home the entire time. It’s like a non-consensual reverse mortgage. In our modern society, you don’t even need to leave your home to have it stolen from you… isn’t technology amazing?
Real estate title fraud appears to be increasing across the United States. That said, the FBI and other federal organizations do not track statistics specifically on title fraud. Real estate fraud in general, however, is tracked by the FBI, which reports that between 2019 and 2023, $1.3 billion was lost by property owners in costs related to real estate fraud.
The FBI also reports that real estate fraud used to be relatively uncommon in the Northeast, but now 92% of real estate professionals in the Northeastern United States report that they were aware of real estate fraud in their area, according to a recent NAR survey. The FBI also says that electronic notarizations and remote closings play a significant part in this apparent increase.
Even if you manage to get your property back, you’ll likely have to spend thousands on attorneys to do so, which in some cases can cost almost as much as the value of your property. Using forged documents, fake identification, or stolen personal information, criminals make it appear as though a property owner willingly signed over their property or took out a loan. Though the paperwork is filed with a local recording office and becomes part of the public record, the fraud can go unnoticed for months or even years, especially if the stolen title is for vacant land.
Though the methods of theft are fake, the official county ownership records created in these schemes are real. This is because the title to your home has been officially transferred without your knowledge, and real loans on your property may have been authorized by real banks. This means that the fraudulent ownership is technically more real (on paper) than your actual ownership. Since the fraudulent ownership is now real according to official documents, you’ll have to spend thousands on lawyers to prove that all these official title and loan documents were obtained illegally. Essentially, the burden of proof often falls on the victim, who must spend money and fight to uncover a scheme they were not aware of in the first place.
A recent federal case illustrates just how elaborate these schemes can be. Investigators say a group of suspects orchestrated a months-long plot involving fake identities, forged loan applications, and falsified purchase agreements to sell a home in Burbank, California. Neither the real homeowner nor the supposed buyer knew about the $1.5 million transaction. The scam was only uncovered because the FBI was secretly intercepting Signal and WhatsApp chats related to another crime, and came across this one incidentally. By the time the FBI discovered this crime, the sale and transfer had gone through, and the bank fully funded the almost-million-dollar loan. The supposed buyer spoke with police about how they were surprised to learn they were in debt for a $975,000 mortgage.
As a side note, I don’t know where I would start spending my fraudulent payout if I were a criminal… but just so you know, these criminals immediately made massive purchases at TJMaxx, Target, and Nordstrom Rack. What a fun brand endorsement collab this could be!
Because real estate fraud occurs quietly, there are several warning signs property owners and real estate professionals should watch for. Red flags can include a property listed well below market value, a seller who insists on completing the entire transaction remotely and comes up with weird reasons to do so, or someone who refuses to communicate by phone or video. Owners may also notice irregularities such as suddenly stopping receiving property tax bills, receiving official notices related to loans they never took out, or seeing unfamiliar names connected to their property records.
The single most important thing the FBI recommends doing as a property owner is signing up for an electronic notification system with your county recorder using this website: https://www.propertyfraudalert.com/select. Not all counties provide this service, but if yours does, it’s easy and extremely helpful to take advantage of this. Another step you should take is setting up Google alerts for searches relating to your property. You can do this by going to google.com/alerts and entering your property address in quotes. Click “show options” to choose frequency, and click “create alert.” I actually just took my own mansplaining to heart and signed up for this myself; it was quick and easy. Another precaution to take if you own multiple properties, especially vacant ones, is to make sure you or someone you know visits the property regularly to make sure that no one is illegally occupying it.
Remember, you don’t want someone to turn your real estate into a shopping spree at Target or TJMaxx. If someone is stealing my property, at least they could do me the honor of spending my money at Gucci or Balenciaga.
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2026-02-12/arrests-after-burbank-home-sells-without-owner-or-buyer-being-aware
https://www.kron4.com/news/technology-ai/kron4-reporter-falls-victim-to-ai-apartment-scam-what-to-know-to-avoid-it-happening-to-you/
https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/newark/news/fraudsters-are-stealing-land-out-from-under-owners#:~:text=How%20It%20Works,here%20in%20the%20United%20States.”
https://westwoodgroup.com/insight/title-piracy-on-the-rise-what-real-estate-professionals-and-property-owners-need-to-know/
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