Wire Fraud is one of the scariest things going to me. A Realtor friend of mine’s client that was an investor fell for this scam. The buyer was very versed in Real Estate and was well aware of wire fraud. My friend warned her client not to wire anything with directions from an email. These fraudsters actually wrote an email that mimicked my friend’s personality. The scammers were nice but persistent. The email looked so much like my friend’s email, and the email address was one letter off my friend’s email. The buyer took the bait. The amount of money wired was over $250,000.
Gone into cyberspace just like that! The mistake was realized immediately and the FBI was called immediately. Fortunately for my friend and her client, it happened on a Monday and they were on the case within 24 hours. The scammers were stopped and her client received all his money back. It took several months, but he was made whole.
What a nightmare. Fortunately, the buyer had the extra cash to complete the sale also. Because the scammers have hacked into one of the party in the transactions email, they can copy all the material pertaining to the transaction. The scammers will have a copy of a settlement statement most likely. This helps make everything seem so real since the amount asking to be wired is so close to what is needed.
Thinking of buying or selling? Think of the MOHR Group! Realty Executives. Since 1985!
