Real Estate Law
By on Aug 13, 2008
We've all been there. Sometimes it's a suspicious looking character approaching you from a rusty van, and at others, a well-dressed, Cadillac-driving salesman approaching you at your door. The case to really watch out for is the friend of a friend scenario. This is especially true when it comes to real estate fraud.
Real Estate Fraud Case 1
A friend of a friend has a fantastic real estate investment opportunity for you: No need to put up any money. Simply hold properties for a short time before they are flipped ? and you and your new friend split the profits. "This may be real estate fraud and the mortgage lender could soon be looking for your mortgage payments," says Kathleen Waters, a specialist in real estate law and vice-president of TitlePLUS title insurance. "Even worse, the police may be looking to charge you with a serious criminal offence." If you think you're not likely to be a victim of real estate fraud, think again. People in all walks of life have been victimized by real estate frauds; it is important to consult a specialist in real estate law.
Real Estate Fraud Case 2
Your prospective tenant wants to rent your property for a child studying in Canada . But because he lives overseas, he's willing to pay the rent for a full year in advance and in cash ? no need to worry about references since the rent is fully paid for a year.
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To your surprise, your tenant fraudulently transfers the property to himself, and then sells it to a very nice family who, of course, does not know you and will not leave simply because you say you own the property. How this gets resolved depends on many things, including whether or not you have title insurance and whether your province's land registration system has a compensation plan to deal with these types of issues. Resolving the problem might only cost you time and inconvenience ? but it could also cost you tens of thousands of dollars to fix the problem.
Real Estate Fraud Case 3
That friend of a friend asks to use your name to buy and mortgage a property that's "a deal" at $250,000 and can be easily resold for more , with you and your friend sharing in the profit. As the fraudster promptly disappears with over $200,000 in mortgage
funds, you discover the property is only worth $150,000 and you're stuck with the overpriced property and a very large mortgage. To paraphrase an old adage: If the real estate "deal" sounds too good to be true, consult a real estate law specialist.
A useful resource this the TitlePLUS Real Simple Real Estate Guide , a website that provides information on what lawyers do and how to avoid real estate fraud.
