Watch Out For This Common Mortgage Scam
Posted by Lee Cameron on Tuesday, August 2nd, 2011 at 3:12pm.
I received a letter the other day from a bank informing me that my mortgage loan has been transferred. All the information seemed to be accurate but something seemed fishy about the letter (perhaps it was the terribly-designed letterhead) so I called my original lender. Sure enough, my mortgage had not been transferred and they couldn't explain why I received such a notice. The letter was a scam.
Unfortunately, these kinds of scams are all too easy for criminals to do these days. A competent search through public records can get scammers names, addresses, mortgage identification numbers, loan amounts and just about any other information they need. After that, all it takes is some fake stationery, a printer and some stamps and they can be making thousands of dollars from unsuspecting homeowners before anyone realizes.
If you receive a letter about your mortgage loan being transferred, be careful. It's true, mortgages get shuffled around from time to time but it's far too easy for scammers for you to not be cautious. Always double-check with your original lender - especially if you are given a new address to send your payments to. Your mortgage is not something you want to mess around with. Always be cautious.
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