Mortgage fraud still prevalent (high profits, low risk = $10 billion)

Tri Valley Central ^ | 8/17/11 | NEDRA PICKLER

[Libloather]

Mortgage fraud still prevalent
Arizona is among top 11 states affected
By NEDRA PICKLER
Associated Press
Published: Wednesday, August 17, 2011 4:13 AM MST

Mortgage fraud remains widespread in the depressed housing market, with perpetrators motivated by high profits and little risk of getting caught, the FBI said Friday.

**SNIP**

“These methods will likely remain effective in the near term, as the housing market is anticipated to remain stagnant through 2011,” the FBI said. The bureau’s pending investigations into mortgage fraud increased 12 percent last year over 2009, officials said.

The most prevalent schemes involve falsifying financial information to qualify buyers who otherwise would be ineligible for a loan. Other crimes involve inflated appraisals, including schemes that use dishonest appraisals to sell homes at elevated prices. Some get-rich-quick schemes persuade investors to buy rental property or land believing the price will appreciate quickly.

The FBI says the crimes are committed by licensed as well as unlicensed brokers, loan officers, real estate agents, appraisers and other industry insiders who use their expertise to exploit vulnerabilities in the system. Organized crime groups are also behind some of the fraud, the report said.

“Mortgage fraud enables perpetrators to earn high profits through illicit activity that poses a relative low risk for discovery,” the report said.

The top states for mortgage fraud last year in respetive order were California, Florida, New York, Illinois, Nevada, Arizona, Michigan, Texas, Georgia, Maryland and New Jersey, the FBI reported.

The agency says it is dedicating resources to combat the threat, including an initiative launched in June 2010 called Operation Stolen Dreams that targeted mortgage fraud throughout the country.

[Libloather]

Y'all be careful out there. Leftists will stop at nothing to gain a buck - or a billion.

The rookie Hussein's so-called property - Tax fraud suspected in Obama land deal

[FlyVet]

Denninger is right about this. There should be thousands of people in jail for mortgage fraud, from little guys right up to CEOs and Congressmen, for lying about their income, encouraging ignorant homebuyers to lie, hiring robo-signers, willfully selling AAA-rated junk mortgages and CDOs, and who knows how many other reasons.

It's discouraging to think that our gov't is corrupt beyond repair, but it might be.