Real Estate Wire Fraud: How To Protect Your Down Payment
Criminals target home buyers because large wires happen on a predictable schedule. A typical scam: an email that looks like it's from your agent or title company says "wiring instructions have changed." The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) reports billions of dollars in losses each year to business email compromise scams, including real estate wires.
The rules
- Wiring instructions don't change by email. Treat any change as fraud until proven otherwise.
- Verify by phone using a number you got at the start (from your contract, the title company's official website, or an in-person meeting), not a number in the email.
- Confirm the amount, the account name and the last few digits of the account number out loud.
- Ask whether a cashier's check or another method is possible.
Warning signs
- Urgency: "Wire today or you'll lose the house"
- A slightly different email address (one letter changed)
- New bank, new account name, or an overseas account
- The sender doesn't want to talk by phone
Before closing
- ☐ Ask your title company at the start: "How will you send wiring instructions, and how do I verify them?"
- ☐ Write down their verified phone number in your binder
- ☐ Tell your lender, agent and family helping with funds about these rules
If you think you sent money to a scammer
- Call your bank immediately and ask them to recall the wire.
- File a complaint at ic3.gov.
- Contact the title company and your agent using known numbers.
- Act within hours. The faster you report, the better the chance of recovery.
General information, not legal or financial advice.
The First-Time Home Buyer Binder includes a wire-fraud check page with space for verified numbers, plus a verification call script.
First-Time Home Buyer Binder — $17
18-page binder from pre-approval to closing: affordability worksheet, Loan Estimate comparison, showing scorecard, inspection, wire-fraud check and closing day. Instant download: PDF + DOCX + XLSX.
Get the First-Time Home Buyer BinderFamily Paperwork Bundle — $34More guides
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