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The Title Tip of the Week this week focuses
on identifying and preventing fraud in real estate transactions, and the
steps we at Benchmark take to minimize the risk of fraud harming
one of our customers or creating a title claim. How serious is it? The FBI's statistics for 2006 indicate there were 818 cases of
mortgage fraud up from 436 cases in 2003. Of those 818, 33% were
in the Central Region of the U.S., with Illinois and Missouri listed in the
top ten states in the nation for mortgage fraud activity. What can you do to assist in the prevention of fraud in our
industry? We, at Benchmark Title, before any closing occurs, require that
the parties to the transaction provide us with a photo ID along with one
other form of ID in order for us to feel comfortable that we are providing
service to the correct people. A forger may provide a very convincing
fake drivers license, but many don't go further and prepare additional false
identification. This is a protection for all of the parties to the
transaction: seller, buyer, Realtor, lender and the title company.
After 35 years in the title business I could tell you many tales of fraud
that I have personally encountered. And just that simple exercise of
getting additional proper ID can help to prevent a fraudulent transaction
from hurting any of the parties. For you Realtors, it is not such a bad idea for you to request
that same identification information for your file. Identifying a party
to a fraud, or any other kind of crime in your business is a lot easier if
you have the appropriate information in your file before you even show or
list a property. Regularly we receive notices of fraudulent cashiers or certified
checks being used in real estate closings all over the state. Often
times it is due to the theft of a full case of checks while in shipment from
the printer to the bank, but occassionally it's as simple as a washed and
reprinted check. When we get notices of any of this in the local area
we call the bank to confirm that the check we have is a valid check.
This is not a case of mistrust of your clients, but rather a case of
protecting all parties to the transaction. Another issue we deal with is forgery. The existence of
forged documents is an inherent risk of title insurance. However
in some cases, the risk can be reduced or prevented. We will often
check signatures on various documents against prior documents we may have in
our file from an earlier transaction, or by checking copies of documents
already in the public record, e.g.: comparing the signature on the new deed
against the signature on the prior mortgage. Our people are trained to
spot what we refer to as the "Red Flags of Forgery". Believe
it or not, forgery is a covered item on your title insurance policy. Look for a list of the "Red Flags of Forgery" in a
future Title Tip of the Week Newsletter. Any questions can be directed to Benchmark Title at
618-239-3750. Please feel free to call or email:
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April Tolan
, our SureClose Specialist, at 618-239-3750 for your sign-on so you
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Michelle Null
, VP Escrow Operations, to learn more about this exciting new
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Call today for a quote! Why wait? You can place your next title order now
by clicking
here.
John Howe, President, has been
working in the title insurance industry for 35 years.
Following eight years as a Realtor in Chicago, John took a job as
a marketing rep. for a title company. John became Illinois
State Manager, then National Commercial Division Manager, and County
Manager for DuPage County before becoming President of a title
plant owned by a national title insurance company. John transferred
to the St. Louis region about 10 years ago where he served as
President for two subsidiaries of a national title company before joining
Benchmark Title Company in 2000. John has overseen the
company's growth from five employees in one office to twenty-five
employees in three locations. John resides in Wildwood, Missouri and
has four children and seven grandchildren. John can be reached
at 618-239-3750 or by email at
jhowe@benchmarktitle.net.
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