The boom in real estate has been accompanied by a boom in mortgage fraud and other real estate related schemes, the Internal Revenue Service said yesterday. The number of real estate fraud investigations initiated by the IRS doubled between fiscal 2001 and fiscal 2003. The IRS also says that the average prison term handed down by federal judges in cases that ended in conviction nearly doubled as well. One of the most common schemes to attract IRS criminal investigators is property flipping that involves false statements to lenders. Also on the rise, fraudulently created qualifications to obtain a mortgage via false credit reports or employment histories. MS Las Vegas Real Estate urges you to use caution, especially if you are involved in the FSBO process. Know who you’re dealing with and check credentials. Our reputation for ethical conduct is beyond reproach. At MS Las Vegas Real Estate, it’s our most valuable asset.

This entry was posted by Michelle Sterling on Thursday, February 24th, 2005 at 10:13 am and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.