Mortgage Fraud- thoughts from Ed Rybcznski-Mortgage Fraud Speaker & Expert

Did you ever think that you could have possibly have seen a situation that you thought could be mortgage fraud but you weren't sure?....I did.

I wrote a post a few days ago entitled Consumers....Watch Out- Would Your Realtor® Jeopardize Their Real Estate License with this deal?
I also included this link Consumers...are you flipping houses or are you flipping hamburgers? ...as it somewhat ties into part of this subject but I did not ask him for his views on this one..you'll have to read it over on localism.


If you haven't had the chance to catch the whole article then you can read it-> here
It generated quite a few comments...it also seemed to have caught many peoples emotions. Most of the comments came from Realtors ,mortgage professionals and appraisers. I really appreciated the responses and I am glad that almost all who did comment felt the same as I did. But after thinking about it....I decided to reach out to someone who experienced it first hand.

I wanted to hear from someone who truly can give you his views on this subject. He has had the experience of being a part of this situation...but not on the receiving end. He was one who got caught up in a tough situation and after a few years I guess he learned a lot from it because he speaks to many groups about what happened and how he has dealt with it. I reached out to him by asking him if it would be at all possible to get him to read the post and give his point of view.

Well he responded to me and said he would be happy to. I was surprised that he took a lot of time to go over what I said and he was kind enough to surprise me with this long response and suggested that he sends it to me in an email. He told me to use it any way I wanted. We agreed that I would just turn it into a short interview on the subject. Some of you will probably know who I am referring to...his name is ......

Ed Rybczynski - Mortgage Fraud Speaker & Expert


I wanted to tell you a little about this gentleman...I took an excerpt from Ed's profile in case you missed out on who he really is.....

Ed Rybczynski is often described as a masterful and provocative speaker with an important message for the real estate industry. Prior to pleading guilty to charges stemming from a flipping and mortgage fraud scheme, Ed was the owner of a successful title company and a respected member of Baltimore's business community. Audiences, coast to coast, laugh and cry as Ed brings the reality of a federal conviction to life, particularly the human aspect of life-altering consequences. Ed explains the mindset of federal prosecutors as they take aim at the practices of an industry that is generally misunderstood and mistrusted. A portion of the presentation is dedicated to a discussion of recent indictments, convictions, RESPA actions, and class action litigation.

There will be no question and answer here...Ed gave me his ok to publish his response so I will now past it into this as an interview...thanks again Ed!
Good Morning Ed...thanks you for lending me your views on this subject. I feel your input is very important for both members of our industries and the public to understand that this could happen to anyone.
You might want to direct readers to his blog, Mortgage Fraud Forum. It's relatively young, but already contains good information and is expanding rapidly.

Neal:I appreciate the opportunity to take a close look at your near brush with mortgage fraud as the fact pattern is particularly disturbing. When confronted with a questionable situation, it's always a good idea to step back and compare the circumstances at hand to the flow of an ordinary transaction. While most transactions tend to present challenges, there are definite similarities in transactions that aren't influenced by the misguided motives of fraudsters.I find it interesting that the real estate agent that submitted the original offer wasn't the person named in the document. It's equally significant that the contract purchaser hadn't seen the house and the offer was faxed from a mortgage company. Isn't it customary for a purchaser to examine a property before writing a contract?

Why would a real estate agent fax a contract from a lender's office? A pattern seems to emerge. Could it be that someone was playing a numbers game by making similar offers on numerous listings? Is it possible that the broker you spoke with and the mortgage company were two members of a larger team that included a title company and appraiser as well? Is it possible that the contract purchaser was a straw party whose identity would be falsified to obtain a mortgage?It's impossible to justify the vast difference between asking price and offer as anything but fraud.

Equally disturbing is the amount of the proposed gift of equity. Both items fail to pass any test of reasonableness or conformity with customary practices. I suspect you would have been asked to tamper with MLS records had the offer been accepted. Your decision to present the offer was prudent as the obviously fraudulent scheme wasn't shared with you. There was probably no need to attach a letter of explanation for the seller's benefit as an asset manager should know enough to see through the moving parts in this scenario. In the case of other sellers, I would have prepared a disclosure detailing the issues inherent in the offer. You need to be exceedingly thorough when dealing with situations like this.There's one more thing. As part of the offer package to the seller, I would have attached a letter from a trusted mortgage broker stating that a gift of equity of 25% doesn't conform with established loan guidelines. This simple step adds credibility to your claim that the offer is other than legitimate and possibly points to foul play.

I recommend that you obtain the letter for reasons we'll discuss below.Normally, a great deal of cash is migrated back to the buyer in transactions subjected to fraudulent acts. Regardless of the terms recited in the offer, a higher loan amount would have been needed for the fraudsters to work the deal. I'm thinking that the loan might have been secretly structured as a refinance behind the scenes. You and the seller wouldn't have known about it. Only a subsequent examination of the land records would reveal this fact.

In my opinion, this nefarious investor was attempting to cash out on the property, in a criminal sense, and add it to a real estate portfolio. I've seen strikingly similar situations where properties were used as rentals for awhile and eventually abandoned to foreclosure proceedings. The attempted fraud in your scenario is properly characterized as equity skimming since the properly was marketed a little below value and the offer price wasn't necessarily excessive for comparable properties in the area.It's probably unnecessary to burden the authorities with the facts of this case since you've effectively prevented the fraud from occurring. I would feel differently had the deal made it to the table and purchase funds were wired across state lines. The FBI is the appropriate agency when reporting any incidence of mortgage fraud. At this time, mortgage fraud is prosecuted mostly in federal courts using postal and wire fraud statutes.

The prosecution of real estate crimes at the state level leads to erratic results as well intended legislation remains largely untested and subject to a broad spectrum of judicial interpretation. It's very unlikely that federal prosecutors would convene a grand jury to investigate a single claim of mortgage fraud that didn't reach it's fruition or result in actual losses. Still, you need to protect yourself by preparing thoroughly at this point.I recommend that you act as though the fraudsters encountered by you will be targeted by the feds in the future and that you'll be questioned by authorities in a confrontational setting. Create a separate file containing the hard-copy of the offer and every piece of paper that exists pertaining to this unfortunate scenario. I mean every piece of paper including memos, messages, notes, etc. Include the letter from the mortgage broker suggested earlier as it adds legitimacy to your position. Sit quietly and write every detail that comes to mind including places, times, dates, etc.

If the woman that you spoke to had a New York accent, in your opinion, make a note. If by coincidence, you saw the car driven by one of the players, make notations concerning condition, make, color, the existence of bumper stickers that you recall, etc. By preparing now, you'll avoid later problems should these players happen to be the type of "egregious and notorious" offenders the feds typically investigate. It's also important that you place the file in a safe place that you'll remember years from now. In cases involving white collar crimes, it's not uncommon for investigators to expect detailed information about events that occurred years earlier.

I sometimes suggest to clients to keep such files in the trunks of their cars. It's an unlikely, almost ridiculous, place for a file that you're likely to recall if questioned.Hopefully, you've found this information helpful. Please urge your readers to contact me with any specific questions or concerns.

I was given permission to post this material contribution by Ed himself.... Thanks Ed!

If you are interested in Real Estate for sale in Florida or similar information on other related subjects ......then we strongly urge you to look at the opportunities available here-> The Real Deal tells it like it is in Real Estate

For more information please contact Neal The Real Deal Bloom -REMAX Hometown


Weston Florida Real Estate Blog-The Real Deal-copyright © 2007

Just Keep Showing Your Buyer Homes

As most of my friends in the business know is that I handle most of our listings and our marketing. But anyone in this business will tell you that "you can't just live off of listings"...you also need to work with buyers." There are buyers out there.....You just need to know where to find them.

My partner Steve Kohn is my buyer specialists and everything else we pick and choose who handles what depending on the time and situation we are in. One thing I will tell you about Steve is he is quite busy handling his sons hockey career. Steve is from Canada and when you come from Canada most people are Hockey fans. Steve turned 51 recently and still plays twice a week himself. His dream was to become a professional hockey player just as my dream was to become a professional baseball player. Unfortunately age and injuries have taken over that dream but his son has a great chance to make and he is very busy right now traveling around so he makes sure his son gets in all the practice he need in order to be ready when he reaches his goal to make it to the NHL.

So now let's get back to business. Steve does work hard when he has to and also when I make him...LOL! But the one thing I can depend on him to do is to make sure that any buyer that we get that he takes full advantage of making sure he shows the client anything and everything they want to see. Most of the buyers he brings in are excellent because they are usually referrals. But many times as a buyers agent he has to go through the frustration of showing the buyer many homes before they make a decision. And sometimes he can end up showing so many but they still take time to make the offer we are looking for.

He has vented that to me many times and because I have more years in the business and had worked strictly with buyers when I was selling Real Estate in Florida and in New York ....I can relate. so when he comes to me and is frustrated I give a great piece of advice that I learned from the first broker I worked for. What she told me was you might only have one chance so when you screen your buyers and find out what they are looking for then "just keep showing them homes". Well after the times we went over this he came to me and said I was right. You know why?

I'll tell you why. He just had a client that was referral from a Canadian friend he knows from of all places ...his sons hockey league. He took this couple out to show them 30-40 homes in a 1 week span. they were looking somewhere in the range of $500,000 to $600,000. we placed an offer on a property and we negotiated it together. Well that deal didn't make it after we found out the seller could not come down to our buyers final offer and it was because the seller was going to be up side down in the deal.

He then set up another 10 homes to show them 2 days later and wouldn't you know it...we have an executed contract for a beautiful home in Heron Bay of Coral Springs Florida to close next month... with a purchase price of $617,500 possibly an all cash deal or a very small mortgage and the compensation to us was nice as well. Now that is a good Realtor® doing their job! He gave me the contract so I could do all the additional paperwork and so I could get the rest of the process started. "Hows that for a nice deal towards the end of the year?" Steve came to me and said we were right again..."just keep on showing homes" No one ever said this job was going to be easy. If you want to deal with buyers then you have to work hard and show them as many as you need to to get it done. I bet if you can make the deal happen that you will feel pretty good and forget about how much of a hassle it was for you. Same goes for listings..if you prepare and follow through the task you might be surprised at your results.

Need we say more? Only congratulations to Steve for finding us buyers that most certainly will be very happy in their new home!

If you are interested in Real Estate for sale in Florida ......then we strongly urge you to look at the opportunities available here.

A comment on this blog is greatly appreciated!

For more information please contact Steve Kohn or Neal The Real Deal Bloom -REMAX Hometown


The Real Deal tells it Like it is in Real Estate-copyright © 2007

Weston Real Estate Agent-Neal Bloom-Weston Florida

Weston Real Estate Agent-Neal Bloom-Weston Florida.
Homes for sale in Weston Florida
848 homes for sale in Weston Florida - prices range from $139,999 for a 2BR 1BTH --$13,900,000 for a 12BR 12 BTH
73 homes are under contract in Weston-prices range from $319,000 for a 3BR 2BTH---$2,795,000 for a 6BR 6.5 BTH.
503 homes have been sold in Weston-January 2007-September 2007- prices range from $265,000 for a 2BR 2BTH-$3,700,000 for a 6BR 7.5 BTH.

I wear that name on my sleeve every morning when I wake up to a beautiful sunny day in Weston Florida. It's from my first cup of java in the morning until I close shop sometime in the evening. Being a Realtor® has it's challenges. I work when I have to. I enjoy myself whenever it is possible because I believe you only live once so why not enjoy myself with my family and friends after a hard day in the field helping get my clients through the process. It takes a lot of time...patience and stamina to keep up with the day in and day out race to the finish line. So if you are looking for a Real Estate Agent who has these traits....look no further than to me. Neal The Real Deal Bloom. The Realtor® who "tells it like it is" and will provide you with the superior service you deserve. There are many homes for sale in Weston Florida. It's a great time to buy so why not take advantage of a good opportunity.
Photo is courtesy of the city of Weston Florida
If you are interested in moving to any of these area's ......then we strongly urge you to look at the Real Estate opportunities available here. Please call to make an appointment with your buyers agent today!
Please visit my blog The Real Deal tells it like it is in Real Estate
For more information please contact your Weston Florida Real Estate Agent Neal The Real Deal Bloom/Remax Hometown


The Real Deal tells it Like it is in Real Estate-copyright © 2007

The Best News a Realtor® could get in this market...... Seeing Survey Flags!

Now in the past I know that a few of my friends in the mortgage business get on me because ..according to them ...I tend to rant about my "not so great experiences with lenders." Oh...I bet if you go back and read a few of my other posts you would probably feel the same. But this post isn't about a lender presenting us a commitment on time. I'll save that post for after the closing and then I'll plaster his great name all over the web! You know why? Because I promised to...just as he kept his promise I will keep mine and now I can praise instead of ranting.



This is another "great news" story I will tell you about. When a Realtor® is waiting for a deal to close on time let alone close at all...we tend to get antsy waiting and hoping there won't be any last minute snags. This is about how excited I am because this deal was given to us 2 weeks ago with the promise to close by Monday.
Everything is going great and I happen to go over to the property yesterday just to take care of a couple of small tasks. Well if it wasn't enough...I was so happy with the way things were going that when pulled up to the property I noticed something unusual...there were survey flags! Yes! survey flags.You know...those little orange things that are sticking up from the ground. Not those little flags we see here on Activerain. Usually they do this right before a closing. Most people will wait so the cost is not wasted if there is a problem. Yep...those are my proud photos!
Well the reason I am so excited to tell you this is because in my experience as a Realtor® ,I have been lucky enough that seeing those flags was a good sign that we should close this puppy. Some agents might differ in opinion but I'm so positive on this one that I am ordering my new Lexus SC 430! "Yeah right" I just know this one will be easy.

I thought this was a good sign and hopefully keeps us all in a positive frame of mind during these difficult times.

That's The Real Deal