By Tom Parkinson, Solicitor and Director from Rowlinsons
You may never have heard of Property Fraud – but not knowing about it means that you are vulnerable. This devastating crime is on the rise, and the Land Registry claim to have prevented over £66 million of fraud in the last five years.
Property Fraud explained
There are many different kinds of Property Fraud and it is important that you understand some of the risks in order to avoid becoming a victim of fraud.
Imposters can obtain forged documents and pretend to be you – the property owner. They then raise money by applying for a mortgage in your name and disappear, leaving you with repayment obligations for a loan which you didn’t take out.
Fraudsters can also transfer the ownership of your property into their name, sell the property and disappear with the money. Sadly, the arrival of a removal van can be the first sign that a crime has been committed.
Tenants of rental properties have also been known to transfer their landlord’s property into their name and sell it fraudulently.
It can happen to anyone
There are many other Property Fraud scams out there and anyone who owns a property can be vulnerable.
By following our two simple steps you can protect yourself from becoming a victim:
1. Immediately register with the Land Registry’s Property Alert Service via the website https://propertyalert.landregistry.gov.uk. You can register up to ten properties so this service is ideally suited to Landlords of properties and property investors, as well as home owners.
Once registered, you will be immediately informed by post or email whenever searches or applications are made against a monitored property. Alerts are free and the service is easy to use. You will receive early warnings of any suspicious activity relating to your property, keeping you firmly in control of your property affairs.
2. Appoint Rowlinsons to act on your behalf and register an anti-fraud restriction against the title to your property. This restriction will prevent any sale or mortgage of the property taking place unless a qualified conveyancer or solicitor certifies that the transaction was authorised by you.
This work can be carried out quickly and cheaply by us after we have followed a few simple steps to verify your identity. This however is a small price to pay for peace of mind and could end up saving you thousands of pounds.
Protecting yourself in this manner from unscrupulous fraudsters is easy – simply ask Rowlinsons to register the restriction for you. It only needs to be done once.
To find out how you could protect your home from property fraud, contact our Property Department on 01928 735333 and book a FREE 30 minute consultation where we will advise you on the benefits and costs of registering an anti-fraud restriction.
