Real Estate Title Fraud

Imagine the feeling when you receive repeated calls from the bank, insisting that you’re late with your mortgage payments. Or your confusion when you come home from vacation to find that your house is now home to another family, sold out from underneath you while you were away. This is the cold hard reality of real estate title fraud.

But you can reduce your risk! With Title Fraud Protection+* from First Canadian Title (FCT), you can rest easy knowing that you are protected from the financial and emotional stress associated with real estate title fraud and many other costly title defects.

Understanding Real Estate Title Fraud

Real estate title fraud is when fraudsters use deceptive methods to illegally obtain the rights to your property’s title and then make use of that right for financial gain. Title fraud is a highly sophisticated crime with large financial losses for its victims.

There are generally two common techniques that fraudsters use when perpetrating real estate title fraud:

1. Identity Theft & Personation

Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in North America and it can happen to anyone. Using stolen or fake identification or documents, a fraudster pretends to be the homeowner and obtains one or more mortgages on the property and then walks away with the cash.

2. Forgery

A fraudster registers forged documents to discharge any existing mortgages, transfers the property to themselves and then registers a new mortgage against the property’s clear title, pocketing the proceeds.

Title Fraud Protection+ from FCT

Title Fraud Protection+ is a title insurance policy that offers you, the homeowner, coverage against losses associated with real estate title fraud, plus other common title issues/defects. Title Fraud Protection+ is unlike traditional insurance products in that it:

• Not only covers things that may happen in the future (e.g. title fraud), but it also covers title defects that have already occurred in the past, prior to the purchase of your home
• Can be purchased for a low one-time premium**
• Does not have a deductible
• Protects you for as long as you own your home

For more information on how to obtain Title Fraud Protection+ from FCT, please call First Canadian Title directly at 1-877-888-1153 or visit FCT's website.