A string of property-related scams in the lead-up to spring has alarm bells ringing for investors.
As the real estate sector gears up for its busiest time of the year, InfoTrack, one of Australia’s largest conveyancing groups, has reported a 5 per cent increase in prospective home buyers putting pen to paper on property contracts.
But the smell of spring selling in the air has come with one major warning from the company: “Be wary of your cash”.
That’s the message from InfoTrack’s head of Securexchange, Alexander Antal, who is urging buyers to remain vigilant, especially as the market heats up towards the end of the year and buyers are put under pressure to finish up purchases quickly.
But be vigilant of what? The sleazy real estate agents eating up home profits? The dodgy building inspectors giving shoddily made homes the green light? Well, yes, but surprisingly, the biggest property predators might be the ones hiding behind a computer screen.
According to Antal, the lead-up to September saw a huge spike in digital scams filching funds earmarked for property purchases across the country.
NSW couple Will Clinton and Jessica Greentree even saw their $49,000 settlement funds disappear into scammers’ wallets in a gutwrenching experience they said was the “worst day of our life”.
“We thought everything was legit, because they had all our details, the correct price, the correct address,” Will told The Project last month.
“Will had contacted me while I was at work, I just went into tears. It was just devastating that a year and a half worth of savings, just gone in an instant,” added Jessica.
But the pair are only the tip of the iceberg. Only a few weeks before, a Victorian couple was scammed out of a staggering $500,000 after their conveyancer’s email was hacked.
While the eye-watering figures are enough to make a grown man cry, Antil also warned that buyers could lose more than just their money.
“Cyber criminals have their sights set on property transactions because not only are deposits in the tens of thousands and upwards, copies of passports and driver licences are exchanged to verify ID, potentially exposing buyers to identity theft and fraud,” he said.
With the whole transaction process of purchasing property remaining largely “unknown territory” for home buyers, Antil said that Aussies swept up in the fast-paced market were especially susceptible to scam artists.
“Throw in a quick decision-making process and a high-stress environment, and buyers may not necessarily be as alert to scams as they normally would be,” he added.
How to spot a property scam
But all hope isn’t lost if you are entering the somewhat softened spring property market in search of a home.
According to InfoTrack, the best way buyers can safeguard their funds is by ensuring communication channels, like email or messaging services, are secure and Antil encouraged the use of trusted platforms for any sort of transaction.
“Our advice is to ask your lawyer, conveyancer and real estate agent how they plan on sharing sensitive and confidential information, and insist they use a secure platform to protect your money,” he added.
“Don’t send back account details via email. All communication related to the transaction should be secure, taking away the opportunity for scammers to hack into emails and contact buyers.”
If you are dealing with your lawyer, conveyancer or real estate agent through email for your transactions, be sure to jump on the phone and call to verify that it is a legitimate request before you hit send.
If you do think you have been scammed, Infotrack encouraged buyers to report it and update any banking details and passwords to stop the scammers from bleeding your bank accounts any further.
