Chris Gmyr

Mortgage fraud continues to increase as vulnerable homeowners seek answers to their housing issues, according to the 2008 Mortgage Fraud Report released Tuesday by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Reported losses to fraud hit $1.4 billion, up 83 percent compared to 2007 and are likely to climb even higher in 2009, the FBI said.

The number of fraud reports was 63,713 in fiscal 2008, up from 46,717 the previous year.

“The downward trend in the housing market during 2008 provided a favorable climate for mortgage fraud schemes to proliferate,” the report said. “Several of these schemes have the potential to spread if the current economic downward trend, as expected, continues into 2009 and beyond.”

Source: The Associated Press (07/08/2009)