Property and Mortgage Fraud

Mortgage Fraud Solicitors

If you believe that you may soon face mortgage fraud investigations, or if you know you are being accused of property fraud, you need to instruct highly experienced property or mortgage fraud solicitors as soon as possible to provide vital advice and to start building your defence.

The specialists at DPP Law have been assisting clients accused of this kind of fraudulent activity for more than three decades. Below, we’ll explain how we can support, advise and represent you if you are facing allegations of one or more of these types of frauds.

What is considered mortgage fraud?

Mortgage fraud cases usually involve the purposeful deception of mortgage lenders on the part of the borrower.

If you have been investigated for – or accused of – offences of this kind when taking out a mortgage on your property, you will need to seek advice from a top law firm as a matter of urgency, as a conviction may lead to severe penalties.

Mortgage fraud may involve:

The intentional provision of incorrect information on mortgage applications
Hiding evidence of property-related debts or past and current financial issues
Completing mortgage documentation under a false identity
Applying for a mortgage on a property with a falsely inflated price

Mortgage fraud schemes

Industry professionals have been behind many many mortgage fraud cases, as property specialists can use insider knowledge to work the system to their advantage.

However, it is not uncommon for a prospective property owner to attempt to defraud a lender for their own personal gain.

Those found guilty of mortgage fraud face a maximum penalty of up to ten years’ imprisonment and/or an unlimited fine.

What is considered property fraud?

There is a range of different potential types of property fraud, many of which fall under the category of impersonation or identity theft. Others involve title fraud and registration fraud.

A criminal may claim to be the buyer or seller of a property in order to illegally access funds or vital data to use for their own financial gain.

Alternatively, they may pose as a mortgage lender in order to forge a mortgage discharge (an official document acknowledging that a mortgage loan has been paid off).

It’s also possible for individuals to pretend to be conveyancers or property companies so that they may illegally receive payments or access financial information.

Via identity theft, a criminal may also manipulate a situation so that a property is registered with the Land Registry under their own name, instead of that of its legal owner. This may allow them to access loans and other financial arrangements, unlawfully using that property as collateral.

Activities of this kind can be more effectively tackled if property owners put a restriction on the title of their property. This prevents HM Land Registry from registering a sale or mortgage of that property unless it is certified by a conveyancer or solicitor that the owner approved this action.

It’s also possible to arrange property alerts, whereby a property owner requests that HM Land registry notify them whenever there is activity on a particular property, such as a mortgage application.

Individuals accused of property fraud also face significant penalties, including imprisonment and unlimited fines.

What should I do if I’ve been accused of property or mortgage fraud?

If you are the subject of property or mortgage fraud investigations, you must act fast – as the potential penalties for offences of this kind are severe.

The best first step you can take is to instruct the solicitors at DPP Law.

Our criminal defence experts in the fields of mortgage and property fraud can provide you with valuable legal advice, help you to collect evidence to prove your innocence, build a strong case for your defence, accompany you to interviews with authorities and represent you in court.

Alongside this, our solicitors advise individuals in the following areas:

• Criminal Defence
• Sexual Offences
• Benefit Fraud Defence
• Serious Driving Offences
• Military Law
• Family Law
• Personal Injury
• Road Traffic Accidents

Property and Mortgage Fraud: Frequently Asked Questions

How is mortgage fraud detected?

There are many ways in which possible cases of mortgage fraud may come to light. It may be that lenders, conveyancers, estate agents or other property specialists become suspicious of a certain client’s activities and report them to Action Fraud or a similar body.

Conversely, a property owner or buyer may report a service provider for unlawful behaviours of this kind.

Furthermore, if HM Land Registry has been instructed to monitor a certain property in case of fraud, criminal activity may come to light if an alert of this kind is triggered.

These are just a few of the methods that the authorities may use to detect offences.

Who investigates mortgage fraud?

Specific investigation approaches depend on the parties accused of fraudulent activity. For example, if the suspected party is a law firm or conveyancer, the case may be handed to the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA).

If it is a mortgage lender, it may be taken on by the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority). In cases where individuals are accused, the UK police and/or the NCA (National Crime Agency) may lead the investigation.

The solicitors at DPP are seasoned criminal law experts who have provided vital advice, support and representation to clients accused of mortgage and property fraud for over thirty years.

For further information about our services, and to find out how we may be able to help you, simply get in touch with us today.

We have a dedicated Emergency Arrest Line that is monitored 24 hours per day, seven days per week, every day of the year – so you’ll be able to contact us straight away as soon as you are aware that you are in need of legal aid or guidance.