Buyer beware, you’re in for a scare.
OK, I don’t know why I led by ripping off “Goosebumps.” It’s not even close to Halloween, and I hate basic rhymes, but the point stands.
If you’ve lost your home to a fire, or any disaster ,and currently have a lot you are considering selling, or if you are looking to purchase land, there is unfortunately a scam for you.
As it turns out there is an entire business model out there that revolves around combing public records in search of empty lots to try and “buy up” and “sell.” Now you might be wondering why I put quotation marks there. It’s because they have no intention of doing anything legitimate.
A warning by the Federal Bureau of Investigation noted that these scammers often impersonate landowners in hopes of quickly selling property to someone at a low price before quickly disappearing before the landowner catches wind of them.
Then, if you purchase the property, the scammer gets away with your cash just for you to some day find out that the property might not be legally yours.
It’s a mess.
If you are buying or selling property, I can’t recommend enough that you do your research thoroughly — excessively even. If something seems too good to be true, it is.
If you are able to, talk to or hire a licensed and trusted real estate agent to aid in the process. It might cost a little more in the meantime, but it could save you significantly down the line.
Stay safe out there folks and have a happy Easter.
Scam of the Week generally runs every Tuesday. Readers are welcome to contact reporter Jake Hutchison to report scams and potential scams they have come in contact with by calling 828-1329 or via email at [email protected].
