A recent report from CoreLogic shows a 12.4 percent year-over-year increase in mortgage fraud risk for the second quarter of 2018.  The report notes that the fraud risk index has steadily climbed over the past seven quarters and that those states with heavy outside investment are at risk for significantly higher mortgage fraud.

New York, New Jersey, and Florida topped the list of fraudulent applications.  Risk increased at each of the top 10 riskiest states, with the greatest increases in New Mexico, Mississippi, Illinois, Oklahoma, and Texas.

CoreLogic’s analysis showed that about one in 109 mortgage applications contained some type of fraud, up from one in 122 a year ago.  Mortgage applicants incorrectly reported data on identity, income falsification, undisclosed real estate liabilities, credit repair issues, and questionable down-payment sources.

Terry notes that the recent upsurge in home prices has led to a situation where bona fide home buyers are “lying a little” on their mortgage applications to get approved for loans.  (1017)