When something as important as your home mortgage is concerned, it is especially important to recognize and avoid scams. A variety of fraudulent schemes have deceived home owners into turning over their deed and still owing money on the mortgage, exposing sensitive financial information, and/or having to pay excessive fees. Here are some tips on how to recognize such scams.

Some dishonest businessman attempt to take advantage of people who are having difficulty selling their homes, as sales have been poor in recent months. The Nevada Secretary of State’s website states that potential indications of these scams include a buyer who intends to “take over” mortgage payments on the home, or an owner being told that the involvement of a title company is unnecessary. It points out that a mortgage generally can’t be reassigned to someone else unless permission is received from the lending institution. Another way to recognize potential mortgage scams is the way they are promoted; for example, scams of this type have been marketed via unsolicited email advertisements. They are sometimes advertised using telemarketing or door-to-door salesmen as well. However, this certainly doesn’t mean they won’t use other methods when possible.

There are also scams involving reverse mortgages, which are a different type of mortgage which is only available to seniors. This is to be expected, as scams often target the elderly in general, so home owners should remain at least as cautious with regard to reverse mortgage offers as they are with other mortgages. Consumerlaw.org warns of a scam in which businesses charge the home owner to help him or her locate a reverse mortgage lender; it explains that the Department of Housing and Urban Development offers this service free of charge. Fortunately, this scam is not difficult to recognize after you have been informed of it. The website of Florida’s Attorney General warns against other reverse mortgage scams in which home owners are put under heavy pressure or deceived into accepting undesirable terms. He also cautioned that insurance brokers and sales agents may cooperate to scam borrowers.

It is important not to react impulsively to offers involving mortgages or other transactions, just as you wouldn’t buy an automobile without properly examining it and researching the model - even if the seller told you there was “limited time” or assured you there was nothing wrong with it. Conducting thorough research before agreeing to a transaction is one of the chief methods to recognize and avoid scams.