Fremont Real Estate and Beyond

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View this in your browser Basic Housing Rights Workshop: What seniors need to know Legal Assistance for Seniors (LAS) and the Health Insurance Counseling and Advocacy Program (HICAP) serving Alameda County will be a hosting a free Basic Housing Rights Workshop. The workshop will cover: Tenant/Landlord Rights and Responsibilities Overview of the eviction process Security deposits Where to get information and resources for assistance New Union City specific policies WHERE Ruggieri Senior Center 33997 Alvarado-Niles R...

I received this from the Fremont Police and wanted to share with everyone. https://local.nixle.com/alert/6404263/?sub_id=406327 In April, 2017, Fremont Police received information from a Fremont landlord involving an ongoing fraudulent home rental scheme conducted by two brothers dating back to 2015. At least five (5) property owners fell victim to these serial renters, suffered a significant financial loss and damage to their homes as a result. The investigation revealed Mohammed QADIR (30) and his brother, Habibullah QADIR (42), engaged in intentional fraudulent and deceptive practices to obtain at least five residential property leases in Fremont. Once the properties were rented to them, they failed to pay rent and forced the landlords to evict them while they remained in the properties rent-free, for months at a time. In summary, Mohammed QADIR, acting alone or collaborating with Habibullah QADIR, sought to obtain leases for single-family houses in high-end neighborhoods in Fre...

For any agents out there--it could someone from any country, so be on the lookout! A person claiming to live in China will contact an agent and ask to purchase property in the area. The person will entice the agent with a request to write an offer and get the transaction open. They claim they will be in the U.S. for the closing. They also will ask to recommend an attorney to assist with the review of documents and assist with the transaction. After they get a referral from the agent they will contact the attorney and state they were referred by the agent. They will ask for help on the transaction. The attorney will probably ask for a retainer agreement and amount to be placed in trust with the attorney. After some prodding, the person from China will have a check delivered to the attorneys’ office drawn on a British Columbia Bank and allegedly paid through Wells Fargo in the U.S.—a process used in the past and not used so much today because of wire transfers. The check will be for f...

The FTC released an urgent memo to all real estate professionals and their clients about a sophisticated phishing scam aimed at taking buyer's deposits.  Always call the title company directly to confirm the wiring instructions! FTC Consumer Blog issued a post focused on hackers who have been breaking into some consumers’ and real estate professionals’ email accounts to get information about upcoming real estate transactions. After figuring out the closing dates, the hacker sends an email to the buyer, posing as the real estate professional or title company. The bogus email says there has been a last minute change to the wiring instructions, and tells the buyer to wire closing costs to a different account. But it’s the scammer’s account. If the buyer takes the bait, their bank account could be cleared out in a matter of minutes. Often, that’s money the buyer will never see again. More info here-- https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/blog/scammers-phish-mortgage-closing-costs

I'm lucky to not have encountered this issue.  As always, call the escrow officer to confirm any changes in wiring instructions and have the instructions emailed to you DIRECTLY from the escrow officer!

Summer is right around the corner and people are looking for rentals for either living or vacation.  The Federal Trade Commission recently issued a reminder for consumers to be on the lookout for rental scams. According to the FTC report, scammers know that finding the right apartment or vacation rental can be hard work, and a seemingly good deal is hard to pass up. They’ve been known to game some vacation rental websites and bulletin boards. The take-away: when looking for a rental, it’s renter beware. The reminder included some common scams that have been reported to them by consumers and real estate agents, including: Hijacked Ads: Some scammers hijack a real rental or real estate listing by changing the email address or other contact information, and placing the modified ad on another site. Phantom Rentals: Other rip-off artists make up listings for places that aren’t for rent or don’t exist, and try to lure the renter in with the promise of low rent, or great ame...