Updated October 14, 2026.
Buying a home in the San Fernando Valley is exciting, but the final days before closing require careful attention. Criminals sometimes target buyers with convincing emails, texts, or calls that appear to come from a real estate agent, lender, escrow officer, attorney, or title company. Their goal is to redirect a down payment or closing funds into a fraudulent account.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau warns that these messages often arrive shortly before closing and may claim that wiring instructions have changed. The FBI describes this type of fraud as business email compromise, in which criminals imitate or compromise a trusted sender. Understanding the warning signs and creating a verification plan before money moves can reduce risk.
How a Mortgage Closing Scam Works
A criminal may monitor a compromised email account or imitate a legitimate address. The message can use real names, transaction details, professional-looking signatures, and urgent language. A small spelling change in an email domain may be easy to miss, especially when the message appears inside an existing conversation.
The false instructions may direct the buyer to a different bank, account number, or recipient. Once a wire is sent, recovery can be difficult. That is why verification must happen before the transfer—not after an unexpected message creates pressure.
Seven Steps to Protect Your Closing Funds
1. Establish trusted contacts early
Before closing week, save the independently verified phone numbers for your real estate professional, lender, escrow or settlement officer, and title company. Obtain those numbers from an in-person meeting, signed paperwork, or an official website you locate independently. Do not rely on contact information supplied in an unexpected message.
2. Confirm the payment process in advance
Ask who will provide the final instructions, how they will be delivered, and whether the company has a required verification procedure. The CFPB recommends identifying trusted individuals who can confirm payment details. Some buyers also establish a verbal code phrase with the appropriate closing professional.
3. Treat last-minute changes as a warning sign
A sudden change to an account number, bank, recipient, telephone number, or delivery method requires independent verification. Do not reply to the suspicious email or call the number printed inside it. Instead, use the trusted number you saved earlier.
4. Inspect addresses, links, and urgency
The FBI advises consumers to examine email addresses, URLs, and spelling carefully. Be cautious when a sender demands immediate action, secrecy, or an exception to the established procedure. Avoid opening unexpected attachments or using links that ask you to confirm financial information.
5. Never send sensitive financial information by ordinary email
The CFPB advises buyers not to email financial information. Follow the secure method specified by the verified lender or settlement professional. Use multi-factor authentication on email and financial accounts whenever available, and never disable it because a message asks you to do so.
6. Verify every wire before sending
Call the verified settlement or escrow contact and read back the recipient name, bank name, routing number, account number, and amount. If practical, confirm the instructions through a second trusted channel. Do not assume a familiar email thread is secure.
7. Confirm receipt immediately
After sending authorized funds, contact the verified recipient to confirm that the money arrived in the correct account. Save the confirmation and related transaction records in a secure location.
What to Do if You Sent Money to the Wrong Account
Act immediately. The FBI advises victims to contact their financial institution at once and ask it to contact the receiving institution. Request a wire recall or reversal, although recovery is not guaranteed. Report the incident promptly through the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). You can also review the Federal Trade Commission’s recovery guidance and report fraud at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
Preserve emails, text messages, phone numbers, screenshots, transfer confirmations, and any altered instructions. Do not continue communicating with the suspected scammer unless law enforcement or your financial institution directs you to do so.
A Simple Closing-Funds Checklist
Save verified contact numbers before closing week.
Understand who is authorized to send instructions.
Confirm any change through a separate trusted channel.
Do not use links or numbers from an unexpected message.
Verify account details verbally before the transfer.
Confirm receipt immediately after sending funds.
Contact your bank and IC3 immediately if fraud is suspected.
Plan Your San Fernando Valley Purchase With Confidence
Strong preparation includes more than choosing the right property. It also means understanding financing, escrow, inspections, insurance, disclosures, and secure closing procedures. Explore our San Fernando Valley communities, search current homes for sale, review our financing resources, or contact EH WORLDWIDE REALTY for local real estate guidance. Homeowners considering a sale may also request a personalized home valuation.
Carlos Echegaray, MBA, PMC, JD, EJD
Broker/Owner, EH Worldwide Realty
This article is for general educational purposes only and is not legal, financial, cybersecurity, banking, or law-enforcement advice. Verification procedures vary by transaction and institution. Equal Housing Opportunity.
