It is possible to avoid fraud when selling an apartment through a mortgage if the real cost is indicated in the contract, carefully read the preliminary and main contract. There will be less problems with checking the authenticity of the bills if all the amounts go through the bank.
Fraud schemes when buying or selling an apartment on the market of new buildings and secondary housing with the help of a mortgage are being improved every year. In real estate, minor children, incapacitated citizens, incapacitated persons may be registered. Fraudsters can also sell a rented apartment for fake documents or an object that has been seized. In the primary market, the most affected are those who signed a contract for housing that is under construction.
Sellers also often suffer from buyer misconduct. Most fraudulent activities occur at the time of transfer of money.
How to Avoid Secondary Market Fraud?
You can protect yourself as a buyer if you pay attention to two main factors:
- the state of the alienated object;
- title documentation.
Before concluding the contract, the owner must provide certificates of utility bills arrears, prove the absence of registered persons, including minors. On your own or with the help of a realtor, get a certificate from the USRR, which contains exact information about who is the owner, whether the object has been seized.
Despite the fact that the bank issuing the mortgage also checks the legal purity of the apartment, you can face multiple sales of real estate and forgery of documents. Such situations are especially common if the transaction is carried out directly with the owner. An additional guarantor of the legality of the actions taken can be an appeal for help from a real estate agency. The only requirement is to conclude an agreement with them before the financial issues are resolved, which will spell out the obligations and guarantees provided by the Academy of Sciences.
How to avoid fraudulent transactions in the primary market?
Visit the sites of different developers, carefully study the reviews. Based on the latter, one can conclude about the good faith of the company. Popular fraudulent schemes:
- signing an agreement without concluding a preschool education;
- participation in the transaction of intermediaries, allowing the transfer of responsibility to a third party;
- participation in the housing cooperative.
Because of the latter, you will have to make large contributions, expect the possibility of moving into the apartment for a long time.
If the apartment building has already been built, then check whether the characteristics of the object correspond to those specified in the contract. The statutory documents of the seller and permission to carry out construction work at the specified address will be useful to you.
Protection of the rights and interests of the seller in the case of a mortgage
In case of mortgage lending, often part of the amount for the object is paid not by the bank, but directly by the buyer. When dealing with cash, check the money carefully. The simplest thing is to carry out all transactions through a bank employee who automatically checks the bills for authenticity.
When concluding a transaction, indicate the real cost of the apartment. Fraudsters may ask for a lower amount to reduce tax payments. Upon termination of the contract through the court, you will be able to return only the amount of funds that was specified in the contract.
You need to be careful with the deposit. One cannot relax if both contracts remain in the hands of the seller. Swindlers can pay part of the funds, saying that the rest will not be contributed with the help of a mortgage. During the time between transactions, they can contact a notary, ask him for a copy of the agreement, register the transaction with the BTI.
One of the classic methods of deception is the use of a safe deposit box, where the buyer places the required amount before signing the contract. The scheme works like this: first, the cell contains the full amount. When the funds are transferred to the MFC, they suspend registration, after a month they take their finances from the safe. You can protect yourself from such situations if you carefully read the contract. If the owner did not pay attention to what was signed in the power of attorney and other documents, the apartment cannot be returned, and the funds cannot be collected.
Buyer's actions
The bank never demands to provide a certificate from a neuropsychiatric dispensary stating that the seller is legally competent. In the future, this can lead to the fact that the previous owner will return the apartment to himself through the court, and the money can be paid for years. Therefore, be sure to ask for such a document.
Check all documents for the apartment, passport. The easiest way to do this is through a real estate agency. If the seller has a spouse, permission from that person will be required to acquire or dispose of the property.
If the seller is acting by proxy, check the authenticity of the document. The best option is to meet with the real owner. Additionally, check with the notary: is the form valid at the time of presentation. The power of attorney ceases to be valid after the expiration of the limitation period, cancellation of the power of attorney, in the event of the death of the apartment owner and in some other cases.
Thus, when selling an apartment through a mortgage, it is necessary to carefully study the buyer's documents. The interests of the latter are partially respected thanks to the financial institution itself, which checks the legal purity of the object.
