Sending Your Closing Funds Safely: How to Avoid Wire Fraud

Your down payment and closing costs are usually sent to escrow by wire transfer, and criminals know it. Wire fraud aimed at homebuyers is common, and once a wire is sent it can be very hard to get back. A few simple habits protect you, and knowing what to do in the first hour matters if something goes wrong.

Criminals break into or imitate the email accounts of people in your transaction, such as your agent, your escrow officer, your lender, or even you. They watch for the moment money is about to move, then send a message that looks real, often saying the wire instructions have changed or that the money must be sent urgently. The email may use the right names, logos, and details about your purchase. The difference is the account number, which belongs to the criminal.

Before you wire anything, call your escrow officer at a phone number you already know is real: the one on your escrow opening paperwork, the escrow company's official website that you typed in yourself, or one your agent gave you in person early in the process. Never use a phone number or link from an email or text about the wire. Read the instructions back and confirm the bank name, account name, account number, and routing number. Many buyers set up this call before the day they send money. After you send it, call escrow again to confirm the money arrived.

Be suspicious of any message that says the wire instructions have changed, asks you to send money somewhere new, pressures you to act fast, or asks you to keep the request quiet. Watch for an email address that is off by a letter or uses a different domain, and for a message that arrives from a familiar name but sounds different. Legitimate escrow companies rarely change their wiring instructions in the middle of a transaction. If a change seems real, stop and call before you do anything.

Act right away; minutes matter. Call your bank or credit union immediately, tell them the wire was fraudulent, and ask them to recall the wire and contact the receiving bank. Then call your escrow officer at a number you trust, and tell your agent and loan officer. File a complaint with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov as soon as you can, with the transaction details. You can also report it to your local police. Quick action gives the best chance of stopping the money, but recovery is not assured, which is why verifying before you send matters so much.

• ✓Always confirm wire instructions by calling your escrow officer at a phone number you already know is real
• ✓Treat any email or text saying the wire instructions changed as a stop sign until you have called
• ✓Call escrow again after you send the wire to confirm it arrived
• ✓If money goes to the wrong account, call your bank immediately, then escrow, and report it at ic3.gov
• ✓Protect your own email with a strong password and two-step verification