Scammers Are Trying To Sell Homes They Don’t Own—and Attempts Have More Than Doubled

A growing real estate scam starts with an audacious premise: A criminal pretends to be a property owner and tries to sell a home or piece of land that does not belong to them.And title professionals say they're seeing a lot more of it.In a survey released on Monday from the American Land Title Association, 59% of title firms reported encountering at least one seller impersonation fraud attempt in the prior calendar year—more than double the 28% that reported one in ALTA’s 2024 survey.Nearly 1 in 4 respondents (23%) said they had encountered three or more attempts in the month before the latest survey, up from just 4% two years earlier.The FBI has separately warned that a related form of property fraud is on the rise. In April 2025, its Boston division said it was seeing a “steady increase” in reports of quitclaim deed fraud, including cases where owners had no idea their property had been sold—or was in the process of being sold.The new ALTA findings offer a closer look at how criminals select properties, impersonate their owners, and attempt to turn someone else’s real estate into cash.How do you sell a home you don’t own?Seller impersonation fraud occurs when a criminal assumes t...