COMMUNITY
SEPTEMBER 29, 2017
Meet The Beat
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EMAIL FRAUD IN REAL ESTATE
by Tony Kukulich Correspondent
Feature: Deputy Ryan MacLennan
Agency: Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office At an age when many young people entering college struggle to find the right major, Deputy Ryan MacLennan knew how he wanted to spend his career. “Right when I started going into college, that was going to be my plan – to go into law enforcement of some sort,” he explained. “I had a couple of family members who were cops – one was in the LAPD, and the other was with the U.S. Postal Service. They really liked their jobs, and it sounded like something that would be interesting to me.” MacLennan, a Georgia native, came to California to attend Chico State and majored in business management, just in case his career goal of becoming a cop didn’t work out. But it did work out, and sooner than he expected. Before entering his senior year, MacLennan applied with different agencies in Contra Costa County and was quickly picked up by the Sheriff’s Office. Now, as a veteran with nearly 20 years of service, MacLennan still finds satisfaction with his career choice. “I like the fact that you’re not stuck in an office or stuck in a cubicle,” he said. “You’re actually out in the field. You get to continuously help people. To me, it’s a
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fulfilling job. I get a lot out of it. Three years ago, MacLennan was promoted to field training officer (FTO), and in that capacity, he spends much of his time training new deputies. “I’d estimate that 90 percent of the deputies I train have had no law-enforcement experience,” MacLennan said. “You can tell pretty quickly if they’re cut out to be in law enforcement or if they’re not cut out to be in law enforcement. It definitely takes a certain kind of personality to deal with the people and the crimes.” Married with two children and living in Elk Grove, MacLennan said most of his free time is spent driving his high schoolaged daughter from one activity to the next. Aside from his chauffeur duties, he works out as much as he can and gets in an occasional round of golf. Of his job, MacLennan said every call is different. “No two calls are the same. It’s one of the most difficult jobs, but it’s one of the most rewarding jobs that you can do,” he said. “It’s definitely not for everybody.”
Right before and after a real estate transaction closes, large sums of money are transferred. The lender wires money into the title company and the buyer wires their closing funds in (down payment plus closing costs), then the seller’s proceeds are wired out. The scammers are aware of this, and they try to trick people into sending those funds to them instead. Here’s how it works: They send out thousands – if not millions – of emails to random email addresses that look like they come from a real title company or a lender. They will look and sound very official. They will have names that sound like real title company names, or I’ve seen one that said their name was “The Title Company” (I’m not kidding!). The email will say the wiring instructions for your real estate transaction have changed, and they provide new wiring instructions for you. About 99.99 percent of the people who receive these emails say to themselves, “Hmm, this is obvious SPAM, because I’m not buying or selling a house,” and they discard the
email. But there have been a few people who are about to buy or sell a home, and when they get that email, they think it’s legit, and they have wired hundreds of thousands of dollars to a scammer, or they’ve given out their own bank account information, only to have it cleaned out. These scammers work fast, so as soon as you wire the funds, they sweep them out to another bank. So if you get an email like this (I get several per week), do NOT email them, do NOT click on any links and do NOT call the phone number in their email. Call your agent and your title company to confirm any changes to wiring instructions. By the way, wiring instructions almost NEVER change! If you have questions on this or any other real-estate topic, call me at 925-240MOVE (6683). #1 for Brentwood listings sold multiple years. To search the MLS for free and view virtual tours of homes for sale, visit www.SharpHomesOnline.com. Sharp Realty. – Advertisement
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