An agricultural real estate expert says farm sale fraud is becoming more common. Colton Lacina with Farmers National Company says, “We’ve seen a large uptick in the last, you know, six months to a year.”
Lacina told Brownfield Ag News that seller impersonation fraud occurs when someone lists the farm property for sale with an agent without the real owner’s knowledge. “We haven’t had one actually transfer, but our latest one got to the title company. A survey had been completed, and then the title company actually reached out to the owner for some wire information on how to disburse the proceeds. Come to find out that the owner knew nothing about the sale.”
Lacina says numerous fraudulent attempts have been made to sell farms, and the perpetrators are getting more advanced in their methods. He says agents have learned to be suspicious if there’s no face-to-face communication. “The individuals committing the fraud would only communicate via email, maybe text message, so that was a red flag for agents.”
According to Lacina, deeds and tax documents are publicly available online, and it might become necessary to restrict public access to some data. He says another way to catch some fraud is to ask for leasing information. “You know, anytime you sell a farm, somebody wants to know the lease terms on it, so ask them for a copy of the farm lease. A lot of times, if it is fraud, they’ll have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Lacina says there is little landowners can do, but agents need to vet potential land sellers very carefully.
EDITOR’S TAKE:
It is common to see an advertisement on TV about home titles being fraudulently transferred without the owner’s knowledge or permission. It is typically an ad for some type of fraud protection product. But attempts to sell an entire farm in such a manner are very alarming. Thank goodness the perpetrators have not been successful to date, but that doesn’t mean they won’t be in the future. A transfer of that size could amount to millions of dollars. Farmers/ranchers should be warned of this new scheme and learn to be on the lookout for such fraud.
How can you help? What about sponsoring a seminar at your dealership in conjunction with a farm management company, such as Farmers National? Or perhaps do it in conjunction with your Land Grant University if they have a farm management or real estate expert on staff. These efforts would build trust with farmers/ranchers in your area. This is serious business and could end up costing the local community much pain and suffering if not dealt with properly and caught early.
