Alarming new research shows just how vulnerable property buyers and sellers are to settlement scams costing some victims hundreds of thousands of dollars.

According to Scamwatch, Australians lost $43.2 mil to ‘buying and selling’ scams in 2024.

Property transactions are frequent targets, with new research by PEXA suggesting this might be a particularly vulnerable area.

97% of people surveyed- people who had either bought property or intended to in the next 12 months- failed to spot “dangerous scam indicators’ in property transaction emails.

Alarmingly 40% of more than 1000 respondents said they would have transferred money to the fraudulent account. That money may have been for conveyancing fees, stamp duty, or even the deposit. In one real scam example from last year, a couple transferred $970k to a scammer, believing it was going to the Vendor.

Settlement scams are sophisticated and will commonly come as an email purportedly from the account of a real party involved in the settlement- solicitor or real estate agent.

The timing will often be when you are expecting a transfer request- one tactic will be to provide revised bank details. The email may look quite legitimate, have attachments, logos, and letterheads. It may provoke a sense of urgency to get you to transfer quickly without double-checking details- for example, you may be requested to transfer within a deadline, or you could lose the property. 

How can I protect myself?

Use Secure Communication Platforms: Many property transactions now take place using secure messaging services to exchange bank details. Examples include PEXA. 

Never trust unsolicited Email Instructions for payment: Always verify any payment requested through independent channels. Take the time to call your Solicitor/Agent to confirm the details source of the email

Pay Attention to Confirmation of Payee Warnings: When transferring, Banks often display a warning to an account where the name doesn’t match the account number. If this warning pops up, it is a sign to check the details

Be Alert to Red Flags: Scam signs in email include subtle misspellings in email addresses, urgent tones, and immediate requests with urgent timeframes.

Protect your Personal Data: In general, keep under the scammers radar by practicing good overall cybersecurity. Strong passwords, not clicking on suspicious links or attachments, and not providing personal information to unverified email requests

Act Quickly if you Suspect a Mistake: One of the big issues with property settlement fraud is that the scam is not always discovered until the legitimate payment is due. If you think that you have sent money to a criminal, contact your bank IMMEDIATELY.