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Property scam sees WA buyers lose $200k in settlement fraud
A Western Australian property buyer has lost nearly $200,000 after scammers intercepted mortgage broker communications and redirected settlement funds.
A Western Australian buyer has fallen victim to a property scam, losing $199,830, with the fraud occurring in September 2026.
According to WA ScamNet, the scammer intercepted communications between the mortgage broker and client and impersonated the broker using a false email address.
The scammers appeared to use a mule bank account belonging to a company that had ceased trading. The incident was reported to the bank.
The case was among three property-related payment redirection scams reported in Western Australia in 2026, with consumers losing more than $330,000.
In total, WA ScamNet, at the Department of Local Government, Industry Regulation and Safety, received reports from eight settlement agents whose clients had been targeted by the scams.
Another consumer lost more than $110,000 earlier this year after a scammer impersonated their settlement agent.
In a separate case, a buyer lost $20,000 after receiving an email falsely claiming the payment had not been received, potentially delaying detection and giving scammers time to move the funds beyond recovery.
The watchdog said that property payment redirection scams involve criminals intercepting or impersonating communications from parties involved in a transaction, including real estate agents, mortgage brokers, settlement agents and conveyancers.
Additionally, scammers may access email accounts, monitor correspondence, and send convincing impersonation emails with fraudulent bank details to redirect large payments into accounts they control.
While consumers have become increasingly aware of property fraud, the WA watchdog said the number of reports has not slowed.
In 2025, nine reports were made, resulting in $827,000 losses across four cases of $18,600, $330,538, $288,000 and $190,000.
In 2024, eight reports resulted in five losses totalling $329,203.97, while 2023 recorded five reports and three losses totalling $214,468.
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Consumer Protection said the number of reports in 2025 was similar to 2026, but the amount stolen in 2025 was higher year to date.
“This could be explained by how or when the scammer targeted the victim,” the spokesperson told SPI.
“In 2025, two large losses occurred at final settlement. This is the stage where the most money is transferred."
"Smaller losses are typically deposits or where the scammers do a “test” transaction with a small amount before attempting to steal more money.”
Commissioner for Consumer Protection Trish Blake said property purchases were an attractive target for scammers because of the large sums involved and the number of parties involved in a transaction.
“Buying a home is one of the biggest financial commitments most people will ever make, so losing settlement funds to a scam can be financially and emotionally devastating,” Blake said.
“One concerning tactic we’ve seen involves scammers telling victims that a payment has not gone through after the money has already been transferred. This can delay the fraud being detected and give scammers valuable time to move the money out of reach.”
Blake urged consumers to verify all payment requests, warning that a simple phone call or in-person check of bank details could prevent losses of tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars
The watchdog also advised prospective buyers to enable multifactor authentication on email and banking accounts and contact their bank immediately if they believe money has been transferred to a scammer.
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