Title and mortgage fraud continues to increase for both residential and commercial properties, with no sign of abating. It is important to understand that in the midst of the current economic downturn, fraudsters are likely to strengthen their attempts to defraud lenders and property owners.

Fraudsters are particularly targeting mortgage free properties. As such, when you are acting for a purchaser of a mortgage-free property, we ask that you take the necessary steps to confirm that the vendor truly has authority to deal with the property. Similarly, when acting for a lender for a property that is mortgage free, please confirm that the mortgagor truly has authority to deal with the property.

In addition to obtaining proper photo identification, additional steps can be taken to confirm the identity of the vendor or borrower and the legitimacy of the transaction. These steps include confirming that the sale proceeds are paid to the vendor or the mortgage proceeds are paid to the mortgagor.

Listed below are common scenarios that may signal fraud:

Stewart Title has recently introduced additional fraud mitigation questions as a result of the Law Society of Upper Canada's new rules aimed at preventing inadvertent money laundering and terrorist financing through lawyers' trust accounts. These new rules, introduced on December 31, 2008, are based on a model developed by the Federation of Law Societies of Canada. Rules similar to these have been, or will soon be enacted, in all other provinces and territories across Canada.

Moving forward, the following transaction types will trigger further review by our underwriting department:

Commercial vacant land refinance transactions (private and institutional) where there is currently no mortgage registered on title

These changes are reflective of the increase in fraud claims involving the transaction types listed above.

Please contact the Verification Department at Stewart Title for further guidance when acting on residential refinance transactions where the lender is not institutional, and there is no mortgage registered on title.

Technology Spotlight: Brief Convey™

Stewart Title is committed to continually developing applications designed to make it easy for legal professionals to order their clients' title insurance policies, while maintaining their position at the forefront of the real estate transaction.

The recently introduced Brief Convey™ product provides British Columbia legal professionals with a desktop conveyancing application that can be used to order title insurance and generate the documents required to close a real estate transaction.

Key components of Brief Convey™ include a convenient and user friendly interface, customization for your office and full integration with many common applications including Stewart Title's Electronic Policy System (STEPS™).

For more information on Brief Convey™, please contact your local Business Development Specialist, visit our website or download the brochure.

Look for Stewart Title at these upcoming events:

March 26-28, 2009
Cours de perfectionnement du notariat
Centre des Congrès de Québec
Québec City, QC

May 20-23, 2009
The Institute of Law Clerks of Ontario (ILCO) 19th Annual Conference
Hilton Suites Toronto/Markham Conference Centre
Markham, ON

The knowledge and assistance of your local Stewart Title Business Development Specialist is available at just the click of a button.

Visit www.stewart.ca/contactrep to locate the Stewart Title Representative in your area. They will be happy to provide you with in-depth information regarding our variety of products designed for legal professionals.