ADVANCED REALTY GROUP, LLC

FRAUD ALERTS

Last Modified June 28, 2026

 

CONSUMER ALERT FOR YOUR PROTECTION

BANK WIRING INSTRUCTION FRAUD

Recently, there have been increased reports across the nation of a theft scheme in which hackers steal email addresses and send fraudulent wiring instructions to homebuyers and tenants. Realtors®, lawyers, title agents, and buyers could be affected. The criminal scheme has many variations, and this notice is not intended to describe each situation. As an actual or prospective buyer or tenant, we want to alert you to the situation so you can minimize the risk of being a victim.

We strongly recommend that before you wire any funds to any party (including your own lawyer, real estate broker, or title agent whom you know to be involved in your transaction), you personally call them to verify the wire instructions (you should confirm the ABA routing number or SWIFT code and the credit account number). You should call them at a number that you have obtained on your own (e.g., the sales contract, their website, etc.) and should not use the phone number that is contained in any email — even if the email appears to be from someone you know. A common aspect of the scheme involves the criminal hacking the sender’s email (unbeknownst to them) and sending you an email that looks like other legitimate emails you have received from that party. The email contains the criminal’s wire instructions and may contain the criminal’s phone number, and once your funds are wired by your bank to the criminal’s account, there may be no way to recover those funds.

PLEASE EXERCISE CAUTION BEFORE WIRING FUNDS TO ANY PARTY. This notice is not intended to provide legal advice. You should consult with a lawyer if you have any questions.

 

WIRE FRAUD SCAM ALERT

We recently learned of a wire fraud scam connected with rental properties. These sham transactions have been identified in at least the countries of Belgium, the Netherlands and United Kingdom.

In this scam, the scammer advertises a property for rent on a website, providing only an email address to contact them. After a potential tenant expresses interest, he/she is contacted by email (in Dutch) for more information. The scammers provide the property address and some general information, then ask to communicate further (in English) – and only by email. If the potential tenant reacts positively to this request, pictures are sent along with information about the property and instructions for wiring money (1 or 2 months’ rent) to consolidate the deal so they can send the keys of the property and the legal documents to a real estate agent to handle the transaction. Once the money is wired, there is no further contact.

Under no circumstances should you wire any money in this situation. You should always verify the legitimacy of any real estate transaction before transferring any funds. Please contact our office to verify the legitimacy of any transaction at (702) 699.9261. We take fraud very seriously to protect our owners, residents, and everyone involved in the rental housing business. Fraud hurts everyone involved and can cause irreparable damage today, tomorrow, and in the future.

We want to alert consumers to this scam so that you can take measures to protect your information and yourselves.

For more information on wire-fraud scams or to report an incident, please refer to the following links:

Please note, Advanced Realty Group has no affiliation with the groups listed above. Those groups exist to protect the consumer.