Oakland, California Real Estate Fraud Attorneys

Experienced, Aggressive Defense
When Your Freedom Is at Stake

Due to questionable underwriting practices during the subprime mortgage disaster, state and federal law enforcement have redoubled efforts to crack down on real estate fraud. Investigators and auditors review loan applications to determine if the information provided was correct, ferret out "straw buyers," and look for deviations from standard underwriting protocols.

At the Law Offices of Robert J. Beles, our lawyers review the actions of investigators and work with forensic accountants and underwriting experts in order to expose weaknesses and questionable evidence against our clients. If brought in during the early stages of an investigation, we can often redirect the focus of an investigation away from our client or preempt further intrusion into the privacy of our client.

Regardless of whether you've already been indicted for real estate or mortgage fraud, or you are under investigation, contact the defense attorneys at the Law Offices of Robert J. Beles today to schedule a free, confidential consultation.

Fighting Accusations of Real Estate and Mortgage Fraud

The criminal defense Law Offices of Robert J. Beles advises and represents clients charged with real estate fraud and mortgage fraud involving the following:

• House flipping
• Use of straw buyers
• Submitting fraudulent information on mortgage applications
• Underwriting irregularities
• Over-reporting income
• Failure to report secondary residence

House Flipping, Mortgage Fraud, and Real Estate Investors

Before the subprime mortgage disaster, real estate investors would purchase a property and upgrade it in order to resell it at a profit. When the bottom began to fall out of the market, a number of real estate investors found themselves burdened with multiple mortgages they could not clear or no longer afford. In the process, debts and other financial information may not have always been accurately reported on mortgage applications.

In other instances, real estate investors who could not qualify — or did not want to qualify — for a mortgage using their own information, used "straw buyers" to front for a loan. This could be a relative, a friend, or a colleague. After the purchase and sale of a home or property, the real estate investor would then divide a portion of the profit with the straw buyer.

Fighting Allegations of Mortgage Fraud and Real Estate Fraud

In both kinds of fraud, investigators often assume there is criminal intent where there may be none. While ignorance of the law is not a defense to being charged, it may mean the difference between having the charges and sentence against you reduced or dropped and spending years in prison. That's why our attorneys tell our client's side of the story, providing information that prosecutors often ignore in trying to paint the worst possible picture of a defendant.

As such, a defendant who may have strayed outside the law in order to buy time to regain his or her financial footing and set things right is different from someone who intentionally falsifies information as a grifter or crook. Unfortunately, prosecutors don't always distinguish the two.

Contact Criminal Defense Attorney Robert J. Beles Today

We understand the financial issues involved in mortgage fraud and real estate fraud. As criminal defense attorneys with years of experience serving clients throughout the East Bay, we also understand how investigators think and how the court system works. Put our experience and knowledge to work for you — contact the criminal defense attorneys at the Law Offices of Robert J. Beles today.