A practical guide for Arizona buyers, sellers and real estate professionals.
Learn seven practical ways to help prevent wire fraud during a real estate closing, recognize warning signs, and respond quickly to a suspicious transfer.
To help prevent wire fraud during closing, establish trusted contacts early and independently verify every set of wiring instructions before sending money. Call the title or escrow company at a phone number you already know — not one contained in a new email — and treat any last-minute change as suspicious. Secure your email with a strong, unique password and multifactor authentication. If money is sent to the wrong account, contact the bank and title or escrow company immediately and report the incident to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.
Key Takeaways
Never rely on wiring instructions solely because they arrived in a familiar-looking email.
Verify the recipient name, bank, routing number and account number through a trusted channel.
Treat changed instructions, urgency and secrecy as major warning signs.
Use strong account security, including multifactor authentication for email.
Confirm receipt with the title or escrow company after the wire is sent.
A wire can be difficult to reverse, so immediate action is essential if fraud is suspected.
No procedure can eliminate every risk; follow the specific security process provided by your bank and settlement team.
What Is Closing Wire Fraud?
Closing wire fraud occurs when a criminal impersonates a trusted party — such as a title company, escrow officer, real estate agent, lender or attorney — and directs closing funds to an account controlled by the criminal. The message may look authentic because an email account was compromised, a domain was imitated or transaction details were gathered through phishing or other methods.
The deception is often timed for the busy days before closing. A message may claim that wiring instructions have changed, that the transfer must happen immediately or that the recipient cannot be reached by phone. Because wire transfers move quickly and may be hard to recover, prevention depends on slowing down and verifying independently.
Common Warning Signs
1. Establish Trusted Contacts Early
Before the final days of the transaction, write down the names and independently verified phone numbers of the title or escrow officer, real estate agent and lender. Ask how wiring instructions will be delivered, whether a secure portal is used and what the company’s verification procedure requires. Saving this information early gives you a safe reference when a questionable message appears.
2. Verify Instructions Through a Known Phone Number
Before sending funds, call the title or escrow company using a number you obtained earlier from a trusted source. Do not use a phone number, link or reply button contained in the message being verified. Read back the recipient name, bank name, routing number and account number. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recommends confirming closing instructions with trusted representatives in person or through a previously agreed phone number.
3. Treat Every Change as Suspicious
A request to change the receiving bank, account number, beneficiary or timing should trigger a complete stop-and-verify process. Even when the sender appears familiar or knows transaction details, contact your known escrow officer independently. Do not let a claimed deadline replace verification.
4. Inspect Messages Carefully
Check the complete email address — not only the display name — for extra letters, substituted characters or an unfamiliar domain. Watch for an unexpected shift in tone, grammar, signature or payment process. Avoid opening unfamiliar attachments or signing into a portal through a message link; navigate to the known website or saved portal instead.
5. Secure Your Email and Devices
Use a strong, unique password for email and enable multifactor authentication. Keep devices, browsers and security software updated. Avoid handling closing funds over public Wi-Fi, and never share passwords or one-time verification codes. If you suspect your email account was accessed, change the password from a trusted device, review forwarding rules and alert the closing team through a known contact method.
6. Confirm Details Immediately Before — and After — the Wire
On the day of the transfer, repeat the verbal verification process and follow your bank’s security procedures. Compare the verified details with the information entered at the bank before authorizing the wire. After sending, call your trusted title or escrow contact to confirm that the funds were received. A confirmation email alone is not a substitute for that independent call.
7. Have an Emergency Response Plan
Know whom to call before money moves. If anything appears wrong, immediately contact the fraud department at the financial institution that sent the wire and request that it stop, recall or reverse the transfer if possible. Then notify the title or escrow company using a trusted number. Report internet-enabled fraud to the FBI at IC3.gov and report the scam to the Federal Trade Commission at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Preserve emails, text messages, receipts, account details and timestamps for investigators.
Seconds matter: Do not wait for an email response if a wire may have been misdirected. Call the sending bank and the known title or escrow contact immediately. Recovery is not guaranteed, but rapid action may improve the chance of stopping or recalling funds.
What Buyers, Sellers and Agents Often Miss
A convincing message can still be fraudulent. Correct names, property details and email history do not prove that new wiring instructions are legitimate.
Replying to the same email thread may keep you inside a compromised conversation. Start a new call using contact information saved earlier.
Sellers also face risk. Fraudsters may substitute false proceeds instructions or impersonate a seller requesting an account change.
Standard title insurance is not general wire-fraud coverage. Any closing protection letter, endorsement or separate protection has its own terms and limitations.
Bottom Line
The most effective habit is simple: stop, verify and use a trusted channel before money moves. Establish contacts early, distrust unexpected changes, protect your accounts and confirm receipt after the transfer. These steps cannot eliminate every risk, but they can make impersonation much harder and help the closing team respond faster when something feels wrong.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can legitimate wiring instructions be sent by email?
Procedures vary. Some companies use secure portals or provide written instructions electronically, but you should independently verify the complete instructions through a previously established phone number before sending funds.
What if an email says the wiring instructions changed?
Do not send money. Call the title or escrow company at a trusted number obtained earlier and verify the request. Treat any last-minute change as suspicious until independently confirmed.
Should I send a small test wire first?
A test transfer does not prove that an account belongs to the correct settlement party. Follow the bank’s and title or escrow company’s verification process instead.
Is a cashier’s check safer than a wire?
Accepted funding methods and risks vary by transaction and company policy. Ask your escrow team which methods are permitted, then independently verify any instructions.
Does owner’s title insurance cover wire fraud?
A standard owner’s title insurance policy is not general wire-fraud coverage. Other protections may exist in some transactions, but their availability and terms vary.
What should I do if I already sent money to the wrong account?
Call the sending bank’s fraud department and your known title or escrow contact immediately. Request a stop, recall or reversal if possible, then file reports with the FBI at IC3.gov and the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
Who should verify the wire?
The person authorizing the transfer should independently verify the instructions with the known title or escrow contact. Agents and family members can reinforce the process, but the sender should not assume someone else completed verification.
Sources
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: Mortgage closing scams
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: Review documents before closing
Federal Bureau of Investigation: Business Email Compromise
Federal Trade Commission: What to do if you were scammed
American Land Title Association: Wire fraud resources
Related Articles
What Does a Title and Escrow Company Actually Do?
What Is a Title Commitment — and What Should You Look For?
What Is Owner’s Title Insurance — and What Does It Cover?
Have a question about secure closing procedures?: The A Team at American Title Service Agency helps real estate professionals and their clients understand title and escrow communications and move toward a smooth closing. Email ATeam@atsaaz.com to connect with our team or ask about English- and Spanish-speaking escrow support.
Alexis Johnson is a title representative and marketing partner with the A Team at American Title Service Agency in Arizona. She helps real estate professionals support smooth closings, strengthen communication and grow their businesses.
Contact: ATeam@atsaaz.com
Disclaimer: This article provides general education, not legal, financial, cybersecurity or insurance advice. Fraud methods and company procedures vary. Follow the instructions of your bank and title or escrow company for your transaction.