We all hear about identity theft in the news and about fraudulent credit card charges, but don’t we really expect that it will happen “to someone else” and not to us.  Alas, a Sequim home buyer found out that it can happen to them.  In 37 years in real estate, I’ve never had a buyer get hit by fraudulent charges on their credit card, but it has happened, and the timing is most unfortunate.  The fraudulent credit card charges showed up during the loan application process.

Identity Theft

Identity theft raises two issues.  The first is the loss of your money and how to prevent that.  There is a lot of help on the Internet on how to protect your identity and your accounts.  I would recommend a service that helps to track potential uses of your identity 24/7 in hundreds of places.  That service is called LifeLock.  I receive no referral or affiliate fee for mentioning the company, but they are very good at protecting you from identity theft. 

Identity Theft and Your Home Loan

When you are buying a home in Sequim, this could kill your loan, but identity theft that steals money from your bank account does not necessarily mean your home loan will not be approved.  If the theft changed the formula on your income to debt ratio, your loan could be effected.  But if the amount of money stolen is small and the bank covers it as they should, your loan should proceed according to plan.

Identity Theft Resources

Learn more about identity theft at:

http://www.lifelock.com/identity-theft/types/

Last Updated on October 4, 2011 by Chuck Marunde