Closing from Abroad: How It Works and the Fraud That Targets Foreign Buyers

Closing on a US property without setting foot in the country is routine. Offer, inspection, financing and signing can all be handled remotely. The part that deserves your attention is not the paperwork — it is the wire. The FBI recorded US$ 275,110,419 in real estate fraud losses in 2025 across 12,368 complaints, up from roughly US$ 173.6 million the year before. A foreign buyer sending six figures to a title company they have never met is the ideal target.

How a remote closing actually works

The title company runs it. In Florida, a title company or closing attorney acts as the neutral party: it searches the chain of title, resolves defects, issues title insurance, holds the deposit in escrow and disburses funds at closing.

Your deposit sits in escrow, not with the seller. That is the point of the structure.

Signing is done electronically or by power of attorney. Many documents can be e-signed. Where an original wet signature or notarisation is required, a limited power of attorney lets a named representative sign on your behalf, or you sign before a US consulate or a notary whose act is recognised.

Funds move by international wire, which is where the exposure sits.

What title insurance is actually for

It covers defects in the ownership history that a search did not reveal: an unreleased lien, a forged signature in a prior transfer, an unknown heir with a claim. For a buyer who cannot inspect records personally and is unfamiliar with the jurisdiction, it is not an optional line item.

The fraud, and how it works

The mechanism is business email compromise. An attacker monitors the email traffic around a pending closing — often by compromising an agent, attorney or title company mailbox — then sends the buyer wire instructions that look exactly like the legitimate ones, timed to the day funds are due. The account details are the attacker's.

One case in the FBI's 2025 report describes buyers closing on a home who received an email impersonating their own attorneys and wired more than US$ 449,000. In that instance the funds were traced, frozen and recovered — because it was reported fast.

Across all categories, business email compromise accounted for US$ 3.04 billion in reported losses in 2025.

Five rules that prevent it

1. Never accept wire instructions sent by email. Not even from someone you have corresponded with for months. Treat emailed instructions as unverified by default.
2. Call to verify, using a number you obtained independently — from the company's website or a prior document, never from the email containing the instructions.
3. Be suspicious of any change. Legitimate closing agents rarely change bank details mid-transaction. A message saying the account has changed is the single most common signal.
4. Send a small test wire first where the schedule allows, and confirm receipt by phone before sending the balance.
5. Agree the verification protocol in writing at the start, before any funds are due — who will call whom, on which number.

If it happens, the first hour decides the outcome

Recovery is possible but time-dependent. The FBI operates a Recovery Asset Team whose Financial Fraud Kill Chain can freeze funds at the receiving bank when a report arrives quickly enough.

1. Call your sending bank immediately and request a recall.
2. File a report at the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center, ic3.gov, with the wire details.
3. Contact the receiving bank.
4. Notify the title company and your agent — their systems may also be compromised.

Hours matter here, not days. The case above was recovered because the report was fast.

Sources

• FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center — 2025 IC3 Annual Report
• FBI IC3 — report a cyber-enabled crime
• National Association of Realtors — real estate fraud losses, 2025

General information as of October 2026. Figures are from the FBI IC3 2025 Annual Report. This is not legal advice; consult your closing agent and a Florida attorney on procedure for your transaction.