The family group chat exploded while I was reviewing satellite images for a coastal restoration project. My older brother, Julian, proudly announced that he had just bought my beachfront home at a foreclosure auction for only $400,000.
My father immediately replied that he had wired Julian $200,000 to help complete the purchase. My mother congratulated them both on what she called “a brilliant family investment.”
I stared at the messages in disbelief.
Three weeks earlier, I had paid off the final $1.2 million on that mortgage.
The balance on my banking app still read exactly what it should.
$0.00.
The house was worth nearly $2.8 million, and no foreclosure had ever existed.
Before I could type a response, my phone rang.
A senior executive from my bank spoke before I could say hello.
“Someone is standing at the county courthouse right now,” he said, “trying to buy your house using forged foreclosure documents.”
My blood ran cold.
