Scammers send fake escrow emails with their own bank details, and they can look exactly like ours. Before you send money or bank details, call us at (714) 962-0999, the number on this site, and check the instructions. If money already went out, call your bank first, then report it at ic3.gov.
Four made-up messages: two for buyers, one for sellers, one trick from our real address. Pick real or fake, and see the tells.
Practice message 1 of 4
Hi! Quick update. Our bank changed this morning, so please send your down payment to the new account in the attached PDF. It has to go out by 3 p.m. today or your closing could slip.
One habit beats every one of these. Before you send money or bank details, call us at (714) 962-0999. Use the number on this site, never one from an email or a text.
Got here from a link in a message? Type www.advantageoneescrow.com into your browser yourself.
Made-up messages, just for practice.
The FBI calls it business email compromise. In a real estate deal, it usually goes like this.
Criminals break into an email account, or set up an address that looks like one, and pose as someone in your deal: an agent, a title officer, an escrow officer, even the buyer or the seller.
The message looks routine. The bank account is theirs. It often comes with a deadline, so you won’t stop to check.
Once a wire lands in their account, they move it again quickly. That’s why the first minutes after a wrong wire matter most.
Sellers get these messages as well: a text or an email asking where to send your sale money, with a link or a form for your bank details.
Never send bank details in reply to an email or a text, even one that looks like ours. Call us at (714) 962-0999, and we’ll tell you how your money reaches you.
Minutes matter. Do these in order.
Ask it to recall the wire, and to contact the bank that received the money. Do this the moment you suspect fraud.
File a complaint at ic3.gov, with the banking details the form asks for, whatever the amount. The FBI’s Recovery Asset Team works with banks to try to freeze money from fraudulent transfers. It’s an attempt, not a guarantee.
Call (714) 962-0999. If we’re closed, call the minute we open. Save our number to your phone.
The Orange County Clerk-Recorder mails property owners a free courtesy notice when a document affecting the title to their property is recorded. There’s nothing to sign up for. If you get one you don’t expect, contact the Recorder.
If yours isn’t here, call and ask: (714) 962-0999.
You can’t tell for sure from the email. Real accounts get hacked, so even a message from our real address can be a trap. Call us at (714) 962-0999, the number on this site, before you act on any wiring instructions.
It’s the FBI’s name for scams where criminals break into or copy an email account to trick someone into sending money. In real estate, the fake message usually carries new wiring instructions for a deposit, a down payment or a seller’s proceeds.
Sometimes. Call your bank right away and ask it to recall the wire, then report it at ic3.gov. The FBI’s Recovery Asset Team works with banks to try to freeze the money, but there’s no guarantee, so every minute counts.
Your bank first, then the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov. Then call us at (714) 962-0999.
Never in reply to an email or a text. Call us at (714) 962-0999 first, and we’ll tell you how your money reaches you.
Checked September 2026 against California law and the state agencies’ own pages. Page updated . This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Every deal is different, so talk to your attorney or CPA about yours.