WASHINGTON, March 16 (UPI) -- Mortgages are down but fraud is up in the United States, new lending industry figures revealed Monday.
The Washington Post reported the industry study indicated mortgage fraud spiked upward by 26 percent in 2008, compared with the previous year.
The study, prepared for the Mortgage Bankers Association by the LexisNexis' Mortgage Asset Research Institute, included responses from about 70 percent of the nation's lenders, the Post said.
Rhode Island was ranked the No. 1 most-troubled state, overtaking Florida, which led the list the previous year. Next came Illinois, Georgia and Maryland, the Post said. Rounding out the top 10 were New York, Michigan, California, Missouri and Colorado.
"With fewer loan originations today, the data suggest that the economic downturn may have created more desperation, causing more people than ever before to try to commit mortgage fraud," said Denise James, one of the study's authors.
The most common type of fraud -- 61 percent of all cases -- is application misrepresentation, such as lying about income. Fraud on tax returns and financial statements also is common.
