Joel DyckReal Broker SK Ltd.
Saskatoon · From the topic map

How do I keep my down payment from being stolen by wire fraud when I buy in Saskatoon?

Protect your down payment by sending funds only to your own lawyer's trust account, confirmed by a phone call to a number you already have on file, never to wiring instructions received by email. The Law Society of Saskatchewan requires lawyers to hold client funds in a regulated trust account, which is the safeguard that matters here.

The common fraud pattern is an email that appears to come from your lawyer's office with new wiring instructions right before your possession date, timed to catch you when you are rushing to close. A fraudster who has compromised an email account can make that message look completely legitimate.

Before sending any funds, call your lawyer's office directly using a number from their website or a previous invoice, not a number provided in the email itself, and verbally confirm the trust account details, the same way you would confirm legal fees, typically $800 to $1,500, before paying them. This one call defeats almost every version of this scam.

A few minutes on the phone is a small price for the certainty that your down payment actually lands where it belongs. Get your hand-reviewed valuation from Joel Dyck.

Get your hand-reviewed valuation from Joel Dyck.

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