U.S. mortgage fraud cases rise 35 percent

Mortgage fraud cases surged last quarter as the Obama administration stepped up its efforts with its Operation Stolen Dreams program, according to a new report from MortgageDaily.com. The site counted 266 active mortgage fraud cases worth a total of $2.25 billion in the second quarter, up from 172 cases worth $1.92 billion one quarter earlier. During the second quarter of last year, there were 195 cases worth $1.61 billion. Florida had the second-highest mortgage fraud index for the second quarter of 2010 — which is based upon both dollar amount and number of active cases — in the country. With $146.7 million in active cases, the state ranked behind California, which had $435.8 million. TRD