How to Spot a Fake Wire Email Before Closing

Email fraud is not a small-business problem you can ignore. The FBI's 2025 Internet Crime Report puts business email compromise losses above $3 billion. Real estate is a favorite target, because closings move large sums on tight timelines between parties who mostly talk by email.

The scam is simple. Someone gets into a mailbox in the deal, or registers a look-alike address. They watch the thread. Right before closing, they send "updated" wire instructions. The money goes to their account. It is usually gone within hours.

Seven signs the wire email is fake

1. The bank details changed. Any change to routing or account numbers late in a deal is the biggest red flag there is.
2. The address is almost right. One letter off, an extra word, a different ending such as .co instead of .com. Read the full address, not the display name.
3. The reply-to is different from the sender. Hit reply and look at where it is actually going.
4. It is urgent. "Funds must go out today." "The old account is frozen." Pressure is the point.
5. It avoids the phone. "I'm in meetings, just email me." "Please don't call, the office line is down."
6. The tone is slightly off. Different sign-off, odd grammar, a first name they never use.
7. It arrives at a strange time. Late at night, on a weekend, or right after a real message from the same person.

The one habit that stops every version

Call before you wire. Use a phone number you already had before this deal, or one from the company's official website that you look up yourself. Never use a number, link or contact from the email asking for the money.

That single rule beats look-alike domains, hacked mailboxes and perfect fakes, because the scammer does not control the phone at the real title company.

A few more habits worth keeping

• Agree on wire instructions early, by phone, and write down who you spoke to.
• Tell everyone in the deal that instructions will never change by email.
• Turn on two-step sign-in for every mailbox tied to a deal.
• If money went out and you suspect fraud, call your bank immediately and file a report at ic3.gov. Speed matters.

How Declutter.ai helps

Declutter.ai reads your deal mail every 10 minutes and puts the deadlines in a 6am brief. Any item that mentions a wire, an ACH, account numbers or a payment change comes with a line telling you to verify by phone with a number you already have. The brief never repeats links, phone numbers or bank details from the email, so it cannot become part of the scam.

It is a reminder, not a fraud detector. The phone call is still the thing that saves you.