According to an article in the Arizona Republic this week, Arizona now ranks fourth for mortgage fraud nationally . It's the first time the state has cracked the top five for the problem, according to data released this week from the Mortgage Asset Research Institute.

"Florida, New York and California (in that order) rank ahead of Arizona in 2009 mortgage-fraud cases. The most prevalent type of home-loan fraud is application misrepresentation, which includes borrowers

lying about income. Overall, U.S. mortgage fraud climbed 7 percent last year."

Add to this the fact that today, 1 out of every 6 homeowners in America is behind on mortgage payments. Any way you look at it, times are tough and confusing. Whatever your real estate question, it helps to have a professional explain in layman's terms what your options are. If you have questions, give me a call at 480-706-7206 or visit my website for information and resources.