One in five Australians has been scammed or knows someone caught out during a major purchase like property or a vehicle. That rate is climbing as markets cool and fraudsters refine their tactics faster than buyers and sellers update their defences.
The shift from boom to slowdown creates opportunity for bad actors. Fewer competing buyers means agents under pressure to close deals, policy changes push more people toward new builds where spruikers operate with bigger commissions, and AI has made scam emails and phone calls almost impossible to distinguish from legitimate contact.
A recent study of over 10,000 consumers across nine global markets found Australians are particularly vulnerable during property transactions because stress levels are high, deadlines are tight, and fear of missing out narrows judgement. Scammers know this and are timing their moves accordingly.
How fraud tactics have changed in the past 12 months
The tell-tale signs that previously flagged scams have disappeared. Spelling mistakes, poor grammar and badly copied logos are gone. AI tools now produce flawless impersonations of conveyancers, solicitors and real estate agents, complete with correct branding, professional tone and plausible urgency.
Scammers are also automating operations. AI agents can target multiple jurisdictions simultaneously, test which tactics work in which demographics, then refine and scale successful approaches. What used to be labour-intensive fraud now runs on autopilot with higher conversion rates.
Voice cloning is live. Scammers record snippets of a conveyancer or agent from public videos or phone calls, then use AI to generate convincing voice messages redirecting deposits to fraudulent accounts. The call sounds like the person you’ve been dealing with for weeks.
The tactics targeting buyers and sellers right now
Fake conveyancer emails: A message appears to come from your solicitor’s email address with updated bank details for your deposit. The branding is correct, the tone matches previous correspondence, and the urgency feels appropriate because settlement is approaching. The account is offshore and emptied within hours.
Deposit redirection scams: Fraudsters monitor property transactions, then contact buyers or sellers pretending to be the other party’s representative with a last-minute change to payment instructions. These messages often come late on a Friday or just before a public holiday when verification is harder.
AI voice calls: A call from a number close to your conveyancer’s office requests urgent payment to a new account due to a bank system issue. The voice is familiar, the story is plausible under time pressure, and the scammer has enough transaction details to sound credible.
New-build spruikers: Policy changes removing negative gearing for established homes are pushing more buyers toward new properties, where commissions can reach six figures. Spruikers are ramping up operations in this space, often presenting overpriced developments with inflated rental forecasts and buried contract terms.
The agent tactic known as the sandwich
In a slower market, some agents use a decades-old manipulation to pressure vendors into accepting lower offers. The tactic involves understating the actual offer amount to the seller, then drip-feeding incremental increases over several conversations.
A vendor who thinks they’ve been in active negotiation, with a buyer gradually lifting their bid from $950,000 to $980,000, is more likely to accept the final number than if they’d simply received one $980,000 offer upfront. It creates the illusion of progress and makes the agent appear to be working harder than they are.
This practice has increased as listing numbers rise and buyer activity slows. Agents are more confident in their ability to reduce a vendor’s price expectations than to lift a buyer’s offer, so they focus effort where they see the highest probability of closing the deal.
Protective steps that still work
Verify payment instructions independently every time. Never trust email alone. Call your conveyancer or solicitor using a phone number you sourced yourself from their website or previous paperwork, not a number provided in the email requesting payment. Ask them to confirm account details verbally.
Treat urgency as a red flag, not a reason to hurry. Scammers create artificial deadlines to prevent verification. If an email or call says you must transfer funds immediately or risk losing the property, that’s the moment to slow down and check.
Run payment details through a second conversation. Before transferring any deposit or settlement amount, have a friend or family member read the email and call transcript. A fresh perspective catches inconsistencies you might miss under pressure.
Use technology that flags scams in real time. Anti-scam browser extensions and email filters can identify phishing attempts and fraudulent links faster than manual checking. Education alone is struggling to keep pace with AI-generated fraud.
For new builds, pressure-test the numbers. Request independent rental appraisals, compare the purchase price to recent sales of similar stock in the same development, and ask what the agent’s commission is. If they won’t disclose it, that tells you something.
Check the agent’s recent sales. If they’ve suddenly pivoted from established homes to new developments after years of avoiding that segment, ask why. The answer might be policy-driven, or it might be commission-driven.
The catch most people miss
Previous anti-scam advice focused on spotting errors in emails and calls. That education is now outdated because AI has eliminated the errors. The assumption that a professional-looking email from a familiar address is safe no longer holds.
The other overlooked risk is the gap between when you’re most vulnerable and when you’re most vigilant. Scammers time their contact for the final days before settlement when stress peaks, multiple parties are communicating, and any delay feels catastrophic. That’s when verification feels like an obstacle rather than a safeguard.
What to do next
If you’re buying or selling in the next six months, set up a verification protocol now before the pressure starts. Write down the phone numbers for your conveyancer, solicitor and agent. Decide in advance that you will call those numbers to confirm any payment instruction, no matter how legitimate the email looks or how urgent the request sounds.
If you’re already mid-transaction and receive updated bank details, stop. Do not transfer funds until you’ve verbally confirmed the change with the person whose name is on the email, using contact details you already have.
For investors considering new builds after recent policy changes affecting established property, get independent valuations and rental appraisals before committing. If the developer’s forecast looks optimistic compared to comparable stock, ask what’s driving the difference.
In plain English: Scammers are better at impersonating your conveyancer than you are at spotting the fake. The defence is process, not instinct. Every payment instruction gets a phone call to verify, using a number you sourced yourself. No exceptions.
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General info, not financial advice.
