Jose Luis Fernandez, 60, invested a good amount of money with Ybis Del Carmen of Reality Golden Group, a woman he had known since 2012. It’s not uncommon for senior people to fall for real estate scams. However, Jose wasn’t too worried as he had someone familiar by his side. Little did he know that he would lose his life’s savings due to this decision.
According to a report by WPLG Local 10 News, Fernandez gave Ybis full access to his business bank account at Truist Bank. He trusted her with transactions on his behalf for six foreclosure properties valued at around $842,000. The woman also provided him with documents in support of the various sales, which completely diminished any doubt Jose had in his mind.
However, as it turns out, it was all fake, just a part of her elaborate real estate fraud scheme. Del Carmen never purchased any of the properties and ended up stealing more than $1.6 million from the 60-year-old Florida Sunny Isles Beach resident.
The incident unfolded when Fernandez began pressing her for his money, and she just kept making excuses to delay it. “I lost everything,” the man told WPLG News.
According to the outlet, Del Carmen was ultimately arrested by the Sunny Isles Beach Police Department. She is now facing the charges of organized fraud and grand theft. With the investigation ongoing, the authorities suspect she might have stole from other investors as well apart from Jose. They have encouraged people who are aware of her crime to report any incident anonymously.
This case has once again sounded the alarm on the rising real estate scams. According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Report, in 2024 alone, at least 9,359 real estate fraud complaints were filed, and most of the victims were older people.
With all the cases combined, the consumers lost over $173,000 million. The report reveals that people ages over 60 are more prone to these schemes. According to last year’s data, at least 1,765 complaints were filed by consumers of this age category with the total losses coming at a whopping $76.324,236.
5 legal tips to help you avoid scams when buying property (in real estate transactions) pic.twitter.com/TEvau731M4
— Timi Agbaje (@timiagbaje_) June 24, 2025
“Seniors are often targeted because they tend to be trusting and polite. They also usually have financial savings, own a home and have good credit — all of which make them attractive to scammers,” the FBI explained about any scams in general.
In real estate frauds, it’s easier to target them because all a scammer like Del Carmen need to is pretend to be the agent in charge, then go on an forge some sale documents. Creating these documents are also not that difficult as anyone can download public records and manipulate to make them look legitimate. Even younger people can fall for this scam.
So, how to spot if you are being defrauded? First red flag is if the property you are about to invest in, seems like too much of a bargain. In this case, a simple background check or a search of the usual housing prices in your area would confirm everything.
If the property is off-market, which means if it is not listed on MLS, that’s enough to pull out immediately. The next step is to verify your agent’s license before agreeing to any transaction. Last but not least, inspecting your paperwork.
Experts suggest the best way is simply to hire a real estate attorney who would review all the paperwork and contract on your behalf. While following these steps doesn’t guarantee any fraud, they would surely prevent it before it actually happens.
