Mortgage fraud still prevalent, hard to catch

The FBI says mortgage fraud remains prevalent despite the modest improvements in the economy.

A report issued by the federal law enforcement agency Friday says mortgage fraud schemes are particularly resilient and hard to discover.

The agency says the total dollar loss to the fraud is unknown, but the housing market remains in distress with ample opportunity for fraud.

The schemes include short sale fraud, illegal flipping of houses and others. The FBI says perpetrators include members of the mortgage industry and organized crime groups from overseas.