The Ventura County Coastal Association of Realtors®, (VCCAR), today voiced its full support to the Ventura County District Attorney’s office in its efforts to bring to justice the 13 individuals, seven of whom were real estate agents, arrested in connection with filing fraudulent loan applications.

VCCAR President Susan Herrick stated that the local Realtors® association is proud of its relationship with the Real Estate Fraud Advisory Team, (REFAT), of which it is a founding partner, and working with Senior Deputy District Attorney Miles Weiss, head of the Ventura County Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Program, which resulted in the arrests.

“We are pleased that our members participated in this effort in identifying and curtailing this kind of real estate mortgage fraud and hope these efforts continue,” Herrick said.

Steve Goddard, president of the California Association of Realtors®, (C.A.R.), added that the state association, which has 160,000 members, and includes all Ventura County Realtors®, has a long-standing commitment to ethical practices for real estate practitioners.

“C.A.R. was an advocate in support of SB-537, legislation passed in 1995 that created the resources to fund the fraud enforcement activities of law enforcement agencies, including the Ventura County District Attorney’s Fraud Unit,” Goddard said. “The legislation imposed a $4.00 fee on real estate recordings, which counties could opt in to, with the proceeds supporting fraud enforcement efforts at the local level. It’s gratifying to witness the results in Ventura County,” Goddard said.

The Ventura County Coastal Association of Realtors® represents real estate practitioners in the cities of Ventura, Oxnard, Camarillo, Santa Paula, Fillmore and Port Hueneme in West Ventura County.