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https://complyadvantage.com/insights/real-estate-money-laundering/


"According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), money laundering through real estate is one of the oldest known ways to move and hide illicit funds. Often viewed as a popular means to “wash” funds because large amounts of money can be laundered in one transaction, a report by Global Financial Integrity (GFI) found that more than $2.3 billion was laundered through US real estate from 2015 to 2021.

In our State of Financial Crime 2025 survey, 51 percent of respondents cited high-end asset laundering, including real estate, as one of their biggest financial crime concerns. Due to the far-reaching impact of money laundering on the property sector – including consequences of a social and economic nature – it’s critical for compliance professionals to understand how the typology works and what tools are needs to better mitigate the risk it presents.

How does money laundering through real estate work?
Money laundering through real estate integrates illicit funds into the legitimate financial system while also providing the criminal with a relatively “safe” property investment. This can include the purchase of houses, apartments, office space, factories, hotels, vineyards, etc.

Criminals can further enrich themselves by:

Renting out a property they have purchased
Renovating a new property and re-selling it
Cashing in on property appreciation over time
In addition, the price of real estate is fairly easy to manipulate and, with collusion, property can be over- or undervalued. In fact, gatekeepers in the sector – realtors, property developers, mortgage advisors, brokers, etc. – have sometimes been found to be complicit and accept financial compensation to turn a blind eye to real estate money laundering.".... (more)