In 2011, fraudulent applications for mortgages increased to 3431, 2.2 times higher than the figure for 2006.
The rate was also 8% higher than in 2010, making it the fifth year in a row that mortgage fraud increased.
In the majority of cases, attempted mortgage fraud was committed by individuals misrepresenting their personal information on applications. The most common attempts at deception included omitting adverse credit history and falsifying employment or financial information.
Young, small town, poorly educated applicants and middle aged, middle and skilled working class applicants were each responsible for 15% of first party mortgage fraud cases in 2011.
Following close behind were young, well educated professionals at 13%.
Nick Mothershaw, a director of identity and fraud at Experian, the information service which carried out the research, said that attempted mortgage and insurance fraud had a significant first party fraud element to them. He commented: “This type of fraud tends to originate from financially stressed segments of society.”
The news came a month after the National Fraud Authority estimated that the mortgage industry would lose £1bn to fraud this year.
