I am shocked!

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Pasadena-area broker Doug Willis posted a disturbing report from the field on his blog last week. He says an agent representing someone short-selling a house told him the place could be his if Willis’ client would throw in a sweetener: $15,000 cash, under the table.

As Willis points out in the item titled ‘Would You Mind Repeating That?’ such a payment would defraud the lender holding the note on the property and would also constitute fraud and tax evasion by not disclosing the terms of the sale.

Willis said he left a phone message for the brokerage representing the seller, but when I spoke to him late Friday, he’d not heard back.

As real estate activity picks up this spring, perhaps we’ll see more shady activity as well.

Anybody else have some recent shenanigans to share?

-- Peter Y. Hong