Fraud plagues the first-time buyer program

There was a report on the news last night about the growing cases of fraud being discovered in the first-time buyer tax rebate program. The sleazy operators of the world will always find ways to game the system. What was interesting to me in the report was not the thousands and thousands who have made claims to be first time buyers, when in fact they either already own a home or certainly are not first time buyers (even by the 3 year rule in the program). You could have bet on that happening, as I have opined here before. What was more surprising is that well over ten thousand people have claimed the tax rebate without even buying a house – they just said that they planned to buy a house. Well, excuse me, how the hell did that happen. Why couldn’t everyone in America just say that they planned to buy a house and ask for their $8,000.

I am a proponent of the program and I think it has done a lot of good to re-ignite the housing market; however, I’m appalled that our government is so inept that it would actually send checks to people who have no proof that they’ve actually bought a house. We can only hope that someone in whatever bureaucratic office is in charge of that gets canned AND that everyone whom they catch committing fraud gets a new home - behind bars somewhere. I know it won’t happen. Bureaucrats never get fired and most people caught in fraud cases usually just get a slap on the wrist and a fine that they likely never pay anyway.

I think I’ve figured out a legal way to work this whole thing. I’m going to send in a rebate request and make the claim that I will absolutely not buy a house, because I don’t qualify; however, that I feel that I deserve $8,000 anyway for being honest about it. There’s probably some government boob somewhere who would authorize the check. It wouldn’t be fraud, since I would be honestly admitting that I’m not buying a house and that I don’t qualify. What do you think?