The Boston condominium sellers of your dream home have just accepted your offer, and it’s time to transfer your deposit into the escrow account. The Seller’s agent sends you secure wiring instructions and you decide to log in to your bank account and process the deposit transfer from the Web site.

There are a few things you should know before you transfer your deposit. Here are a few tips that all buyers should know before they pull the trigger and send that hefty sum of money:

Call the Broker and verify the wiring instructions. Fraud is rampant when it comes to real estate-related money. The first order of business is to call your sellers real estate office; verify the phone number beforehand, don’t automatically call the number listed in the wiring instruction email. Confirm the escrow account details, such as the bank, routing, account and escrow numbers before you initiate the wire.

Wire your deposit. You will want to select a same-day wire transfer to the escrow account. There is a fee for this ($30-$40 per wire). Take note that banks have a cut-off time for the bank to send the money (for example, midday). Write down your Federal Reference number which is provided for a wire transfer and will be useful if you need to track the funds.

Initiate the wire on the phone or at a branch office. This is the ideal way to wire the deposit and ensure that you’re doing it correctly. Don’t be afraid to go old school.

Boston condo buyers, is your money safe in an escrow account?

Escrow fraud is quite unusual, it can occur, but there are steps you can take to protect yourself.

First, some explanation: When you put an Offer on a Boston condo for sale the buyers put their deposit in an escrow account usually with the listing Boston real estate broker or designated lawyer, which holds it until the time of closing to safeguard it.

Boston Real Estate Escrow and Fraud

Occasionally, though, high profile cases of fraud do happen. Recently, a real estate attorney disappeared, and his clients are worried about the whereabouts of millions of dollars placed in escrow accounts he managed, according to The Real Deal.

Still, such incidents are highly unusual, because stealing escrow deposits comes with heavy consequences for the holder of the funds

“I think most people are too honest or too scared to mess with it. It’s one of the things that gets you disbarred, and it’s criminal,” says Sam Himmelstein, a lawyer who represents residential and commercial tenants and tenant associations (and FYI, a Brick sponsor). “But you are relying on the lawyer to do the right thing,” he says.

Despite the rarity of escrow fraud, some buyers do feel nervous about the security of their deposit. They can protect themselves by drawing up an escrow agreement or requesting that their lawyer hold the funds

Should the worse happen, Boston condo buyers who end up in this unfortunate situation would work with a lawyer to sue the offending attorney and recover their losses; there is also a state fund that can help them get back their stolen deposits.