Referral cites falsified documents for favorable loan terms spanning 2003–2019
Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., is the subject of a federal criminal investigation related to alleged mortgage fraud, according to a Trump administration source who spoke with Fox News. The investigation is being led by the US Attorney’s Office in Maryland and follows a criminal referral from the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to the Department of Justice (DOJ).
The FHFA referral, sent in May, accuses Schiff of repeatedly falsifying bank documents and property records to secure favorable mortgage terms on a Potomac, Maryland, home between 2003 and 2019, according to a report from Independent. FHFA director Bill Pulte wrote that the senator’s actions may have violated multiple federal criminal statutes, including wire fraud, mail fraud, bank fraud, and making false statements to financial institutions.
Dual primary residence claims raise concerns
According to the FHFA, Schiff and his wife purchased the Maryland property in 2003 for $870,000, backed by a $610,000 Fannie Mae mortgage. Documents reviewed by federal investigators allegedly show Schiff declared the property as his primary residence during refinancing in 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2013, while simultaneously claiming a homeowner’s exemption for his condominium in Burbank, California—also listed as his primary residence.
The FHFA said Schiff did not identify the Maryland home as a secondary residence until 2020, despite holding office in California throughout the alleged misrepresentations. Pulte said that Schiff appears to have falsified records in order to receive favorable loan terms and benefited from lower interest rates tied to primary residence status.
A subsequent memo from Fannie Mae’s financial crimes unit alleged that Schiff had engaged in “a sustained pattern of possible occupancy misrepresentation” across five separate Fannie Mae loans.
Political backdrop
Schiff, a former House Intelligence Committee chair and prominent figure in the first impeachment trial of president Donald Trump, denied wrongdoing following the referral’s disclosure in July. In a statement on X, he characterized the probe as politically motivated, saying, “This baseless attempt at political retribution won’t stop me from holding [Trump] accountable.”
A spokesperson for Schiff told CNN that both residences were “occupied throughout the year and… not vacation properties,” adding that lenders were aware of the senator’s dual use.
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