Verifi study · open data
Property fraud 2024-2026: lost advance payments tracker
Romania has no official property fraud statistics. Using public sources, we have aggregated the major cases reported in 2024-2026: Nordis, White Tower and City Gate, Oxy Residence 2, the duplexes in Brașov and others. For each case, we publish the reported number of affected buyers, reported losses, judicial status and sources, with links. The totals are a minimum estimate, not an official figure, and the data is open: downloadable in JSON and CSV, and freely citable with a link to this page.
Minimum estimate aggregated from public sources, not official statistics. Ranges contribute their lower bound to the total, amounts in euros and lei are aggregated separately, and cases without a publicly reported total are excluded from the sum. The full methodology is below.
Cases at a glance
The figures are those publicly reported, with the source for each given below in the dedicated section. Judicial status is reproduced exactly as reported; people subject to ongoing investigations are presumed innocent.
| Case | County | Reported affected buyers | Reported losses |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nordis (Nordis Management, Nordis Mamaia) | București / Constanța (multiple projects) | 850 | min. 71.000.000 € |
| White Tower and City Gate (Ploiești) | Prahova | 100+ | min. 8.000.000 € |
| Oxy Residence 2 (București) | București | 50 | total not reported |
| Duplex scam (Brașov County) | Brașov | 10 | min. 2.810.000 lei |
| Mortgaged apartments sold as unencumbered (Chiajna, Ilfov) | Ilfov | 8 | min. 330.000 € |
| Unauthorised apartment block in Zorilor (Cluj-Napoca) | Cluj | neraportat | total not reported |
| Advance payment lost to an individual seller (Cluj-Napoca) | Cluj | 2 | min. 80.000 € |
Each case with its sources
Each case has a permanent anchor that is easy to cite or share. All facts below are public reports attributed to their sources; Verifi does not make independent allegations.
Nordis (Nordis Management, Nordis Mamaia)
București / Constanța (multiple projects) · conduct under investigation: 2019-2025; investigation ongoing
- Reported mechanism
- Apartments sold off-plan, with advance or full payments collected but no delivery; some units were sold more than once, according to DIICOT.
- Reported affected buyers
- 850 people who paid advance payments or the full price, according to DIICOT
- Reported losses
- 71-75 million euros in losses estimated by DIICOT
- Status
- Case under criminal investigation by DIICOT: 400 volumes, more than 2,000 people interviewed; on 8 April 2026, prosecutors ordered an extensive financial expert examination of the group's activities (2019-2025), while the indictment and preliminary chamber proceedings are expected around 2027, according to the press. The presumption of innocence applies.
White Tower and City Gate (Ploiești)
Prahova · multiple sales discovered from 2023-2024; trial ongoing
- Reported mechanism
- The same apartments sold more than once to different buyers, through promises to sell followed by notarised sales to other people, according to the press.
- Reported affected buyers
- 100-300 affected buyers; public estimates vary
- Reported losses
- 8-12 million euros, according to press reports
- Status
- Case before the court: the 11th hearing was reached in March 2026, and repeated adjournments led affected buyers to protest in the streets, according to Găzarul and Știrile ProTV.
Oxy Residence 2 (București)
București · payments collected in 2023-2024; case reported in February 2026
- Reported mechanism
- Apartments sold more than once in the same complex; the developer became untraceable, leaving buyers with unfulfilled preliminary contracts, according to the press.
- Reported affected buyers
- more than 50 clients, according to press reports
- Reported losses
- 50-60,000 euros paid per apartment; no public aggregate total was reportedNo publicly reported total: the case is excluded from the aggregate sum.
- Status
- Criminal complaints filed by buyers, according to Playtech (February 2026). The presumption of innocence applies.
- Sources
Duplex scam (Brașov County)
Brașov · advance payments collected in 2024-2026; searches in July 2026
- Reported mechanism
- The same newly built duplexes promised for sale to multiple clients through preliminary contracts, although the homes were never built or handed over, according to prosecutors cited by the press.
- Reported affected buyers
- 10 affected buyers, according to the Parchetul de pe lângă Judecătoria Brașov
- Reported losses
- 2.81 million lei in advance payments collected; 1.52 million euros in cash seized during searches
- Status
- Criminal investigation: searches in early July 2026, two suspects placed under judicial supervision, according to Digi24 and Știrile ProTV. The suspects have not been publicly named and are presumed innocent.
Mortgaged apartments sold as unencumbered (Chiajna, Ilfov)
Ilfov · May 2024 - June 2025; arrests in January 2026
- Reported mechanism
- Apartments presented as free of encumbrances, although they had already been promised, sold, mortgaged or made subject to a prohibition on disposal; privately signed preliminary contracts, with below-market prices, according to investigators cited by the press.
- Reported affected buyers
- 8 people, according to the Parchetul de pe lângă Judecătoria Sectorului 5
- Reported losses
- approximately 330,000 euros
- Status
- Criminal investigation: one suspect in pre-trial detention and one under house arrest (January 2026), according to Știrile ProTV and Digi24. The presumption of innocence applies.
Unauthorised apartment block in Zorilor (Cluj-Napoca)
Cluj · advance payments collected in previous years; final ruling reported in May 2026
- Reported mechanism
- Advance payments of tens of thousands of euros collected for apartments in a building wing that could not be completed or entered in the land register because it lacked a building permit, according to the local press.
- Reported affected buyers
- several people; no total number was publicly reported
- Reported losses
- tens of thousands of euros per buyer; no public aggregate total was reportedNo publicly reported total: the case is excluded from the aggregate sum.
- Status
- Fraud convictions reviewed on appeal; ruling by the Curtea de Apel Cluj, reported in May 2026 by Știri de Cluj.
- Sources
Advance payment lost to an individual seller (Cluj-Napoca)
Cluj · case reported in 2026
- Reported mechanism
- Two young people paid an 80,000-euro advance under a preliminary contract for an apartment sold by an individual; the seller then refused to complete the sale, and the home was relisted at a higher price, according to the press. A civil case, not a criminal one: precisely the area not covered by Law 207/2025.
- Reported affected buyers
- 2 buyers
- Reported losses
- 80,000 euros paid as an advance payment
- Status
- Civil dispute reported by the press: the buyers are trying to recover their advance payment; this is not a criminal investigation.
- Sources
Context: how much fraud is officially reported
The closest official reference is the general statistics on fraud cases: approximately 9,800 criminal cases opened in the first 7 months of 2025 by economic crime investigation officers, according to Poliția Română data cited by the press (Economedia, 2025). Important: the figure covers all types of fraud, from online fraud to services fraud, not just property transactions. An official property fraud breakdown is not published; that is why this study manually aggregates publicly reported cases.
How to read the data (methodology)
- What is included in the aggregate
- Property fraud cases in Romania involving facts publicly reported in 2024-2026, each with at least one verifiable source and a link. We name only companies, projects and public cases; we do not name private individuals.
- Why “minimum estimate”
- Reported ranges (for example 100-300 affected buyers) contribute their lower bound to the total. Cases without a publicly reported total are excluded from the sum, although their affected buyers exist. The actual total is almost certainly higher than the one published here.
- Separate currencies, no conversion
- Amounts reported in euros are aggregated separately from those reported in lei. We do not apply an exchange rate, to avoid introducing an assumption of our own into a citable figure.
- Judicial status and the presumption of innocence
- The status of each case is reproduced exactly as reported (criminal investigation, judicial supervision, ongoing trial, conviction). No statement in the study is an allegation made independently by Verifi, and people subject to ongoing investigations are presumed innocent.
- Update
- Last updated:2026-07-08. The tracker is updated as new verifiable reports appear; each JSON/CSV export carries the version date.
Frequently asked questions
- Which cases are included in this tracker?
- Major property fraud cases in Romania publicly reported in 2024-2026, with a verifiable source: projects involving apartments sold more than once, advance payments collected for undelivered homes, or properties presented as free of encumbrances despite being mortgaged. Each row has its own source with a link.
- Why is the total a “minimum estimate”?
- Because we aggregate only publicly reported figures, and ranges contribute their lower bound to the total. Cases without a publicly reported total loss (for example Oxy Residence 2, where the press reported only amounts per apartment) are excluded from the sum. The actual figure is almost certainly higher.
- Are there official property fraud statistics?
- No. The police report fraud cases in aggregate across all types (approximately 9,800 cases in the first 7 months of 2025), without a dedicated breakdown for property transactions. This aggregation partially fills that very gap.
- Why do you not convert amounts in lei into euros?
- To avoid introducing an exchange rate of our own choosing into a citable figure. Amounts reported in euros are aggregated separately from those reported in lei; both totals are published as they stand.
- May I use and cite the data?
- Yes. The dataset can be downloaded free of charge from this page in JSON or CSV under the CC BY 4.0 licence: free to cite, with attribution to Verifi and a link to the study.
- What legislative changes followed the Nordis case?
- Law 207/2025, also known as the “Nordis Law”, in force since 11 December 2025, limits advance payments for homes bought off-plan and requires the promise to sell to be noted in the land register. However, it covers only developers: sales between individuals, land and rentals remain outside its scope.
- How can you protect yourself as a buyer?
- Before any advance payment: a recent land register extract, checks on the seller (litigation, insolvency, companies) and written terms for the payment in the preliminary contract. The practical steps are in Verifi's guide to protecting your advance payment under a preliminary contract.
Editorial provenance
Versions and corrections
We keep presentation changes separate from data corrections, so a citation can be checked against the version used.
- v1.0Publication
Publicarea datasetului și a metodologiei
Cazurile, agregatele minime, sursele și exporturile JSON/CSV au fost publicate ca aceeași versiune citabilă.
- v1.1Presentation
Ledger public de versiune
Am adăugat evidența schimbărilor și corecțiilor; cazurile și valorile datasetului nu au fost modificate.
Current version status: Ledgerul nu consemnează corecții ale datelor în versiunea curentă.
Cite and use the data
The data may be freely cited in articles and other material, with attribution to the source and a link to this page (CC BY 4.0 licence). The full table of cases, with sources and judicial statuses, can be downloaded in JSON or CSV; each file includes licence fields and the date of the latest update.
Suggested citation:
Verifi, “Property fraud 2024-2026: lost advance payments tracker”, verifi.ro/studiu-fraude-imobiliare-2026
Press and data contact: [email protected]
Almost all the cases above share one feature: money was paid before checks were made. What the new law covers (and does not cover), plus the practical steps to take before an advance payment: