It’s said everything goes up—and financial fraud is no exception.

One dollar of fraud, cost lenders $3.05 in 2018, compared to just $2.82 in 2017, an 8.1 percent increase. Digital lenders, with at least $50 million in annual revenue, are hit hardest by fraud, incurring $3.37 in costs in 2018, compared to just $3.07 in 2017, or about a 10% increase, according to the LexisNexis Fraud Multiplier and the 2018 True Cost of Fraud study on lending from LexisNexis Risk Solutions. The study reflects the views of 186 risk and fraud executives at lending institutions.

"While the rise of digital lending has given the lending industry new methods of reaching consumers, it also has brought unique fraud prevention challenges," said Kimberly Sutherland, senior director, fraud and identity management strategy for LexisNexis Risk Solutions. "Customer identity verification and synthetic identity fraud are key challenges for lenders, as they seek to reduce the risk of customer friction, while still maintaining rigorous fraud and identity standards. It is crucial that lenders use not just a large number of tools in their fight against fraud, but layer in the right combination of tools."

Other key findings from the study include:

• 54 percent of risk and fraud executives at large digital lenders state that verification of customer identity is their largest challenge, especially through the online channel.
• Lending firms that use a multi-layered solution approach experience a lower cost of fraud: $2.63 for every $1, compared with up to $3.47.
• Large digital lenders are more likely to think strategically about the adoption of fraud mitigation solutions, as they face attacks that are more significant.

There is a market for every house—even haunted ones.

Haunted doesn’t mean deal killer to 33 percent of buyers, especially Millennials, if there was something to sweeten the deal, according to the annual Haunted Real Estate Report from Realtor.com. What’s more, 18 percent of respondents said that a haunted home wouldn’t affect their decision at all.

For many, the decision comes down to price.

"If a house is commensurately priced, or has desirable features, the fact that it may be haunted seems to matter less,” said Danielle Hale, chief economist for Realtor.com. “This report shows that, for those looking for a good deal, a lower price, better neighborhood, or larger kitchen can balance out a few spooky happenings." The survey of 1,067 people across the United States was conducted in early October by Harris Interactive completed the survey of 1,067 people across the U.S. through online interviews in early October.

When asked to decide between purchasing a haunted, or non-haunted home, respondents fell into the following three categories:

• I'll buy, but I need a something more: Fully 33% of the respondents were willing to take a chance on a haunted home if it came with additional features. Topping the wish list was a cheaper home price (15 percent), followed by a tie between a larger kitchen and better neighborhood (9 percent). A lower price was most likely to persuade Millennials, with 17 percent reporting that might be enough for them to purchase a haunted house.
• Nothing else required: Surprisingly, 18 percent of people wouldn't require any additional features to choose a haunted home over a non-haunted home. Almost 25 percent of those aged 35-54, reported they wouldn't be affected by the haunted nature of the home while making a purchase decision.
• Would not buy, not for anything: For the remaining 49 percent, there's no price low enough or kitchen large enough to make them purchase a haunted home. The older generation of home buyers is the most reluctant to move into a haunted house, with 61 percent of those over 55 insisting that they would never buy a haunted home as opposed to 41 percent of Millennials and Generation X.

Living in a haunted home is more common than one would imagine, and not necessarily a surprise to the occupants. Almost two in five people believe they have lived in a haunted (or possibly haunted) house, and 44 percent of them either suspected, or were fully aware it was haunted, before moving in. In fact, the majority of people under 55 years old suspected — or were sure — their home was haunted before they moved in, a decision possibly incentivized by a lower home price or better neighborhood. Hearing strange noises (54 percent) topped the list of most common spooky behaviors, followed by odd feelings in certain rooms (45 percent) and erratic pet behavior (34 percent).

Most sellers, at least 66 percent, reported they would not voluntarily tell buyers the house was haunted, as follows:

• Only when asked: In second place, 27 percent of people would choose the less risky route and divulge details only when asked.
• Mum(my)'s the word: Saying absolutely nothing is the third most popular approach for hypothetical sellers, with 22 percent preferring to stay quiet. This is a strategy preferred by 25 percent of those over 35 years old.
• No details please: The least popular selling strategy, at 17 percent, is to admit that the house was haunted but not provide details.
• Yes, tell them everything: The most popular approach is full transparency, with 34 percent of people saying they would tell interested buyers everything. Men and Millennials are the most likely to divulge all the details to buyers.

Almost 1.5 million single family homes and condos in the U.S., roughly 1.52 percent, stood vacant at the end of the third quarter.

In addition, there were 10,291 vacant "zombie" foreclosures homes nationwide at the end of third quarter, representing 3.38 percent of all homes actively in the foreclosure process, according to the 2018 Vacant Property and Zombie Foreclosure Report from Attom Data Solutions. Fully 14,312 homes, 4.18 percent, were classified as zombie foreclosure in the third quarter of 2017.

"The number of vacant foreclosures is now less than one-fourth of the more than 44,000 in 2013 when we first began tracking these zombie homes," said Daren Blomquist, senior vice president at ATTOM Data Solutions. "Policy solutions such as land banks designed to mitigate the ripple effects of vacant properties on neighborhoods and cities have had a substantial impact, and a booming housing market in many areas of the country is lifting all boats.”

The states with the highest share of vacant homes were Tennessee (2.65 percent), Kansas (2.50 percent), Oklahoma (2.49 percent), Mississippi (2.47 percent), and Indiana (2.45 percent).

The metropolitan statistical areas with the highest share of vacant homes were Flint, Mich. (6.99 percent); Youngstown, Ohio (3.80 percent); Beaumont-Port Arthur, Texas (3.71 percent); Myrtle Beach, S.C. (3.70 percent); and Mobile, Ala. (3.69 percent).

The counties with the highest share of vacant homes were Baltimore City, Md. (7.83 percent); Genesee County (Flint), Mich. (6.99 percent); Saint Louis City, Miss. (5.93 percent); Bibb County (Macon), Ga. (5.73 percent); and Wayne County (Detroit), Mich. (5.60 percent).