Indictment alleges web of mortgage fraud

In one of the alleged scams, a builder would agree to give back part of a buyer's purchase price disguised as a "decorator allowance" paid to a third party. That would give money to the buyer and artificially inflate the sales price of the house, which could enable a builder to sell other houses at a higher price.

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In one case, the company sold a house in December 2002 -- for $150,000 to Bridget Boyd, according to Mecklenburg County records. About a week later, the builder wrote a check for about $36,900 to defendant Gregory Mascaro, according to the indictment. That payment is nearly 25 percent of the sale price.