Owning Property While Claiming Assistance | South Dakota | Housing Fraud

South Dakota officials have charged a resident with housing fraud after uncovering a years-long scheme that exploited verification gaps in state-administered housing assistance programs. According to the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General, the defendant concealed income and property ownership while receiving subsidized housing benefits.

Investigators allege the individual falsely reported minimal income while simultaneously owning residential property and receiving rental income through informal arrangements. Records show that the defendant submitted altered financial documentation and failed to disclose assets that would have disqualified them from housing assistance.

The fraud was identified through a cross-agency data review that flagged inconsistencies between housing applications, property tax records, and state revenue filings. Analysts also identified repeated discrepancies in household composition and unexplained changes in reported income year over year.

“This was not a paperwork error — it was an intentional effort to deceive the system,” said a HUD OIG representative. “Housing assistance programs depend on accurate disclosures to serve families who truly need support.”

Following the case, state housing officials announced plans to strengthen eligibility verification by expanding income matching, property ownership checks, and analytics designed to detect repeated misrepresentation.

The case illustrates how manual processes and delayed verification can allow housing fraud to persist undetected, diverting limited resources away from eligible families.

Today’s Fraud of the Day is based on reporting from the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, HUD Office of Inspector General, and local news coverage of housing fraud cases in 2025.