Homebuyers as terrorist suspects.

Over the past several years--thanks in large measure to the Federal Reserve's loose credit policies--the housing market has undergone a spectacular boom as millions of Americans have become first-time homebuyers. While buying a home is always fraught with expense and difficulty, first-time buyers in the post-9-11 economy have the added burden of being scrutinized as potential terrorists under the dishonestly named Patriot Act.

Under the Patriot measure, and presidential Executive Order 13224 (issued on September 24, 2001), "anyone purchasing property must be checked against a list of names of known and suspected terrorists," reported Newsweek's Brian Braiker on June 3. "The list has been around since before the September 11 attacks, but increasingly the ritual closing ceremony [for buying a new home] has involved writing yet another check to the title company that runs the homebuyer's name against that list."

The list in question contains the names of "specially designated nations" (SDNs) who have either "committed, or ... pose a significant risk of committing, acts of terrorism." Those individuals are blocked from taking part in "any transaction or dealing ... in property or interests" within the U.S.

Under EO 13224, "private individuals (be they jewelers, pawnbrokers or suburban families) buying or selling property are now considered 'financial institutions' by the government," comments Braiker. In principle, any economic transaction in this country could eventually trigger federal scrutiny under the Patriot Act. However, title companies have come under particular pressure to act as counter-terrorism snoops: According to Treasury Department spokeswoman Molly Millerwise, failure of a title company to conduct a "Patriot Name Search" of prospective homebuyers could result in fines of up to $65,000 under the Trading with the Enemy Act.