NEW YORK CITY-Reports of mortgage fraud, which the FBI estimates results in $4 to $6 billion in losses annually, decreased in 2010, according to a study from the LexisNexis Mortgage Asset Research Institute.

Once again Florida has the dubious distinction of the top slot on the Mortgage Asset Research Institute Fraud Index, with New York a close second. Despite the decrease in reported incidences, however, authors of the study caution that this doesn’t mean less fraud.

“Mortgage fraud has become more complex and harder to verify using traditional methods,” Denise James, LexisNexis Risk Solutions director of Real Estate Solutions and co-author of the report said in a release. “Mortgage businesses are quickly trying to implement new procedures to detect emerging frauds.”