Tag: Homeowner Protection
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How Arizona Is Fighting Back Against Deed Fraud
A Rural County’s Innovation Becomes a Statewide Model for Property Protection Deed fraud complaints to Arizona’s Attorney General have surged in recent years, with at least 65 cases reported in just a 20-month period.¹ But from Mohave County in Arizona’s northwest corner, an innovative program is gaining traction as a model for the entire state—and…
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Stolen Home Recorded as Sold for $10. How Will Texas Respond?
A family home was stolen in a fraudulent sale, for just $10, with a forged deed. Now, an heir is fighting in court to recover the property. Shannon P., the heir who’s fighting, views her lawsuit as a public service announcement as well as a struggle to recover generational wealth. “If you’re not checking on…
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In Case You Missed It: Massachusetts “Affordable Homes Act” Doubled Homestead Exemption to $1 Million
As you may know, most states let a vested deed holder designate a percentage of the primary residence’s value as a homestead. Homestead status can stop a home’s forced sale due to unpaid debt. This year, under its Affordable Homes Act, Massachusetts increased its homestead protection from $500,000 to $1,000,000. All the better, this higher…
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A First in the Nation: Cuyahoga County to Install Two-Factor Authentication for Recorded Documents
Could the party be over for deed thieves in Cuyahoga County, Ohio? Home to the beautiful city of Cleveland, it will soon be the first U.S. county to offer two-factor authentication for the recording of legal documents. This is a milestone in the effort to stop fraudulent deed transfers. To explain the forthcoming change, we…
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AG James Nails First Criminal Conviction Under NY Home Equity Theft Protection Act
Recently, a New York real estate agent pleaded guilty in a deed theft case. Yes, a real estate agent. Oscar Dais used to be a real estate agent in Rockland County, New York. But no more. Oscar Dais admitted to a property theft that involved falsely signing a deed to his own company, while pretending…
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Leaving Your Home for a While? An Arizona Trucker Has a Cautionary Tale
“This is home. It will always be home,” D’Andrea Turner told ABC’s Channel 15. “I raised my babies here.” D’Andrea’s ex, Keith Turner, is a trucker who went out on the road for long stretches at a time. This left the home unattended, as the pair had separated. This year, the two parents learned their…
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Opinion: Who Really Wins? New York’s Deed Fraud Bill Protects Title Insurers, Not Homeowners
New York lawmakers have introduced Senate Bill 7732 as a response to the growing crisis of deed fraud — a real and rising threat to property owners across the country. On the surface, the bill looks like reform. But a closer look reveals what it really is: a convenient liability shield for title insurers.
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Borrowing Against Your Title to Ward Off Deed Theft: A Smart Idea?
Some deed holders deliberately get a lien recorded on their properties to make it harder for anyone to commit deed theft and take their homes. Is there anything to this? First, it’s music to our ears when homeowners ask how to keep their deeds safe and sound. Borrowing against home equity to get a voluntary…
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Behind Their Backs: The Pain of Finding Out About Malicious Deed Transfers
From time to time, we talk about deed theft here. But what actually happens, from the deed holder’s point of view? Here’s what it’s like — and how to protect your deed.
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Seniors’ Advocates Urge States to Ban Predatory ‘Cash for Listing’ Contracts
States are outlawing listing agreements that bind homeowners to specific companies to sell their homes in the future. In the last two years, 30 states have acted to prevent businesses from taking control of people’s property by recording brokers’ contracts against their deeds. The agreements can result in restrictions, liens, or even stealth mortgages recorded…
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Now They’re Holding Titles for Ransom? Here’s How Real Estate Scammers Target Floridians (and the Rest of Us)
St. Johns County, which includes St. Augustine Beach, has plenty of attractive real estate. Just beware the trickster who holds a deed for ransom. One of the seniors who lives in St. Johns sounded the alarm. Some shady firm told her to pay $20K to get her title back. It’s a trend in which local…
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Register of Deeds Blasts Crooks Who Steal Homes Out From Under Owners’ Funerals
The Register of Deeds of Shelby County, Tennessee recently took to a live television newscast to warn the public about scammers scouring funeral listings and obituaries. They’re looking for dead people whose homes they can steal. They forge deeds. They record bogus title transfers. Once they have control over their ill-gotten homes, criminals sell them,…
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Warning: When Not to Sign Over Your Deed
Transferring the deed to your home is a simple matter. Generally, you just have to find the current deed to your home, then get the right deed form to write up your new deed to convey to another party, and take the document to a notary. Then your signature can be notarized and the deed can be…
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In the News: Struggling and Elderly Homeowners Targeted by Deed Fakery
Imagine a licensed real estate broker — of all people — accused of taking other people’s homes and selling them. Imagine someone deciding to fake a deed to steal the house of an elderly homeowner who’s ill and in a nursing home. These are both real stories, now unfolding in Florida.
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Heirs, Protect the Seniors in Your Life From Deed Theft
A 91-year-old Floridian recently sent a payment to his insurer. Then the agent called to say the company wouldn’t be able to renew the homeowner’s policy. The deed had been transferred. The home was now legally owned by another person. Some days later, from his bedroom, this shocked and disoriented senior heard three people come…
