Deed theft? Mortgage fraud? Yes, they’re among the country’s fastest-growing white-collar crimes. It keeps getting easier for swindlers to create and record bogus documents that manipulate real estate ownership and financing.

Allen County, Indiana, Recorder Nicole Keesling spoke out this year about the public trust that comes with being elected to the role. At national conferences for county recorders and at Property Records Industry Association events, fraud involving real estate is a hot topic, Keesling says.

Keesling has written publicly about the importance of protective steps. For example, her county office offers a free property fraud alert. Residents register their addresses. If anyone then records a transfer, contract, lien, or release affecting a title, the registrant receives an email, text message, or phone call. The Allen County Recorder’s Office is the first in Indiana both to offer text alerts and to provide every alert option in Spanish and English.

Keesling has also announced a new notary fraud alert system. Notaries can sign up for free to receive reports about filings that name them. The system may also aid investigations when notaries or their seals are implicated in improper filings.

Is your county also leading in this area? Speak with your county recorder. Learn what’s happening in your county.

Even Real Estate Agents Can Be Deed Fraud Targets.

If you own vacant land, stay especially alert. Real estate agent Mark Massaro owns undeveloped land in Manchester, Connecticut. One day, something unusual happened. Massaro learned that his land was advertised as “for sale.” His friend saw the listing and asked him about it.

Massaro was the target of an impersonation scheme. Someone using false identification persuaded a real estate agent to post the listing. It took a text message from a friend for Massaro to find out.

“You never think it’s going to happen to you,” Massaro says.

But it might. According to the National Association of REALTORS®, most agents have encountered suspicious title activity over the past year. More than six in ten fraudulent deed transfers involve vacant land.

Massaro reported the fraud to the Manchester Police Department before the property could be sold.

How Low Can They Go? Stealing Homes Out From Under Dementia Patients

Now we check in with New York Attorney General Letitia James, whose office investigates deed fraud. Over the past decade, New York City has seen thousands of deed fraud cases, mainly in Brooklyn and Queens. Seniors and people of color are frequent targets.

Once again, Attorney General James has announced an indictment in a deed fraud case. This case involves a senior named Althea Garrick, who has been receiving dementia care in her Brooklyn home. The alleged perpetrator “took advantage of an elderly woman suffering from advanced dementia,” said Attorney General James, “and stole the home she has owned and lived in for 47 years.”

Takes the cake, doesn’t it?

According to investigators at the Office of the Attorney General, including its Real Estate Enforcement Unit, the suspect allegedly forged a deed transferring the million-dollar property to his New York corporation. He also allegedly used forged documents to modify the terms of Garrick’s mortgage and gain control of her home. He then brought in renters. Garrick was confined to a small bedroom.

The suspect allegedly used the forged documents to drain Garrick’s financial accounts. He allegedly spent the funds on luxury goods and trips. The suspect, who is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty, was arrested in June 2026 and could face up to 25 years in prison.

Victims of deed theft are encouraged to contact their state attorney general, local law enforcement, and the Internet Crime Complaint Center.

Sound Familiar? Another Ohio Case

Terry Anderson and Angela Croley pleaded guilty in Ohio’s Montgomery County Common Pleas Court to felony charges of tampering with official records. The case involved a forged quitclaim deed for the home of a man with dementia.

The pair had been charged with:

• Presenting a notary public with a forged power of attorney that purported to authorize the pair to represent the true deed holder, who lacked the capacity to sell the property.

• Forging and filing a bogus quitclaim deed with the Montgomery County Recorder’s Office in Ohio. (A quitclaim deed is a legal instrument that transfers homeownership without title warranties; readers can find quitclaim forms here.)

The quitclaim deed purported to sell the home for $119,000—a sum the owner never received. The owner lacked the capacity to grant power of attorney, transfer the deed, or sign a sales contract.

Within a week, the owner’s daughter reported the problem to the county sheriff’s office. Her father had moved into assisted living, and his friend was squatting in the home and apparently trying to sell it.

The daughter took action by recording an affidavit with the county recorder stating that the property had been transferred through a fraudulent quitclaim deed.

Quitclaim fraud also played a role in a theft from a cancer patient in Montgomery County, Ohio.

Be Deed-Aware.

Did you know? You can take several effective steps to help prevent deed fraud:

• Check your accounts and credit reports regularly to spot unusual activity.
• Do not leave your property unoccupied without asking a trusted person to check on it.
• Make sure the county has your current contact information. Track when you receive tax and assessment notices, and call the appropriate office if a regular notice doesn’t arrive.
• Update your passwords periodically.
• Sign up for automatic notifications, such as deed activity alerts, if your county offers them.
• Share personal and financial information only on a need-to-know basis and only with people you know to be reputable and trustworthy.
• Check that your notary is listed on your Secretary of State’s website.

If you’re a deed holder, develop this key habit: Check your county’s websites regularly. Use available search tools to look for deeds and liens. Stay deed-aware—even if your county doesn’t offer an automatic alert system.