{"id":7732,"date":"2026-09-07T22:05:05","date_gmt":"2026-09-08T02:05:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.deeds.com\/articles\/?p=7732"},"modified":"2026-09-07T22:05:05","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T02:05:05","slug":"warning-to-deed-holders-dont-fall-for-these-property-tax-relief-videos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.deeds.com\/articles\/warning-to-deed-holders-dont-fall-for-these-property-tax-relief-videos\/","title":{"rendered":"Warning to Deed Holders: Don\u2019t Fall for These Property Tax Relief Videos"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Toby D. is a tax assessor in Douglas County, Colorado. Suddenly, Toby D. is fielding phone calls from disoriented deed holders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some callers ask if school property taxes in the Colorado county have been abolished. Some ask if it\u2019s true that tax hikes were halted for seniors. Multiple people call with strikingly similar questions each day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Realtor.com\u00ae<\/em> spoke with Toby D. to learn more. What came to light is troubling. The National Association of REALTORS\u00ae found dozens of versions of these supposed public service announcements, with the same basic messaging, but with a variety of graphics and voices. Most of these videos, but not all, carried tags saying they were AI-generated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Another Day, Another AI-Enhanced Scam<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Behind the wave of confusion? AI-generated video clips, swarming social media. The viral videos have striking graphics and tell people they\u2019re entitled to property tax relief. Realtor.com<\/em> found 50 different versions of these videos running on YouTube.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the announcements of a new federal property tax shield law, a narrator says homeowners are missing out on benefits because the details were buried in a large spending bill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The message sounds totally plausible. This is because many counties and states do offer legitimate tax relief. State tax exemptions for senior deed holders are based on age and usually require that the senior has lived at the address for a certain minimum time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anyone with a computer can get their hands on an artificial intelligence (AI) tool. Scammers have never had an easier way to concoct videos, sow confusion, and manipulate large numbers of people at once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Using AI, the manipulators can show actual government officials talking about any topic\u2014but the videos are fabricated. Made-up video clips may feature official logos, state and county seals, and announcements peppered with legalese or government jargon. With some of these videos, a reasonable person wouldn\u2019t know that the content is artificial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The real estate industry group took the matter to YouTube (owned by Google\u2019s parent company, Alphabet). YouTube has been able to ban at least one source of the clips. The company told Realtor.com\u00ae<\/em> it removed a channel for spam and deceptive content violations. The trouble is, once the offending clips are published, they\u2019ve been copied many times and have spread like invasive plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Scam That Keeps on Scamming: Spreading Across the Map<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

County offices in Ohio, Wisconsin, and other states are also dealing with a wave of calls and questions. Many state and county offices have issued public advisory bulletins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An official in Franklin County, Ohio, says deed holders are seeing online clips about the federal law, believing the announcements and the law are real, and becoming frustrated when they find out they aren\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wisconsin state tax officials are warning residents about the online clips that talk up the federal property tax relief law that never happened. Like old-time phone-based practical jokes, the videos urge people to call their counties and ask for a Senior Homeowner Tax Review, or to order IRS Form 1098-SR. Neither the review nor the form exists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The AI-generated video is really a ruse, meant to fool older deed holders into giving their bank account credentials and Social Security numbers to the scam\u2019s authors. It\u2019s also used to get them to pay bogus filing fees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, back in Colorado, the timing of the scam made the confusion acute. The videos spread through people\u2019s phones and desk computers just as the state’s deadline to claim important senior property tax relief is imminent. State officials fear that seniors who should be signing up for the first time may fail to apply for the real<\/em> relief\u2014because they heard the viral video announcements were false.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Boomers Are Being Targeted, and It Touches a Nerve<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s unclear where people might have lost money because of the property tax relief videos, or because of scams that piggyback on the series. What\u2019s all too clear is how the videos are touching a nerve with older adults.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of these videos goes into an elaborate explanation of what relief older deed holders could get, depending on whether they were born in the 1940s, 50s, or 60s. Each age group gets distinct sets of tax freezes, caps, and exemptions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Seniors have built up a lot of home equity, and it\u2019s all being assessed by local governments for revenue. That\u2019s already a big concern for older deed holders. Property tax bills have grown much bigger than they were just a few years ago. And it\u2019s the modest earners who are seeing this part of their household budget rise the most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On top of all this, older adults are disproportionately exploited by AI scams. About 14% of a year\u2019s worth of AI scam complaints received by the FBI come from people aged 60+. That relatively small group of targets lost a large portion of the money that the scammers took: $357 million out of $893 million.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t leave money on the table. Check and be sure you\u2019ve applied for the<\/em><\/strong> homestead exemption<\/em><\/strong><\/a>, if offered in your state.<\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to Avoid Being Outsmarted by AI<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Deed holders, especially seniors, take note. Be on the lookout for disinformation. Please take the following precautions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n