Property and recording fraud is one of the fastest growing white collar crimes. Fraudsters often target paid-for homes that have no mortgage, usually owned by an elderly person who may have no heirs, and file forged ownership documents with a county recorder.
Once the document is recorded, it is up to the homeowner to petition the court, at their own expense, to get a court order to have the fraudulent recording removed. Selling the home or trying to obtain a mortgage or a refinancing can be impossible until the fraud issue is resolved.
We offer a free Property Fraud Alert that will call or email you any time a document is recorded against your property, or the property of a loved one.
If you receive an alert and/or are concerned about fraud, please contact our Property Fraud Unit at [email protected], and our staff will help research the problem and coordinate a law enforcement response where indicated.
IMPORTANT INFO – READ FIRST!
The Free Property Fraud Alert will help you protect your most valuable asset by providing a phone call or email when any document affecting your property is filed in our office. Make sure you add [email protected] and [email protected] to your email’s safe senders or whitelist.
- Check your property’s Chain-of-Title to ensure there are not fraudulent documents already there.
- PIN validity is important. If you enter the wrong PIN, you will not receive an alert.
- After you type your PIN, your street address will be displayed to ensure accuracy.
- If you register a condo, make sure the last 4 digits of the PIN are entered.
- For email alerts, look for the Registration Confirmation email in your Junk or Spam folder.
- The Fraud Alert is a notice of recordation, not a freeze on title.
- If you don’t know your PIN, click here to retrieve it.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU SIGN UP?
If you sign up for a phone call: You will get an automated phone message advising you that a document has been recorded against your property. If you get such a call, please go on our website and look up your property to review the chain of title for recently recorded documents.
If you sign up for an email: You will receive an email from [email protected]. The email will provide you with a link to the Clerk’s Official Vendor’s website at http://www.ccrecorder.org/. Clicking on the link will take you directly to your property’s chain of title so you can review it for recently recorded documents.
Contact our Property Fraud Unit at c[email protected].