Recorders Warn Of Property Deed Scam

Some may be helping the scammers.

May-23-07

County officials across the country are warning property owners not to fall for a company offering an expensive their deed. Unfortunately, some counties may be unknowingly helping the scammers to identify potential victims.

National Deed Service has a Washington, D.C. address and promises to deliver a document that proves the real estate belongs to you.

Leah Jennings, who works at the Jackson County Recorder's Office in Kansas City Missouri, received one of the company's letters about a month ago.

She told reporters with KMBC, "As a recorder, I said, 'What? For what?' Because they're asking $59 for this service," Jennings said. "I wonder how many other people have got it and actually fallen for this scheme."

The company's letter refers to the Jackson County Recorder and the U.S. Government, but admits it is not affiliated with the government. Within the text of the letter the company refers to both the Jackson County Recorder and the U.S. Government Federal Citizen Information Center.  However, this private company is not associated with either of these governmental agencies.

The company's letters have surfaced across the nation in recent years. Public Records researchers discussed the company’s marketing scheme in late 2005 on SourceofTitle.com, SOT provides discussion forums and articles for public record professionals and government agencies across the country.

Title abstractor Daniel Nelson questioned the ethics and pricing of National Deed Service on the Source of Title forum in November 2005. She wrote that the company was charging $59.50 to homeowners for a service county agencies charged $3.00.

“The Milwaukee County Register of Deeds had an order come in from a company they assume is this one for 89 deeds. The actual cost (from the county) was approximately $267.00. This company took in over $5,000…” Nelson wrote.

Ocean County Clerk Carl W. Block (NJ) is also speaking out against the company's practices. He wants the state Attorney General to investigate the records retrieval company after the company sent direct-mail solicitation letters to Ocean County home owners, offering to provide a certified their deed for $79.50 last March.

“County clerks throughout New Jersey met a few weeks ago and decided to take some action”, Block said.

The fees National Deed Service charges to provide a certified copy are roughly 550 percent over what the county charges, Block said in a letter to New Jersey Attorney General Stuart Rabner.

"What they would claim is that they're providing a service," Jackson County Executive Mike Sanders said. "It's a pretty clever enterprise; I'm fairly certain someone's fallen victim to this."

In a news release, Sanders suggested that concerned citizens should download their deeds directly off the county website.

The release says, "County officials recommend that county residents go to www.JacksonGov.org to print a free their Property Deed if one is needed".

But National Deed Service could be using the same service to identify potential customers for their scheme. It is a simple matter for anyone to anonymously gather names and addresses of homeowners in the documents displayed on county websites.

For example, Infinity Data, one of the largest data mining organizations in India, boasts  that they use records counties publish online to produce 60,000 reports on Americans and their assets every month. According to Infinity's  website, they access documents from 400 U.S. online county and sell the information they find to clients worldwide.

County officials and concerned citizens should ask the county IT department for a report on where the visitors to their websites originate to determine who is really being served by the county website.

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