WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich. (WXYZ) — After we first heard from deed fraud victims in Wayne County earlier this week, I’m now hearing from leaders in Washtenaw, Oakland and Macomb counties who are all working to address the problem.
“Our parents passed away and we were putting the house in our name,” Peggy Webster said.
Watch Simon Shaykhet's video report below:
For Webster, concerns over deed fraud targeting hundreds of victims in metro Detroit led to a decision to sign up for monitoring alerts in Oakland County earlier this week.
I also got to hear about similar programs up and running in Wayne County and Washtenaw County, given the damage being done by fraudsters.
“I just saw the program where you can sign up for free for protection, free email alerts,” Webster said.
Oakland County Clerk and Register of Deeds Lisa Brown says her community has also been targeted by crime rings and in some cases, people cheating loved ones.
“You're taking away somebody’s home that they worked hard for. It's the roof over their head,” Brown said.
She agrees better laws and funding could re-shape a system that’s currently requiring a register of deeds to file documents without verifying whether or not they are fraudulent.
“In Oakland County, we see family members that are taking advantage of a sibling or a grandma or an uncle,” Brown said.
Previous report: Deed fraud crisis has homeowners finding 'their property is gone' when it's too late
Setting up alerts can be done in just a few seconds. For instance in Oakland County, all you have to do is go to ocmideeds.com and type the address, and within seconds, you see recent results on your laptop or phone.
Over in Washtenaw County, Register of Deeds Larry Kestenbaum is also speaking out. He finds it troubling that deed fraud is leading to people's locks being changed, moving trucks showing up randomly and mail coming to a different name.
"That’s awful. stuff when it happens. There are organized fraudsters who do those kinds of things,” Kestenbaum said.
Digging deeper, I talked with Macomb County Prosecutor Pete Lucido, who is cautioning against scams that involve cash deals or sales without a realtor.
He says make sure the party selling a home is proven to be the owner. He’s also going after those committing forgery and more.
“(We'll) prosecute to the fullest extent because You’ve taken away the most expensive asset that somebody buys in their lifetime,” Luicido said.
In Webster’s case, it’s a matter of peace of mind and ensuring she’s notified if something happens before it’s too late.
“You just never know. We just happened to be here today and I saw that and said we are going to sign up for that too,” Webster said.
Resources
You can learn more online about the free alert system Fraud Guard in Washtenaw County and similar services in Macomb County and Oakland County.
Here are instructions to sign up for alerts in Wayne County:
- Visit waynecountylandrecords.com
- Click the “Property Alerts” tab Choose a method to create an alert — keyword or document
- Follow the instructions
- You will be sent a confirmation email from vanguardsupport@govos.com once you confirm the alert
- Submit a fraud complaint at waynecountymi.gov/register or call 313-224-5869.
The city of Detroit is hosting a town hall about deed fraud protection on Feb. 12.
You can also learn more about property fraud by reaching out to the MSU College of Law Housing Justice Clinic at housingclinic@law.msu.edu or 517-432-6967.
