by Casia Chappell, CFP®, CPWA
Senior Vice President
Wealth Planning and Portfolio Management
In recent years there has been an increase in reports of deed theft, in which the title or deed to a property is fraudulently transferred from the rightful owner of a property to a third-party, whether through forged signatures, impersonations or other means. While still a small percentage of overall criminal activity, it is prudent to understand the risk and follow certain practices to reduce the likelihood of becoming a victim yourself.
What does deed theft look like? In some cases, criminals transfer the deed in order to sell the property and pocket the proceeds. In other cases, they use the property as collateral for loans. These crimes can occur without the homeowner having any indication that their property is at risk.
Deed theft has been on the rise for several reasons, including, but not limited to, publicly available real estate records, outdated practices by municipalities and scammers’ ability to convincingly impersonate others with stolen identity data and increasingly sophisticated technology. Bad actors have identified ways to exploit weaknesses in identity verification practices, public records systems and homeowners’ complacency resulting in title transfers, forged mortgages or surprise sales. Like some other types of crime, senior homeowners are often more likely to be targeted.
These crimes can not only be time-consuming and expensive to combat, even when the attempt is caught early, but they are especially damaging and unsettling to homeowners who often have significant emotional ties to their property and consider it a safe place.
Fortunately, awareness is on the rise as well. The Boston division of the FBI issued a warning in April 2025 about the increasing number of reports of deed fraud and The National Association of Realtors conducted a survey to better understand the scope of the issue and collect feedback on policy solutions. While efforts are underway by law enforcement, government agencies and industry groups to better understand, prevent and mitigate the effects of these crimes, there are several ways that you can reduce your risk:
Monitoring: Regularly monitoring public records is the best way to identify if someone has attempted to fraudulently take title of your property. Check your county records, either online or in person, for changes or new filings. Be sure to check all tax lots and all properties if you have multiple, and pay particular attention to vacant parcels, properties only sometimes occupied, or property without a mortgage or other lien, as these types of properties can be easier targets. Some counties, but not all, offer automated alerts that can help provide advance warning, but proactive monitoring is still recommended.
Understand your title insurance: Title insurance is often purchased when buying a home which can cover potential risks associated with past ownership issues like an undisclosed lien, property line disputes and certain kinds of fraud. Understanding your policy can help you identify what is covered, and arguably more importantly, what isn’t covered, such as future ownership issues from criminal activity. Beware of costly products and services that are marketed as protecting you from deed theft, especially by companies without known reputations.
Minimize access to critical data: Protect your identity by minimizing exposure of your personal data. Consider credit monitoring services, credit freezing or identity theft protection.
Consider titling: While not impervious, titling your home in the name of a trust or an LLC can be a deterrent to bad actors as it introduces the potential for complexity. It’s important to discuss titling changes with your attorney and home insurance agent to ensure that there will not be unintended estate, tax or insurance issues.
Remain skeptical: Verify any unexpected contact from real estate agents and title, escrow, or mortgage companies, including via regular mail. If you receive a notice about a closing, refinance or deed transfer that you didn’t authorize, investigate and verify using contact information you source independently rather than from the unexpected notification.
If you suspect or discover fraud, it’s important to act quickly. Contact the county to get a record of your property’s deed. Notify the police and file an identity-theft report. Contact the provider of your title insurance, your mortgage lender and consult a real estate attorney. Document the actions you have taken, and information gathered as evidence that can improve your chances of clearing up title issues quickly.
While deed theft represents a small percentage of overall criminal activity, its impact can have significant consequences, both financial and emotional. It is often detectable and preventable with the right combination of vigilance and identity protection.
Ferguson Wellman, Octavia Group and West Bearing do not provide tax, legal, insurance or medical advice. This material has been prepared for general educational and informational purposes only and not as a substitute for qualified counsel. We believe the information provided is from reliable sources but should not be assumed accurate or complete. You should consult qualified professionals to understand how this information may, or may not, apply specifically to you.