Did you know if an individual steals your personal possessions, like a boat or lawnmower, they will receive a harsher punishment than if someone stole your whole house?
Ruth Johnson, Oakland County Clerk/Register of Deeds, knows this, and she spent last Tuesday talking to Oxford seniors at the Oxford Public Library about the dirty crime of deed fraud.
Although Johnson said the chances of someone stealing your home through deed fraud are ‘slim to none,? it’s important to be aware of the second fastest growing, white-collar crime in the United States.
The crime occurs when the scammer forges a signature from deeds filed at the county clerk’s office and uses the signatures to secure mortgages on other people’s homes.
The lender gets hit with the debt, the real homeowner, who is usually a senior citizen or those with medical needs, faces foreclosure and the scammer moves on to another target.
‘Forgery is against the law, but it is hard to (identify the scammer) and the penalties are low,? Johnson told the audience of about nine residents. ‘You have to have their likeness, you have to prove that they’re the ones that did it, you have to prove that they knew what they were doing.?
One example of deed fraud occurred when two men illegally purchased a Bloomfield Twp. woman’s home for just $5,000.
Johnson said the elderly woman was afraid to leave her home to go to the store for fear that all of her possessions would be gone when she got back.
‘Can you imagine living like that?? Johnson asked.
Through a long, and financially arduous process, the woman eventually got her home back.
In another circumstance, a convicted murderer in Baraga Prison in the Upper Peninsula was even able to obtain a house deed for a home in Wayne County. But don’t think the county clerk/register of deeds office isn’t tirelessly trying to stop, or at least prevent this crime from happening in Oakland County.
Johnson said security cameras have been installed in their county offices so they can identify the thieves and that a Fraud Task Force was formed with the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department and the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office.
‘It’s a deterrent more than anything,? Johnson said. ‘At least it makes (Oakland County) a much less desirable place to come.?
Homeowners can even check to see whether any unauthorized documents have been recorded against their property by visiting the county’s FraudCheck program online at www.oakgov.com/clerkrod.
If you don’t have computer access, just call the clerk’s office at (248) 858-5696 to check for fraud. Johnson recommends homeowners check it twice or more per year.
Some tips on preventing real estate fraud include:
nBe suspicious of outrageous promises of extraordinary profit.
nMake sure the name on your loan application matches the name on your ID.
nIf your property is in foreclosure, be wary of offers to ‘save? you.
nAsk for help from trusted family members and friends.
nDO NOT sign a blank document.
nDO NOT sign anything you don’t understand.
nIf it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
In the meantime, Johnson urges residents to write their legislators and ask for stiffer punishments for those who forge.
‘These guys need to go to prison,? she said. ‘People that think this is an OK thing to do, you have to make sure that they’re punished. If you don’t, they’ll keep doing that.?