We hope you are enjoying the tail end to your summer. Our exceptional climate this time of year is why many of us love to call this special place home! In this month’s article, we decided to bring forth a topic that has seemed to land on our desk several times as of late. As full-time real estate professionals, we are often asked to recommend various real estate related services. Offering various solutions to home and apartment owners for the many ways in which they can protect themselves and their real estate investments has become an increasingly important element to our service-oriented approach to helping people.
As we all know, fraud and identity theft have become very real concerns in our daily lives. We were recently asked by a past client about a service called “Home Title Lock”, which they had seen advertised while watching late night television. The basic premise in these commercials touts the ease in which any shady scammer can walk into the assessor’s office and, with no questions asked, record a document that allows them to take ownership of your home. This is considered title fraud and, as the commercial promotes, you can protect one of your most valuable assets by paying a monthly fee to be “alerted” when or if a document is recorded against your property. Although we believe the commercial oversimplifies the ease in which a situation such as this can occur, this is technically something that “could” happen but not something we have ever experienced. If this ever did happen, you would then likely need to lawyer up and fight to have any recorded document against your property expunged.
The concept of being alerted in the event a document is recorded against your property is a great idea. When something is recorded against the title of your home, it doesn’t necessarily mean fraud has taken place. Sometimes mistakes or clerical errors can be the cause. There are many legitimate instruments that can be recorded against your property including a Foreclosure Notice, Refinance, Transfer of Title (Quitclaim Deed, Change of Ownership etc.), Mortgage Deed (Deed of Trust, 2nd Trust Deed, etc.), Lis Pendens, Mechanic’s Lien, etc. Rather than pay a monthly fee to one of the various companies that offer a “title alert” service, you can also do this through a free service offered by the Los Angeles County Assessor’s website.
To sign up for this FREE Property Owner E-Notification Alert Service, go to https://assessor.lacounty.gov/real-estate-toolkit/welcome and click on the “E-Notification” tab at the bottom left of the page. You will need to register and check the Opt-In for AIN/Recorded Document email notification disclaimer box. Once you have created an account, log into the portal and select “Register Property for E-Notification” on the landing page. Enter your AIN (Assessor Identification Number) on the “Register Property for E-Notification” page and select “Add.” There is no limit to how many properties you can enroll in this service. It’s also a great idea to enroll elderly parents or any dependent adult’s property to ensure immediate notification. Once registered, you receive notifications within 48 hours of a document being recorded against your property. If you are a homeowner that has questions, suspects fraud, or needs assistance, you can always contact the Department of Consumer and Business Affairs at (800) 593-8222.
Mike Harper and Peter Hazdovac are co-owners of HH Coastal Real Estate, an independent local brokerage. For more info, visit www.hhcoastal.com.
