Special report: 'Dirty Deeds' investigation reveals how house thieves exploit system failures

[@fluxfaze]

County clerks’ sloth and incompetence is key to success of these fraudulent actions.

[@gino007able]

I would bet you a million dollars if this happened to a legislator the laws would change so fast it would make your head spin.

[@jamesedwards1588]

Great idea, maybe a few judges too.

[@limitone9564]

Why can't you just file like the crooks did, you should be to get it back! Where are the court's common sense !?

[@123ronchamp]

The county clerk should have to send a letter to the seller that the property has been sold for their records.

[@zimvader25]

Deeds are forged. There’s no bill of sale until the thieves already own it. They’re the ones that get the paperwork saying it’s been sold.

[@AMERICANPATRIOT1945]

123ronchamp, The clerk's office should be required to send notice to the actual owner of the intent of the newcomer to acquire the property. The new owner should be required to personally show up at the office with proof of ownership before the new deed can be recorded. In other words, for something worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, a new owner or claimant should not be allowed without very substantial proof.

[@michaelpettersson4919]

​@@AMERICANPATRIOT1945Require the owner to show up as well at the same time. And even then if it turns out that the "owner" was an imposter, the transfer is invalid even if later sold again.

[@truthseeker6610]

FL Statutes require the Clerk of the County Court to inspect the Deed before filing. They need to add another step informing the owner that a Deed has been filed on the property.

[@AMERICANPATRIOT1945]

Why does the legal system allow a criminal ten minutes to acquire a deed with fraud, but it takes years for the actual owner to clear the deed? Something is terribly wrong with our legal system. It should take as little time to remove the fraudster from the deed as it did to add the fraudster. The court industrial complex is just as much to blame for this problem as the criminals. Perhaps the real owners should go to the county clerk's office and refile their deed with the criminal's signature. Oh, right, that would also be considered fraud and the poor little criminal would be entitled to justice at the expense of the real victim. We seriously need to hold bureaucracies responsible for allowing these fraudulent transactions.

[@donnaleveron6511]

How can fraud be considered legal ownership???

[@michaelpettersson4919]

That is a mystery. I do not care how long chain of ownership changes are done after a theft, the stolen property should be returned. Also make it a felony to even ask the true owner for any form of compensation. Such compensation need come by going back the chain.

[@quin7850]

This is happening to me right now ! I am so appalled that this has happened to me. Furthermore, I am in bankruptcy for said property to preserve ownership and this still happened. I can assure you that I will stop at NOTHING to ensure my property is put back into my name.

[@Mona1930]

Excellent work! I cannot believe there is not already an FBI division dedicated to take these criminals down. And there should be more resources to victims, how can afford those legal fees?

[@QuickChip-v2w]

The FBI teams are busy trying to frame Trump, find all of the people that took a non-authorized tour on January 6, and anybody with the temerity to complain because their child is being bullied or sexually assaulted in school.

[@AlexShantyOldLawModel]

NICER 837PC Police, Sheriff and Permission Ledger Tahoe Enforcers 33 year reform will arrest quit claim jumping equity elder abusing Title Deed thieves in April

[@MrDedvalson]

They need to fix this asap 😤

[@anyonename8067]

What if a scammer transfers the deed of the state capitol? The clerk just records it?!

[@robertdepesci3418]

If this happened to me... someone is paying

[@zugabdu1]

Why didn't Andrew Howard buy title insurance? Buying owner's title insurance is a standard part of due diligence before purchasing a home and it's designed to prevent this exact problem.

[@james1787]

Wow, that is terrifying to hear how easy it is to steal another piece of property by simply filing some forged paperwork. What a nightmare for the rightful owners... who then have to fight for years to get back what is rightfully theirs.

[@AMERICANPATRIOT1945]

So, a fraudster shows up in the county clerk's office with fake deed papers, and law enforcement and the justice system is supposed to believe the false papers instead of the true owner's deed which has been on file for years, and was never sold for actual money equal to the actual value of the property. One would think that the relevant court would require the new "owner" to prove that they bought the property rather than faking papers. One would also think that the clerk's office would require proof of sale and the present owner to show up with proof of sale for actual value of the property.

[@carolinegarza8285]

Texas demands proof of ID for mail in ballots, but not for fillings at county clerk's offices??? 😂😂 No wonder why our side is losing!

[@sunlight4169]

So if we go to a store to return something without a receipt we are required to provide ID, but not to file a deed transfer at county courthouse? How to stop this nonsense ---- Since there has been considerable growth in new notary commissions and those seeking to get into notary business - some legitimate but others likely not so -- and then there are deed transfers conducted online/remote - talk about leaving the hen house door wide open for the crazy foxes !!!! THIS is what every county needs to do: have thoroughly vetted, designated county notaries who would be the only type of notary authorized to notarize a special document --- a freeze of title, like one can freeze their credit report, so this would mitigate the problem of notaries "on the take" as the notary issue would dramatically reduce this type of fraud. Counties need to vet and have this special designated notary pool, and also there needs to be extra layers of scrutiny for online deed notarizations. The title freeze would only apply to deed transfers and not lien or encumbrances from creditors.

[@sunlight4169]

Also, this shouldn't be a burdensome process. A one - page "Freeze of Title" document should be sufficient for the public record.

[@coffeeinam276]

The answer is soooo easy!!! Force the Title company to hand over the warranty deed to the buyer to accept and acknowledge the deed at closing. You must ask why that doesn’t happen???? Because the lenders , title companies are in on the scam!!! If the e buyer leaves the deed blank without accepting and acknowledging , it’s unclaimed property. The banks, lenders and title companies ARE THE BLAME!!!! They are the criminals !!!

[@monamartin9915]

That man should be in “Jail” waiting trail. Like the young Latino guy or the African-American male.

[@dariuswalker4542]

Life in prison for all these thieves

[@notlisteningwhocares8877]

A whole ghetto mess, I can’t with people .

[@123ronchamp]

Not ghetto, but this is American laws..

[@sjwilloughby-greene8214]

Thank you for exposing these thieves. 🙏

[@London2035]

Prison!!!!!

[@stylisticus]

I bought two properties in Texas. Whether the mortgage company required it or not; I would never have closed without Title Insurance. This would have indemnified me against any financial loss caused thru fraudulent deed or defective title. The title company is the de facto policeman of the grantor/grantee index in the court house. Just crazy not to pay for their services. can't understand why WFAA didn't bring this up?

[@godschild2-yd3jy]

Prisoners should not have access to technology or allowed to mail anything. Where is the punishment. Maybe if it's automatic life sentences it will deter some. They shouldn't get out on bail either. Probably using stolen money to bail themselves out.

[@deesmith8576]

iz ok mang he will be out in a few years with the property he got while in jail didny you hear him say that mang he doesent care he will get out and be living there

[@desmo8755]

Years of litigation to recover what’s yours, when it really comes down to authenticating the signatures and approvals of the rightful owners. Seeing there was no transaction outside the deed. Takes years though. Our system is really shot.

[@patricksanders858]

So can they just go and refile an new deed warranty reverting the property back?

[@alpark3024]

What a scammer.

[@trentsmith8160]

You know what stops this sort of thing? Make the perps pay the ultimate price when they show up at YOUR home trespassing using a FAKE deed! A FAKE deed is NOT “ownership” of a property. They are trespassing and a threat. Defend your property and family!

[@luvjen17]

Notaries have to be held accountable & prosecuted when found to be a co-conspirator of the crime.

[@AMERICANPATRIOT1945]

The fact that many of these fraud cases arise from inside of prisons is testament to the need to isolate prisoners and prevent them from communicating with the outside world. It is also testament to the stupidity of a clerk's office which does not even perform a cursory check to make sure that the deed transfer is real. At the very least, any time a new deed is created for a property, the old deed should be consulted for its owner, the owner contacted, and the sale of the property confirmed. Even better, both parties should be required to be present in the clerk's office with proof of their status as the owner who is selling and the buyer who is buying.

[@invisableobserver]

I suspect the county clerks office or a judge is taking bribes or getting paid off.

[@arlenem9697]

This can be stop. Have picture, signature and fingerprint on the real homeowner on file, then notify the owner by mail of the quick claim deed on their property. Have the fraudsters show and record their ID and signature to the recorders office. The fraudulent quick claim deed stay on file temporarily until the real homeowner come down to the recorders office to verify this quick claim is true or false. The verification checks would be your signature, fingerprint, death certificate, old check stubs etc. I bet if someone did this to the White House, It would get stopped in its tracks. I pray that all states do some kind of deed lock.

[@followertheleader]

Why isn't there a verification process?

[@123ronchamp]

You are correct their should be a letter of property sold send to the seller,

[@zimvader25]

@@123ronchamp you’re not understanding how this fraud works. Properties aren’t being fraudulently bought. They’re being fraudulently sold. The thief is the one getting all the receipts.

[@rosiehellraiser5066]

If this wasn't comical I wouldn't laugh, large property $10 at that rate no one should be homeless.

[@robertduffy5805]

How hard would a notice be to go out to the current owner of recorder address whenever a change of address, title, or lean is filed on a property to confirm the change.

[@JP-nz4em]

it’s the government. No one works

[@stevenmeadows6917]

Dirty Deeds....done dirt cheap....... :)

[@aidenalamo6262]

There is a need for a national registry for deeds, warranty deeds, and wills. This would have a software program scan and check for forged signatures and documents. No more local county recorder offices are needed. It has gotten so bad that local county recorders' offices are not getting the training necessary to legitimately spot fraud and forgery. The scanned documents, once they pass the system, are freely recorded into the registry and the public can check up on their residences anytime on the website.

[@godschild6172]

Shame people are dead for a deed. Geez. That’s the problem. They only do what the the law requires. That statement speaks volumes. So now a middleman has to create something to protect from theft.

[@sherrikins3557]

I called the police dept to file as someone was using my name & ss for lights, gas, & cable. They were squatting a home that someone had let go to foreclosure. i live out of state. the police called me and said nothing they can do...have to prove i'm not paying the bills... i mean it's crazy.

[@susanarsoniadou]

Once you win the case, the thief is obligated to pay all your attorney expenses.

[@Wisepati]

So are they faking the notary? Anytime I’ve used a notary. I have to show them my drivers license and prove I’m the person signing it..

[@sjwilloughby-greene8214]

WOW that is a license to steal. 🤔🤨🧐😲 Justice matters.⚖️

[@jaybeedelacruz520]

The buyer and the seller are on it fraudulently. $10? Give them both heavy punishment.

[@AlihaSingh]

Gee we don't have the resources to check a church bring sold fir $10. Someone tell me where a church can be bought for $10.

[@truthseeker6610]

That's auful. He stealing in the name of the Lord and he has the audacity to be a preacher.

[@Jenna-S]

The Bible clearly states in the last days that there will be many false prophets. Thankfully, those of us who love the Lord would know this fraudster by his "fruit", rotten as it is. 👹

[@theresaj.pereda7648]

The U.S. should have the a Lawyer present when Homes are being notarized

[@Effervescent_Smegma]

Uh, why not just do the crime right back at them. File for the deed saying you own it

[@yank4334]

2 step authentication is the best!! i think a photo ID and a phone call to the home-owner at the time of filing would be sufficient enough

[@javiermorin3295]

No most of the people are not honest

[@zugabdu1]

Why didnt Andrew Howard buy title insurance?

[@cherylgrimm5501]

From the jail, they should be monitored and the calls and recording them each time. Something like this occurs so that it goes in. Front of a supreme court judge about The judge should penalize them for not listening in on the calls of their inmates. They're helping the perpetrator commit these crimes by not Auditing their calls. It is important that the judge knows that they're not doing this kind of stuff behind bars. It is not the human rights place to stop it. It is the place of the serious iota's who has not stopped. Letting them make criminal calls from jail. Shame on all of you for the wrong doings that you help. These individuals commit these crimes from behind bars by not auditing the calls. They're supposed to be taped at all times so that they don't make more mistakes. But if you allow them to make a mistake, you have only passed judgment of consequences back on yourselves in the government for allowing this to happen.

[@ReneeKillen]

laws need to change.there should never be a transfer without seeing the people in person and i.d them. print them too just incase and noterized in person also. problem is a lot of these scams are ran by an employee who knows what the offices limitations are and what has to be done for that deed to transfer. and stealing someones property needs to be a felony. our aws in thsi country are geared to cater to ciminals and not the honest person.

[@Arizona_lilly]

Some guy I don’t know LOL

[@ronaldsears4979]

Nope it's time for the deputy Marshals to step in and do the full investigation you should have done before the property deeds were seeing that's invasion of privacy in the HIPAA laws that were broken by all who did not have respect for others the owner should have been contacted and you all did not do that you basically help the perpetrators on property which makes you a person who helps perpetrators or is a perpetrator of the same background con games

[@TinaL-nb7tp]

i lived in a home my dad bought and also my 2 other siblings lived in there house all together on one property 4 houses my father is the original owner a verbal agreement we live in are homes and do all and any repairs we were also on the deed 32 years past i made the payment home ,homeowners insurance and taxes plus all repairs including remolding it my mom past away after that my father did a quick claim deed to my brother so i was informed i no longer own this home it now belongs to my brother was givin 30 days to move out Somebody help me please i spent over 90.000 on remolding ,taxes home owners insurance i have all paper work reciepts for all repairs i was wronged by greedy brother and decevied by my father he is still alive living on the property and my other sibling was also taken advantage of also how did this happen is it legal im desperate for any advice

[@mekadon1]

bottom feeder

[@LovelyCookies-qw3iu]

This is why God is coming through texas with all of those tornadoes. Dont cry about a house that you stole.

[@LovelyCookies-qw3iu]

If you stole it Good Luck. Don't be on the nightly new crying about a house that belongs to someone else.

[@darryltognarelli6769]

ID should be mandatory by law with SS

[@MCPorter83]

I hope that they can ammend deed fraudsters the electric chair. Mortgages are expensive enough let alone legal fees on a fraudulent transaction! Dont give any solace to the fraud companies either!

[@Jenna-S]

TOTALLY agree!!! 👍🏻 😆