Is Your Home Title Secure?
Is your Home Title secure as you think it is? That may sound silly, especially after working all your life, finally making that last payment, and receiving the title. How many of you celebrated by burning the mortgage papers! And yet, that beautiful home, the base of your life, the place your children come on holidays, may be gone in minutes and you find yourself knee deep in debt. Not by a natural disaster, but a manmade one.
Future Plans Gone Awry
Have you made future plans for your home. How about that loan you thought you might take out to live your retirement to its fullest? Or even, with your passing, preparing to leave your home to your children as their inheritance? All of those plans are gone with the recording of a fake deed.
How Thieves Become Owners of Your House
It takes a Quit Claim Deed, which thieves find online and print out to destroy the Home Title Security you thought you had. Also required – someone willing to forge your name and signature, filling out the rest of the information and taking it to the courthouse to be recorded. Voila’ you no longer own the house.
You see, the person recording it does NOT check to see if it is legitimate. They assume the person is honest. That assumption, as the old saw goes, does not hurt the recorder, but does make an ass out of you or me.
It is up to you to protect your home, but knowing how to protect it isn’t so easy.
What Damage Comes From Deed Abuse?
The damage from a fake deed can be massive. Imagine receiving a ton of bills from companies you never visited, never ordered from, but are expected to pay.
The person claiming ownership of your home takes out loans against it, loans the owner of the property, the real owner, is expected to pay. You can be hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt without spending a cent. Have you priced attorneys recently? They cost a fortune, as will the one you need to clear up the mess.
Your home may have liens against it because of the thief’s actions. The only way to clear those liens is through an attorney or coughing up the money to pay the debts. How about protecting yourself ahead of time?
What Protections Are Available?
There are companies that offer Home Title Protection for a very reasonable amount per month. You can pay monthly, yearly, or however you prefer, and it is worth it. I listened to a talk show about this particular scam and the horror of losing my home pushed me to sign up with a company. The cost is minimal when I put $15 per month against having to cover loans some stranger makes against my home. This particular company sends a copy of all records available on their client’s home. Since I bought a new home, only my name showed on the paperwork.
If you do not want to go that route, simply check every month with the records section of the courthouse to see if anyone else recently claimed ownership. You also have access to any loans to contractors, or others where someone used your home as collateral. All in all, I found peace of mind through have professionals handle the problem.