The Leelanau County register of deeds recently received another complaint about a third party fraudulently attempting to sell land without the owner’s knowledge. This is the latest in a series of property fraud schemes reported to the register of deeds office, all of which have targeted vacant land.
Register of deeds Jennifer Grant contacted the Enterprise to let the newspaper know that another fraud attempt was reported to her office. She had previously worked with the press to alert county residents when several property fraud attempts occurred in August.
It is currently unclear if the same group is behind all these property fraud attempts. So far, each target has been a vacant lot, but they have not been limited to a specific area in Leelanau County. While fraudulent listings of vacant lots are perhaps more likely to go unnoticed, Grant noted in the past that fraud on seasonal homes is sometimes reported in neighboring counties while their occupants are away.
According to michiganpropertyrecords. org, it’s “easy and quick” to find out who owns a Michigan property by name and address, as all documents recorded with the county register of deeds office are a matter of public record. On the other hand, this may make it easier to identify land owned by seasonal residents.
Grant said that a county resident came to her office on Dec. 28 to report that someone tried to sell a piece of his vacant land in Suttons Bay Township. Their attempt didn’t go very far, as the party tried to fraudulently list the property with a realtor who was friends with the landowner. As Grant said, realtors and neighbors are the first line of defense against fraud, so “if you see something, say something.”
While the landowner was in the register of deeds office, he signed up for their fraud notify service. This service is available for free on leelanau.gov under the “Quick Links” column on the lower right of the webpage. Once signed up, the notify service sends an automated email alert any time a document is recorded in the register of deeds office using the property owner’s name.
Grant said that the register of deeds is not aware of any other property fraud attempts between August and late December, but other attempts may have been nipped in the bud before making it to her office. She said they are the “last stop on the paper trail” for recording land transfers, and they have a wet ink signature policy that requires documents to be signed in person to try to deter criminal activities.
According to leelanau.gov, the register of deeds office also provides services to residents “the old-fashioned way” with staff members volunteering their knowledge and experience to people who call or visit the office during normal business hours.
