to be the first of its kind in the nation, Macomb County officials may provide
fraud protection to homeowners and businesses by sending them a consumer alert
whenever legal documents are filed that alter the ownership or financial
interests in their property.
Under a
proposal devised by county Clerk Carmella Sabaugh, scheduled for a vote by the Board
of Commissioners on Tuesday, property owners could quickly respond if a real
estate transaction that altered their property deed was not legitimate. If the
notice reflected a legitimate sale, officials say it would simply provide the
homeowner with peace of mind.
The FBI has
taken an interest in the Macomb County plan as Michigan ranks among the 11
states with the highest amount of real estate fraud. If the plan gains
approval, the FBI would help Macomb officials investigate fraudulent activity. that
attempts to alter ownership or financial interests. In addition, the bureau would
lend legitimacy to the mailings by putting its fraud alert logo on each notice.
County Clerk/Register of Deeds Carmella Sabaugh wants to make Macomb County
real estate transactions the safest in the nation, and help protect private
property rights, by reducing the risk of real
 |
| Sabaugh |
real estate consumer alert notices,” the contract proposal reads.
and mortgage fraud emerged as a big problem across southeast Michigan during
the 2008-11 collapse in the state’s housing market. These fraudulent activities
often involve property ownership documents, second mortgages or liens placed on
a property.
The
proposal, which will cost approximately $65,000 per year, is supported by the
county executive’s office. Sabaugh’s staff estimates that 92,000 notices would
be mailed per year.
are particularly susceptible to real estate fraud as con men – or sometimes friends,
neighbors, even relatives — try to submit phony documentation to the Register
of Deeds indicating that they have a shared interest in a senior’s home. Often
the intent is to cash in when the homeowner dies and his or her assets are
disbursed.
Officials
say that victims of fraudulent or unethical real estate practices often do not
learn of these actions until years later when they attempt to sell their
property. The result can range from required legal action or hundreds of
dollars in unexpected fees to thousands of dollars of taxes owed or scuttling
the sale altogether.
Beyond illegitimate
property ownership alterations, the Macomb County notifications would alert residents
when a lien is tacked onto their mortgage, a homeowner’s association recorded
an attachment to the property deed, or if a land contract deal started to go
astray.
Sabaugh, with the help of Google and Xerox, launched a first-in-the-nation
mortgage fraud protection system with a high-tech computer system known as the “super
index.” That project, the largest database of land records ever created,
provided the public with unprecedented digital search capabilities.
But the new
notification system would automatically send notices to property owners when
any new activity affecting their property deed occurs.
The notices
will include the basic information needed for property owners to access and scrutinize
their deed. The information can be retrieved online in a matter of seconds, or
the documentation can be viewed at the Register of Deeds office in Mount
Clemens.
Marlinga, a judge in the Macomb County Probate Court, which handles disputes
over wills and estates, has endorsed Sabaugh’s plan.
to the Board of Commissioners, Marlinga said: “In my courtroom, I have seen
disputes regarding real estate. Also as an assistant United States Attorney,
and again as (county) prosecutor, I investigated and prosecuted cases involving
fraudulent mortgage transactions. This type of notice, in my opinion, will make
it far more difficult to perpetrate such crimes.”
of Deeds office has been working internally with the FBI on a fraud-notice pilot
project. An FBI representative is scheduled to speak in favor of the plan when
it is taken up by the Board of Commissioner’s Government Operations Committee.
If approved, the proposal would face final approval from the full, 13-member
board on Thursday, which would amount to little more than a formality.
The fraud
detection program could be implemented as early as the next day, on Dec. 11.
