Forged Deeds and Title Fraud in California

Void, not merely voidable

California draws a distinction that matters here. Some defective instruments are voidable, meaning they operate until someone sets them aside. A deed that was actually forged is void from the outset. It never conveyed anything, and someone who bought from the forger did not acquire ownership, however innocent they were.

That principle protects owners, but it does not clean the record. The recorded document remains where it is, and a title insurer looking at the chain sees a conveyance. Removing it requires a judgment.

What tends to give it away

Owners usually find out in one of three ways. A notice arrives about a loan they did not take out. A property tax or utility bill goes to a different address. Or a sale falls apart because the title search turned up a conveyance they know nothing about.

Vacant land, rental property and homes belonging to owners who have died or moved into care are the most exposed, because nobody is watching the mail and nobody visits.

The first three things to do

Get a copy of the recorded document from the county recorder. The signature, the notary block and the notary's commission details are where the evidence of forgery usually lives, and the notary's journal is a record that can be subpoenaed later.

Order a current title report so you can see everything recorded against the parcel and in what order. A forged deed is often followed by a loan, and the lender's position has to be dealt with as well as the deed itself.

Report it. A forged instrument is a crime as well as a civil problem, and a report creates a contemporaneous record of when you discovered it.

Clearing the record

The civil route is an action to establish that the instrument is void and to remove it from the chain, usually pleaded together with quiet title. Where a lender recorded a deed of trust in reliance on the forged transfer, that interest has to be addressed in the same case rather than left for later.

If you hold an owner's policy of title insurance, notify the insurer promptly. Policies contain notice provisions and the coverage may depend on meeting them.

Reducing the exposure

Several California counties operate a free recorder notification service that emails you when a document is recorded against a parcel you have registered. For an owner with property they do not live at, it is the single most useful precaution available, and it costs nothing.

Keeping the assessor's mailing address current does similar work, because a redirected tax bill is often the first sign that something has been recorded.

Free monitoring, county by county

Several California county recorders operate a free notification service that emails a registered owner whenever a document is recorded against a parcel they have registered. It is the cheapest protection available against a forged recording, and it is available in the counties our clients own property in.

Los Angeles County offers it through the Registrar-Recorder and County Clerk. San Bernardino County offers it through the Assessor-Recorder-County Clerk. San Diego County offers it through the Assessor, Recorder and County Clerk.

Registering takes a few minutes per parcel. For an owner of property they do not live at, which is the category most exposed to deed fraud, it is the single most useful step available.

Because program names and enrollment routes change, register through the county recorder's own website rather than through a third party offering to do it for a fee.

Why some properties are targeted

The pattern is consistent. Vacant land, because nobody visits and nothing arrives in the post. Rental property held by an owner living elsewhere. Property belonging to someone who has died or moved into care, where the mail is not being read. Properties owned free of any loan, because there is no lender monitoring the title.

What these have in common is an absence of anyone who would notice. The fraud depends on time passing before the owner finds out.

The order to do things in

Obtain the recorded document from the recorder, and a current title report showing everything recorded against the parcel and in what sequence. A forged deed is frequently followed by a loan recorded against the property, and the lender's position has to be addressed as part of the same matter.

Preserve the notary evidence. The notary's commission details are on the document and the notary's journal is a record that can be obtained later. This is often the strongest evidence available.

Report it to law enforcement, and notify your title insurer if you hold an owner's policy. Policies contain notice requirements and coverage can depend on meeting them.

Then bring the action to establish the instrument is void and remove it. Because a forged deed is void rather than voidable, it conveyed nothing even to an innocent purchaser, but the record still has to be corrected by judgment.

This article is general information about California law and is not legal advice for any specific situation. If you are dealing with this issue, the facts of your matter will change the analysis.