New Consumer Notification Service to Protect Norfolk County Property Owners Against Potential Property Fraud

Norfolk County Register of Deeds William P. O’Donnell announced on Friday the establishment of a free online Consumer Notification Service to protect Norfolk County property owners against potential property fraud.

“The F.B.I. has reported that property and mortgage fraud is one of the fastest growing white collar crimes in America,” O’Donnell said in a news release. “Many jurisdictions across the country have reported individuals recording fraudulent documents making it look like they own another person’s home or property. While we have been fortunate that this problem has not manifested itself in Norfolk County, I want to make sure my office is out in front of this issue.”

Any owner of real property in any of the twenty-eight communities comprising Norfolk County can sign-up for the Consumer Notification Service free of charge by doing the following:

From the Registry’s website, www.norfolkdeeds.org, click on the button Consumer Notification Alerts to complete initial registration. From there, follow the remaining sign-up instructions. Once you have signed up for the service, each subscriber will be able to input two names, individual or business, and the corresponding city or town in Norfolk County for monitoring. They could monitor their real estate for liens, deeds, homesteads that might be recorded against the property.

If a document is recorded against one of the names imputed for monitoring, the subscriber will be alerted via email. If a subscriber believes a fraudulent land record has been recorded against their property, they would then immediately contact the Norfolk County Registry of Deeds Customer Service Center at (781) 461-6101.

Another option available to those who receive a notification is to consult the Registry’s online land research records at www.norfolkresearch.org. The subscriber would also be given by the Registry a list of public safety referrals.

Photo Credit: ww.norfolkdeeds.org