Bicameral legislation was introduced aiming to protect Michigan homeowners who fall victim to deed fraud, reclaim their property, recover their losses, and seek justice. Deed fraud occurs when someone forges documents to falsely transfer ownership of another person’s property. Criminals can then attempt to sell the home, take out loans against it, or evict the rightful owner.
Key Points:
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- Senate Bills 1215-1218 and House Bills 6433-6436 were introduced by a group of members.
- The proposal creates a faster, less expensive court process for homeowners to challenge fraudulent deeds.
- It would extend the deadline for victims to file lawsuits from one to three years after discovering the fraud or the conclusion of a related investigation or criminal case, whichever comes last.
- The plan allows victims to sue deed thieves and recover $5,000, three times their actual financial losses, and attorney fees.
- The bills would protect homeowners from property tax increases caused by fraudulent deeds while ownership disputes are being resolved.
- The House bills were referred to the House Judiciary Committee for Consideration.
- The Senate bills will be referred once they’re officially introduced.
Since 2005, the Wayne County Mortgage and Deed Fraud Unit has received more than 15,589 inquiries and opened more than 2,913 cases. According to the FBI, this type of fraud is on the rise and continues to grow. Nationally, from 2019 through 2023, 58,141 victims reported $1.3 billion in losses related to real estate fraud.
