Cass County to offer property fraud prevention service.
Linden, Texas – Cass County Commissioners court in conjunction with County Clerk Amy Varnell evaluated the need for a Property Fraud Alert program for Cass County Citizens and plan to move forward with its implementation.
According to the FBI, Property and Mortgage Fraud is the fastest growing white-collar crime. It can be as simple as someone recording a fraudulent document in the County Land Records making it look like they now own your home or property. The property fraud alert program addresses these concerns by protecting citizen’s most valuable investment.
The County Clerk’s office plans to offer the new property fraud prevention service that will alert people to filings in the clerk’s office, such as deed transfers, that affect their properties. This service will be offered free to the public. Property fraud alert is a community outreach service that serves to alert subscribers against the possibilities of fraudulent activity being committed against their personal mortgage or property. Citizens who sign up on the website will be notified via phone or email if something is filed in the clerk’s office that affects their property. It doesn’t necessarily mean the filing is fraudulent, but it will provide people the opportunity to check on the filing to see what it is and how it affects them. Notification is given promptly, allowing subscribers the opportunity to possibly save themselves time and avoid paying large legal fees if the document recorded is determined to be fraudulent.
Fraudsters may attempt to have counterfeit documents processed by county clerk’s offices unbeknownst to the true property owner. The county clerk’s office cannot reject documents that people file as long as all the criteria for that document are met. The fraud alert service through Fidlar Technologies will provide Cass County Citizens a unique service that will notify them anytime there is recording activity associated with their name. The property fraud alert contract will be brought back to the Commissioner’s Court for approval after the start of the new budget year in October. The service likely won’t be up and running until the first of the year.
“We want to do all we can to protect our constituents, especially our elderly, from scams and fraudsters. This is another innovative way to serve the citizens of our county.” – County Judge Travis Ransom “This is a good investment for the county as we see more and more property transactions with the recent waive of out of county property buyers purchasing land in Cass County.” – County Clerk Amy Varnell https:// www.propertyfraudalert. com/