Recent property fraud activity in the St. Louis area has prompted Montgomery
County Clerk/Recorder Sandy Leitheiser to remind land owners of a free service
her office provides notifying those who register via phone or email if a land
document in Montgomery County is recorded in their name.
According to Leitheiser, a St. Louis newspaper recently reported a St. Louis
woman entered a plea agreement after using a quit claim deed and forging a
deceased woman's signature to obtain ownership of a house. The document also
contained a signature and seal of a notary who neither saw nor signed it. She was
indicted on two counts of identity theft.
“According to the FBI, property and mortgage fraud is the fastest growing white-
collar crime,” Leitheiser stated, “and there are several costly “title lock” services
available to warn landowners about potential fraud, but we offer a similar warning
system for free!” She said her office voluntarily joins 46 other Illinois counties to
offer a free Property Fraud Alert service to help customers should someone attempt
to illegally use their property for financial gain by recording fraudulent real estate
documents. Leitheiser reports a total of 448 Montgomery County property owners
have joined 110,572 Illinois residents who have signed up for this service to date.
She encourages land records customers to register for Property Fraud Alert which
will notify them when a document is recorded in their name, and if it is fraudulent,
allows the customer to contact the Recorder’s office and law enforcement
authorities. Registration for this free service can be completed either at
propertyfraudalert.com or in paper form at the Montgomery County Recorder’s
Office, and participants’ information will not be sold or used for commercial
purposes.
Leitheiser stated while Property Fraud Alert does not prevent fraud from
happening, it provides an early warning system for property owners to take
appropriate actions should they determine possible fraudulent activity has taken
place. To sign up, go to propertyfraudalert.com, select Montgomery County,
Illinois and follow the prompts to complete the registration and submit the form
electronically. Those wishing to complete the paper form may either download or
print it from the Montgomery County website at www.montgomeryco.com and mail
it to Montgomery County Recorder, PO Box 595, Hillsboro, IL 62049 or retrieve the
form at the Recording Department of the County Clerk/Recorder’s office located on
the first floor of the Historic Courthouse in Hillsboro. Those with questions
regarding Property Fraud Alert may call 1-800-728-3858 or county Recording
Department staff at 217-532-9535.