Watch Out for Deed and Trust Recording Scams After You Transfer Property to Your Trust

If you recently completed an estate plan and transferred your home or other real property into your trust, you may receive official-looking letters in the mail shortly after the deed is recorded. Some of these letters may look urgent. They may reference your property address, the recording date, your trust name, a parcel number, or other real estate information. They may also ask you to pay a “service fee” for title monitoring, deed monitoring, property records, or similar services.

Be careful. Many of these mailers are solicitations from private companies that troll through county real estate records looking for people who have recently recorded deeds.

When a deed transferring property to a trust is recorded, that recording usually becomes part of the public record. Companies can search those public records, gather names and addresses, and then send mailers that look like invoices, notices, or government-related correspondence. The goal is often to make you think you need to pay a fee because your deed was recorded.

One recent example we reviewed was labeled “Notice of Recording” and requested a $285.00 “service fee.” The document referenced the property address and the trust name, which made it look connected to the recent trust transfer. But the top-right corner of the document stated that the service was not affiliated with or endorsed by any governmental agency. Near the bottom, the document also stated that it was “not a bill” and was merely a “solicitation.”

That is exactly why you should slow down and read the entire document before paying anything.

What to Look For

If you receive a letter after transferring property to your trust, look closely at:

1. The return address.
Is it from your county recorder, clerk, assessor, tax office, or another actual government agency? Or is it from a private company with a vague name like “title services,” “recording services,” “property records,” or “deed monitoring”?

2. Disclaimers.
Many of these mailers include fine print stating that they are not affiliated with any government agency. Sometimes that language appears in the corner, on the back, or near the bottom of the page. Read the entire document before taking action.

3. Whether it says “this is not a bill.”
If the document says it is not a bill and that you are under no legal obligation to pay, then you should treat it as a sales solicitation, not an official government fee.

4. Pressure language.
Be suspicious if the letter says you must respond by a certain date, pay promptly, avoid increases, or secure a fee. That kind of urgency is often designed to get people to pay before they ask questions.

5. Requests for payment by phone, mail, or online.
Do not assume a fee is legitimate just because the document includes your property information. Public records often contain enough information for a company to make a letter look official.

Do You Need to Pay These Fees?

Usually, no. If your attorney prepared and recorded the deed transferring your property to your trust, there generally should not be an additional surprise “recording” or “title monitoring” fee owed to a private company after the fact.

That does not mean every service offered in these letters is necessarily fake or illegal. Some companies may actually sell monitoring services. The issue is that the mailers can be confusing and can create the impression that payment is required when it is not.

Before paying anything, contact your estate planning attorney.

Why This Happens After a Trust Transfer

Trust-based estate plans often involve recording a deed that transfers real property from your individual name into the name of your revocable living trust. That recording is an important implementation step. But once the deed is recorded, the information may be visible in county land records.

Scammers and aggressive marketers know this. They search county records for new deed recordings and send letters to homeowners who may not realize the company has no role in the estate planning process, no connection to the county, and no authority to collect a required government fee.

Our Advice

If you receive correspondence about your trust, deed, property title, recording, or estate plan, do not panic and do not immediately pay. Read the full document. Look at who sent it. Look for disclaimers. Then ask your attorney.

Atkins Law Offices not only drafts estate plans, we also help clients implement them properly. That includes deeds transferring real property into trust when appropriate. We also provide free annual estate plan check-ins and encourage our clients to contact us whenever they receive confusing correspondence about their trust, deed, or estate plan.

If you received a suspicious letter after transferring property to your trust, or if you are considering creating a trust-based estate plan, book a consultation with Atkins Law Offices. We can help you understand what is legitimate, what is unnecessary, and what steps you should take to protect your property and your family.