Real estate theft—the silent crime that’s happening right in your backyard.
In an effort to steal more than 18,000 square miles of land in Arizona and New Mexico, James Addison Reavis forged hundreds of documents, surreptitiously placed them in the public record, and boldly claimed himself the rightful owner of the land. Along the way, he sold quitclaim deeds in the land to successful businessmen to the tune of more than $5 million. When people began to suspect what the “Baron of Arizona” was up to, he married a women and forged documents that would show his wife was the legal heir to the property.
When it was all said and done, after suing the United States government for what is the equivalent of $416 million, Reavis was found out due to issues as simple as the pens not being what were used at the time the forgeries were supposedly drawn, the print styles being wrong, and simple spelling errors. As you may expect, the good Baron landed in jail for the fraud. He ultimately died in a poor house and was buried in a pauper’s grave. Sometimes, crime does not pay, but it does not stop people from trying. That was one 136 years ago.
Even though Reavis was found out, it took multiple trials, thousands of dollars, and many years to unwind his web of deception. While that was many years ago, Americans are still faced with the same kind of bad actors: out for a quick buck, taking advantage of the property recording systems adopted here.
The fact of the matter is that all property records are public, and our system of recording those records are public. In the age of the internet, it does not take much to find out critical data on any property in this country, from who the owners are and how much they pay annually in taxes, to who owned the property previously going back generations. This makes for excellent hunting ground for the new age of piracy—yes some call themselves “title pirates.” Instead of living on the high seas, with a peg for a leg, a hook for a hand, and a patch on one eye, they are in front of a computer, searching for easy targets and sometimes hard ones.
In 2008, the FBI bulletin warned, “House Stealing–The Latest Scam on the Block.” This was in the wake of the notorious Matthew Cox affair, where the crook was convicted of stealing $55 million in title fraud scams. Since then, technology has revolutionized business, society, and crime.
In recent months, the FBI has warned “Fraudsters Are Stealing Land Out from Under Owners.” In April of this year, the Boston office of the FBI cautioned, “Quit Claim Deed Fraud is on the Rise.” In perhaps the biggest attempted heist of all at the time of this writing, a Missouri woman was set to be sentenced this summer in Memphis, Tennessee for attempting to steal Graceland, the former home of the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley.
Despite the headlines, many consumers and landowners remain oblivious to this growing threat. Industry professionals estimate that only about half of consumers know and understand the threat of real estate fraud, that is up from just 20 percent five years ago.
Title fraud happens in a variety of ways. In the case of Matthew Cox, who has admitted to more than 100 cases of fraud, he would create fraudulent deeds and “transfer” the title to another name then borrow money against the home. In other cases, he would draft releases of the mortgages and phony deeds in order to sell or borrow money as the owner of the property. Cox’s escapades elevated him to the FBI’s Most Wanted List, who reported that more than 9,300 property owners were victims of real estate fraud to the tune of $170 million in reported losses in 2024.
Elvis fans around the world were shocked when reports emerged that the famed Graceland was to be auctioned off on the courthouse steps in Shelby County, Tennessee. The fraudster, Lisa Findley, created a fake company called Naussany Investments and Private Lending LLC. The fake company claimed that it had loaned Lisa Marie Presley approximately $3.8 million prior to her death and the debt remained unpaid. The fraudulent company advertised foreclosure notices in The Commercial Appeal pursuant to the deed of trust statute. The granddaughter of The King, Riley Keough, lawyered up and convinced the judge that this was an elaborate fraud. The judge agreed.
In retrospect, had the fraudster been more savvy, she quite possibly could have gotten closer to the finish line. In order to have the rights to a non-judicial foreclosure in Tennessee you must be the beneficiary of a deed of trust. Findley apparently did not know this about Tennessee law and did not create a fraudulent deed of trust. This was the first clue that this whole thing was one big scam. However, one can easily imagine, with a property not as famous, a person could possibly get away with this.
Title pirates target vacant land, vacation homes, and estates. The simplest of scams is purporting to be the owner of vacant land, hiring a real estate agent, and listing the property without the real owner’s knowledge. If you are the owner of the property, you will almost certainly find yourself in some sort of litigation to quiet the title to your property if you are a victim. If you are the buyer and you did not buy title insurance, it is likely that you will be left holding the proverbial bag. If you are the listing agent, you are likely turning over any commissions you received. In the context of vacation homes, fraudsters have been as brazen as to move into the homes themselves, changing the locks, and purporting to be the actual owners of the home. In this case, it is even more difficult for a real estate agent to detect. In the case of estates, the criminals will manipulate and forge documents appointing themselves as executors of a deceased person’s estate and attempt to quickly sell the real estate owned by the deceased.
While many of these con artists can be very sophisticated, there are some things that you can do. The FBI recommends that you set up alerts with the county clerk’s office in your area. Knox County offers this service. Set up online search alerts on your property. If you have vacant property that you cannot personally check on, hire a management company to spot-check the property.
In addition, one particular type of title insurance policy can help. The ALTA Homeowner’s Policy of Title Insurance includes protection against title defects caused by forgery or impersonation after the Date of Policy. Ask your title agency about this coverage. You should also monitor your credit reports for signs of identity theft. Lastly, there are several companies who offer the service of monitoring the public records for any changes for a monthly fee and offer a LifeLock style guarantee if someone perpetrates a fraud on your land.
Protect Your Property Title for Free
Knox County Register of Deeds Nick McBride wants you to know: real estate title fraud is real—but so is your ability to fight back.
In Knox County, you can sign up for a free Property Fraud Alert service that notifies you any time a document is filed under your name in the county’s register of deeds office. That includes deeds, liens, releases, or any other title-related instruments.
This service doesn’t stop documents from being recorded—it can’t—but it immediately alerts you via email, often within the hour, if something is filed with your name on it. That gives you the earliest possible chance to investigate, call law enforcement, and stop a fraudulent transaction before the damage spreads.
“Most people don’t know this is available,” McBride says. “But it’s automated, easy to sign up for, and it’s free. If someone records something using your name—or even a name like yours—you’ll get an alert.”
You can register your name, your spouse’s, your children’s, even a builder or business you work with. The system is based on name recognition and continues sending alerts until you unsubscribe. Many local title companies and real estate agents use it to track filings without needing to manually search records all day.
The Knox County Register’s Office has also digitized records going back to the 1700s and continues to enhance protections in partnership with law enforcement and title underwriters. But McBride emphasizes that vigilance starts with property owners.
If you own land, a home, or even vacant property in Knox County, visit rod.knoxcounty.org to sign up for Property Fraud Alerts. Because by the time you find out someone has fraudulently claimed your property, you may already need a lawyer. Catching it early can save you the time, cost, and chaos of fighting to get your title back.
Comments are closed.