LOCAL NEWS — Your home or land will likely be the biggest investment you ever make and a new Metro program helps you protect it against false deed claims.

Property and mortgage fraud exists as one of the fastest growing crimes in the U.S. It’s also sometimes called deed fraud or house stealing. It’s what happens when someone unlawfully attempts to forge your identity and transfer your property into their name. This fraudulent activity can make it appear as if that person owns your home or property, and homeowners often do not know it’s happened until it’s too late.

Metro officials who file county records do not judge the accuracy or validity of a document. As long as a document is properly filed, and the proper fees are paid, a document can be entered into the Official Records, even if it is fraudulent. It’s become such a problem across the U.S. that multiple counties in Tennessee now offer a new free service to help prevent the filing of fraudulent deeds.

Metro Moore County is among them. Metro now offers a free service to help prevent fraud through the Register of Deeds office. The new Register of Deeds Property Fraud Alert System will immediately notify you if anyone files a document under your name or your business name. According the Metro Register of Deeds Pam Wells, the new program helps in three ways: instant notification of document filings, 24/7 monitoring, as well as the ability to monitor multiple individual names and business name at once.

To register for the free service simply click here. The link will take you to a Moore County specific landing page. Fill out the form and in a few quick clicks, your home and land is protected. You will be notified immediately via email when a document is filed in the Metro Register of Deeds office that matches your criteria.

For more information, contact the Metro Register of Deeds at 931-759-7913.•

{The Lynchburg Times is the only independently owned and operated newspaper in Lynchburg. We cover Metro Moore County government, Jack Daniel’s Distillery, Nearest Green Distillery, Tims Ford State Park, Motlow State Community College, Moore County High School, Moore County Middle School, Lynchburg Elementary, Raider Sports, plus regional and state news.}