YORK, Maine (WGME) — The FBI recently warned that scammers are trying to sell your land under your nose all across the East Coast, and attempts like this continue in Maine.
“It’s beautiful,” said York landowner John Campbell as he looked at the land on which he plans to build his retirement home.
Campbell and his wife Peg bought the property two and a half years ago with big dreams. But they never planned for what would come next.
“I came here on Sunday and there was a ‘For Sale’ sign on the property. So I ripped the sign down,” Campbell recalls.
CBS13 I-Team reporter Stephanie Grindley: “What was going through your mind?”
Campbell: “Yeah, it made me angry.”
Someone had used a fake license to pose as Campbell and contacted unsuspecting real estate agents in the hope of selling the property right under his nose and disappearing with the money.
It’s part of a larger trend that the FBI recently warned about.
“Free land with no lien on it,” Campbell said.
It’s a problem the CBS13 I-Team first reported on in March and quickly caught the attention of landowners and local authorities.
Grindley: “You were getting calls to land registry offices across the state. People were worried that their deeds were at risk. What could you say to those people on the other end of the line?”
Cherri Crockett, president of the Maine Registry of Deeds Association: “From all the conversations that the 17 registrars have had with all of our clients and property owners, it is clear that there is actually no lock on their deed that they can use.”
According to Crockett, property owners are often unaware that a deed is a public document.
“Anyone can access it,” Crockett said.
“We have experienced situations where they came to us and couldn’t believe that we recorded a document that they never signed. We cannot be accused of having a responsibility to clearly identify someone.”
According to Crockett, once a document is received by the registry office, the matter is already closed.
“We are the last step. So we need to be involved in that conversation, but I also think real estate agents, land registry offices and lawyers need to be involved to figure out the best step,” she said. “Where does the responsibility lie? That’s the question many property owners are asking.”
The law enforcement authorities have also asked themselves this question.
Grindley: “How many real estate scams have you documented?”
Sheriff Bill King, York County: “Oh God. Actually, we stopped counting because there were just so many.”
Sheriff King was behind a major initiative to protect against “document fraud” during the last legislative session.
“If someone has a vacant lot and wants to sell it remotely, they have to pay a fee. That fee is used by the real estate agent for a pre-warning inspection and to deliver a certified letter to the property owner,” King said.
However, bill LD2240 faced resistance from real estate agents and was ultimately not passed.
Grindley: “It (LD2240) seemed to call for protections for both the real estate agents and the landowners. Why didn’t the association support that?”
Paul McKee, Maine Association of Realtors: “This has put real estate agents at risk and they are responsible for it.”
The bill’s original sponsor, Sen. Henry Ingwersen (D-York), told the I-Team he hopes the issue will come up again next session, which could give the Maine Association of Realtors a reason to have further discussions.
“We’re not lawyers, we’re not land registry people, we’re real estate agents. And I don’t think we should be the ones making decisions about a deed,” McKee said.
Meanwhile, landowners like John Campbell fear that the problem will only get worse without appropriate protective measures.
Grindley: “Can you understand how a real estate agent could be deceived by this?”
Campbell: “No. There are so many warning signs they should have seen. You live an hour and 45 minutes north. The guy used a Google Voice phone number as contact information. The land was offered way below market value. They are negligent.”
The Maine Real Estate Commission declined our interview request, but a spokesperson tells the I-Team that the subject of deed fraud will be part of a required course to obtain and maintain a real estate license starting October 1, 2024.
To date, the spokesperson said, no realtor in Maine has lost their license for deed fraud. The I-Team asked if that would or should change. The spokesperson said it depends on whether it is determined that they actually violated the law.
After our original report on these land sales aired in March, the Registry of Deeds Association listed on its website all registries in Maine that offer free “fraud alert” sign-up.
Please note that you will only be notified after The deed will be registered, which means you will be notified that the property is no longer registered in your name.
However, if you would like to sign up, you can do so online depending on your state. Here is a list of states that offer fraud alert services.
Click on the appropriate link for your country below:
