ATLANTA — Following years of Channel 2 Action News coverage, a new Georgia law takes effect Wednesday to help prevent deed theft and title fraud.
The legislation, House Bill 1292, was signed by Gov. Brian Kemp to create new, better safeguards for homeowners and property owners to keep criminals from impersonating them and stealing their property or taking out a second mortgage on it.
The bill creates a process to validate someone’s identity when they file a title deed or real estate and personal property record, ensuring that someone is legally able to claim the property and is who they say they are, a release from the Georgia Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division said.
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Channel 2 Investigative Reporter Ashli Lincoln has covered stories about property theft and deception for years.
One case involving an Atlanta homeowner living in the Old Fourth Ward showed how not only can someone lose their home, but that there was little anyone could do about it until now.
Channel 2 Action News reported on how Linda Willis’ home was taken in Fulton County court, then bulldozed.
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While it wasn’t referenced in the bill, the challenges Willis faced trying to save her home were tied to a lack of photo identification proving that someone was related to her while they allegedly stole her home right out from under her, then had it demolished.
“Title theft occurs when a criminal impersonates a property owner and sells or takes out a second mortgage on the owner’s property. In the worst-case scenario, the home goes into foreclosure and/or is deeded to a new purchaser. It is a complicated and expensive process to rectify, if it can be rectified at all,” the AG’s office said in a statement.
Willis told Channel 2 Action News about how her home had been destroyed while she was still living there in November 2021.
HB 1292 mostly took effect May 2, 2024, creating steps to deal with “predatory and unsolicited real estate purchase offers” targeting older residents in Georgia.
Going forward, those offering to purchase property must disclose differences in price versus value, with the monetary offer requiring the text “THIS OFFER MAY OR MAY NOT BE THE FAIR MARKET VALUE OF THE PROPERTY” to be included in any offer.
Additionally, if the offer is less than the previous year’s assessed value of a property, the offer must state it clearly, reading “THIS OFFER IS LESS THAN THE COUNTY ASSESSED VALUE FOR THIS PROPERTY.”
For 2025, the rest of the bill takes effect, adding a requirement and process for validating who someone is when they file a title deed or other real estate and property records, and creates options for those who believe they were deceived to find justice.
Additionally, the Georgia Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division will now monitor these types of actions and take enforcement action when needed.
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