Title Piracy on the Rise in the Sea of Real Estate Ownership

As if buying real estate is not stressful enough, prospective buyers might not have heard of a new danger: title pirates. These are criminals who file phony documents claiming to own property that actually belongs to someone else. So how do title pirates operate?

Imagine a picturesque and smooth sea; Captain Blackbeard of the title piracy crime syndicate and his first mate are sailing along, looking for something. Suddenly, Blackbeard calls to his first mate, “Shiver me timbers! Land ho!”

“Yo ho yo ho! Weigh anchor. The deeds will be ready to record, and the loot will be taken back to the ship,” the first mate cackles in response.

“Those landlubbers won’t know we sold their property until our ship has already sailed over the horizon,” Blackbeard declares, an evil glint in his eye ready to steal a hapless person’s property, the owner being none the wiser.

Okay, this isn’t how it actually happens; technology has made sailing (or even driving) to a physical location for a closing unnecessary. And that’s part of the reason for the danger.

What Is Title Piracy?

Identity theft and cybercrime are on the rise and criminals are more creative and brazen than ever. Deed fraud, also known as, “title piracy” is a form of identity theft that is increasing in frequency and leading to significant financial losses for victims nationwide.  According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (Boston Division), from 2019 through 2023, 2,301 victims in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island reported losing more than $61.5 million due to real estate fraud, including deed fraud.

Criminals, such as our own Blackbeard and his first mate, are forging documents to record fake transfers of real property ownership, taking out fraudulent mortgages, or even renting out vacant and unoccupied properties to make a profit—all while not actually having ownership of the real estate they purport to sell, mortgage, or rent.

What Booty Are Title Pirates Seeking?

A “title pirate” seeks to defraud property owners, lenders and tenants by attempting to create the appearance that the title pirate has legal title to a piece of real property when they do not. This usually takes the form of the recording of a fraudulent or forged deed or other similar document purporting to convey title to a property.

Essentially, title pirates are individuals or entities that create fake deeds and other fraudulent documents asserting their property ownership. They use these documents (and the purported ownership these documents evidence) to sell the property and earn a quick profit, use the property as collateral to borrow money, rent the property to unsuspecting tenants, or even move in.

Title pirates will stake out properties, review land records, and research personal information on the record property owners in order to impersonate a real property owner.  Since the rise of new technologies (i.e. digital signature programs, remote online notarization and digital fund transfers), increasing demand for convenience, and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, both the general public and real estate professionals have become accustomed to doing business virtually, including remote real estate closings. While these conveniences are nice, it has made identity theft easier than ever.

Scammers use their research and the desired conveniences to impersonate sellers, create fake documents, and dupe unsuspecting real estate professionals and buyers. Title pirates often utilize a quitclaim deed—a fast and simple solution for transferring property rights. A quitclaim deed transfers ownership of real property without any guarantees or warranties about the title, which means the deed transfers the interest to the title “as-is”. The new owner receives only the interest the seller holds, which could be none at all (in the case of nefarious title pirates), and inherits any existing liens or title issues. This makes it a riskier option compared to a warranty deed, which does offer guarantees.

Real Estate: The Greatest Treasure

While these crimes are still relatively rare, especially compared with other forms of identify theft and cybercrimes, real estate industry experts say they are increasing in frequency because of the payoff of such transactions. Real estate is a lucrative target due to the large sums of money involved, complexity of the transactions with multiple parties (buyers, sellers, lenders and title companies), and the treasure trove of personal information readily available on the internet for criminals to utilize to perpetuate the fraud.

The National Association of Realtors has noted that title piracy has become increasingly more common since 2020, especially with the rise of remote and mail-away closings and remote notarization post-COVID. It goes on to note that vacant land or unoccupied homes are the most vulnerable to deed fraud, but any type of real estate is fair game.

How Do We Call for a Parlay?

The real estate industry is working diligently in conjunction with local law enforcement, the FBI, and local recording offices to combat title piracy and identity theft. This includes encouraging the public to immediately report fraud to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center and other law enforcement within the first 72 hours to have the best chance at stopping wire transfers and recovering funds. Realtors are also advised to avoid remote closings when possible and ask for in-person identity checks.

A number of states, including the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, have implemented technology that sends alerts of filings regarding the property to the property owners. Other states have implemented systems that freeze properties from unauthorized title transfers, like a credit freeze. Local recorders are increasingly acting as a line of defense, flagging suspicious filings and delaying them with investigation.

Notably, the issue has become enough of a concern that the title insurance industry is also joining the fray. In 2025, the American Land Title Associate (“ALTA”) released the ALTA 49 series of endorsements, adopted by certain states, which are issued on new residential owners policies and insure post-policy coverage for deed or mortgage forgery. The ALTA 49.1 is designed to address the situation where the homeowner has previously purchased an ALTA Owner’s Policy and would like future coverage for deed or mortgage forgery.

How Can Buyers Protect Themselves From Title Piracy?

First, it pays to know who you are dealing with. Ask your real estate agent what they know about the sellers you are buying from. If the sellers live in the home or are active at the property in the case of commercial real estate or vacant land, or are longtime community members, the buyer is on much safer ground than when dealing with a remote seller whom the real estate agent does not know or cannot vouch for. And as mentioned, in-person closings are advisable.

If you are financing your real estate purchase with a mortgage, the lender will require a title search, showing that the purported seller owns the real estate. You will also be required to buy lender’s title insurance, which protects the lender from financial liability if the title search fails to detect a title defect or other complications, such as liens or unpaid taxes. As a lender’s title insurance policy is usually required, a buyer can and should also purchase an owner’s title insurance, which provides similar protection for the benefit of the buyer and where the inclusion of the ALTA 49 endorsement may make sense as an additional protection against title piracy and deed fraud in particular.

Conclusion

We are all trained by employers, social media, morning television, and common sense not to click on suspicious links, pick up spam phone calls and text messages, nor give out our social security numbers and bank account information, but what we are not taught to do is to regularly check property records to protect ourselves, our loved ones, and our financial interests. Property owners are advised to regularly check tax and utility bills and report any discrepancies to authorities immediately. In addition, if the property is vacant or unoccupied, the property owner should make sure the property is regularly physically checked to avoid and dissuade suspicious activities from the likes of Blackbeard and his first mate. Finally, utilizing the available alert systems in the state where the real property is located is another available protection against deed fraud and forgery.

With cybercrime and identity theft on the rise, real estate owners should proactively monitor their properties for irregularities and potential buyers should work with trusted real estate counsel who will perform the required due diligence before any transactions are consummated.

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