Fresno County rolls out first-in-state deed fraud shield targeting vacant land scams

Fresno County property owners can now record a formal alert flagging their parcels for extra verification before title companies process deeds or loans — a new anti-fraud tool the county says is the first of its kind in California. The Real Property Fraud Prevention Notice Ordinance, approved by the Board of Supervisors on Sept. 8, takes effect Oct. 8.

The ordinance was proposed by County Assessor-Recorder Paul Dictos and Supervisor Buddy Mendes. It arrives as the FBI warns that scammers are forging deeds and impersonating owners to sell vacant property without the actual owner’s knowledge or consent.

The FBI issued a public service announcement on June 16 describing the scheme: criminals use bogus identification, fake email accounts, and internet-based phone numbers to pose as legitimate landowners, then try to close sales before anyone notices.

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Vacant land is especially vulnerable because there’s no one living on-site to spot suspicious activity. An owner who lives elsewhere or doesn’t routinely monitor county records may not realize anything is wrong until legal disputes or financial damage have already landed.

The Breakdown

• Property owners can record a notice with the county that asks title and escrow professionals for extra steps before closing a transaction on that property.
• The notice requires professionals to contact the owner through independently verified information (not contact details supplied by the supposed seller), confirm the signer’s identity through a qualified title company, obtain ID and a notary thumbprint, and send proceeds only to an account the title company has verified.
• The county already offers a free Property Owner’s Protection Alert service that emails subscribers when a recorded document involves their name — it has over 5,000 subscribers.
• The FBI lists red flags: a supposed seller who communicates only electronically, refuses to meet in person, pushes for a rushed closing, provides conflicting information, or asks for proceeds wired to an unrelated account or location.

What This Means for You

If you own property in Fresno County, this ordinance gives you a new mechanism to flag your parcel for additional scrutiny before a deed or loan gets processed — useful if you own vacant land, live out of the area, or otherwise can’t monitor your property daily. A fraudulent deed or mortgage can drag you into expensive legal disputes over one of your largest assets.

The county’s existing alert service is free and already notifies over 5,000 subscribers when a document is recorded in their name; the new ordinance adds a formal verification step title companies must follow once you’ve recorded the notice. The Board of Supervisors’ Sept. 8 approval reflects how Supervisor Mendes and Assessor-Recorder Dictos are prioritizing protection for property owners against a fraud pattern the FBI flagged nationally.

What You Can Do

Sign up for Fresno County’s free Property Owner’s Protection Alert service to receive email notifications when a document involving your name is recorded. Once the ordinance takes effect Oct. 8, contact the Fresno County Assessor-Recorder’s office to learn how to record a fraud prevention notice on your property. If you suspect fraud, report it to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3).

What to Watch

The county says it’s urging other California counties and the state to adopt similar protections — a signal that Fresno officials see this as a scalable model, not a one-off local fix. The county’s existing alert service had over 5,000 subscribers before this ordinance passed — a useful baseline to track whether the new formal notice system drives broader adoption or mainly benefits owners who were already monitoring their property closely.

Vacant land fraud is attractive to criminals precisely because the owner isn’t watching daily; the real test is whether this verification requirement catches schemes before they close, not just whether it gives owners another form to file. County officials framed this as first-in-state leadership — that framing raises questions about implementation: how will the county track whether the new notice system actually prevents fraud attempts, and does Fresno County have documented local cases that prompted this response to the FBI’s national warning?