New York City is in the middle of a deed theft crisis, one that often impacts Black and Latino residents, along with senior homeowners in rapidly gentrifying neighborhoods. In response, Councilmember Chi Ossé and housing advocates are calling on Gov. Kathy Hochul to enforce a temporary eviction moratorium on deed theft cases.
Deed theft is a form of property fraud that involves the illegal transfer of a property deed without the owner’s knowledge or consent. From 2014 to 2023, the New York City Sheriff’s Office counted nearly 3,500 court complaints of deed theft throughout the city. More than 1,500 of the complaints were in Brooklyn, and 1,000 were from Queens.
“Because the deed has been signed away, even if it was fraudulent, the courts and the judges and the referees are just looking at that piece of paper,” said Ossé.
Homeowners are often tricked into signing false documents they believe will help with a loan modification, bills, or home repairs, Ossé said. Then deed thieves will forge their signatures, impersonate owners, or exploit legal loopholes to take their house. These fraudulent brokerage and real estate companies often target predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods, seniors, and older Black women. The problem is that while families take legal action in court, eviction proceedings continue. An eviction moratorium would keep families from being displaced while the courts sort through the facts, said Ossé.
“The first part is an eviction moratorium and the second part is a slew of different things that we are pushing for the governor and state legislators to do,” said Ossé. “This is about stopping displacement now, as well as closing loopholes to prevent this illegal activity from continuing.”
In a letter to Hochul, Ossé also outlined a long-term stop deed theft initiative at the city and state level. The coalition is calling for a citywide opt-out cease-and-desist zone to so that it would be illegal for solicitors to harass homeowners around selling their homes; for the state to fully fund the right to counsel to provide homeowners facing deed theft with lawyers and dedicated investigative units within District Attorney offices; more limited liability company (LLC) transparency laws and oversight into the state’s judicial and lending systems; and for the state to pause the statute of limitations on deed theft cases so that older cases can be revived. The plan also includes creating a loan forgiveness and refinancing program for homeowners facing liens and financial hardship.
Currently, there are state laws, like Real Property Actions & Proceedings (RPA) 756-A and the Anti-Deed Theft Bill, that were passed and signed by Hochul in 2023. But these laws are not being enforced enough, said Ossé.
“Some of these judges are unaware of how prevalent deed theft still is. Some of these judges don’t know of the new laws that have been put in place to prevent the theft. And frankly, some of these judges are corrupt,” said Ossé.
Ossé is joined by a coalition of other council members and state legislators in this fight to move anti-deed theft forward.
Deputy Speaker Nantasha Williams introduced Intro. 1086, which requires giving a homeowner direct notice when deed- or mortgage-related filings are recorded on their house. “Deed theft thrives in the gaps between what’s filed on paper and what families are actually told,” said Williams in a statement. “But notice alone is not protection.”
“These people will come to their doors trying to buy them out, or they offer a refinance or some nonsense,” said Assemblymember Brian Cunningham about deed theft in his district. “People sign some documents, don’t have a lawyer, don’t have an attorney look at it. And all of a sudden, they no longer own the deed to the house. … It’s not only destabilizing our housing market, it’s also creating a dynamic of generational wealth being ripped from families.”
Assemblymember Emily Gallagher already got the LLC Transparency Act passed in 2023. The law creates a public database of LLC owners to shed light on shell companies and anonymous LLCs that commit fraud. “Deed theft is an insidious practice where bad actors prey on homeowners — often elderly Black homeowners who have their whole life’s savings in their home — to scam them out of their largest investment,” said Gallagher in a statement. “Deed thieves hide behind legal shell companies, often utilizing LLCs to disguise their identity.”