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Florida introduces bill to combat property fraud
Posted Date: Wednesday, March 15, 2023
The Florida Legislature introduced legislation to combat property fraud in several ways, including requiring clerks of state circuit courts to create opt-in recording notification services, clarifying quiet title actions may be brought to quiet title after a fraudulent attempted conveyance and requiring real estate licensees and closing providers to send fraud prevention notices under certain circumstances.
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Utah governor signs residential service agreement legislation
Posted Date: Wednesday, March 22, 2023
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed legislation that, among other things, would provide that certain residential property service agreements are void and would prohibit the recording of void residential property service agreements.
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Insureds appeal dismissal of third-party complaint for negligence
Posted Date: Monday, March 20, 2023
An insured who had been sued by its mortgagee for allegedly being in default, as well as the entry of a foreclosure judgment, filed a third-party complaint against its title agency and title insurer for allegedly failing to properly conduct a title search or to order an official tax search.
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CertifID report shows $1.4B in suspected wire fraud
Posted Date: Monday, March 13, 2023
CertifID announced its State of Wire Fraud report, detailing CertifID’s view into $1.4B worth of suspected fraud across more than 340,000 wire transactions. The report, which is based on proprietary data from CertifID’s wire fraud protection software and recovery services engagements, also found a 145 percent year-over-year increase in instances of reported wire fraud into the company.
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Texas AG issues opinion on corporations as substitute trustees
Posted Date: Wednesday, March 22, 2023
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton recently issued Opinion No. KP-0424 Re: Whether a corporate entity may serve as a substitute trustee for purposes of conducting a mortgage foreclosure sale under Property Code chapter 51.
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Judgment lien holder sues title company after property sale
Posted Date: Wednesday, March 22, 2023
The holder of a judgment lien on property in Lansing, Mich., sued the title company that conducted the sale of the property, along with the seller and purchaser of the property, when it didn’t receive the funds it was owed after the sale.
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Bank holding company pleads guilty to $69 million securities fraud
Posted Date: Wednesday, March 22, 2023
A Southfield, Mich.-headquartered bank holding company agreed to plead guilty to securities fraud for filing false securities statements relating to its 2017 initial public offering and its 2018 and 2019 annual filings. The largest portion of its loan portfolio was composed of residential mortgage loans.
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Utah adopts redaction legislation
Posted Date: Monday, March 20, 2023
Utah adopted legislation that provides for the redaction of personal information from a copy of an originally recorded instrument.
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Borrower moves to vacate default in suit against it
Posted Date: Monday, March 20, 2023
A title insurer brought suit against a borrower for failing to make payments on a loan. After delays, the borrower entered bankruptcy proceedings and the case was closed until those proceedings were concluded. Once reopened, the borrower failed to respond to the complaint and a clerk’s entry of default and notice of default were filed. The borrower then moved to vacate the entry of default.
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New York passes recording fee legislation
Posted Date: Monday, March 20, 2023
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed legislation that prohibits agencies from charging a fee for records where an electronic copy is already available from a previous request made within the past six months, except for the actual cost of a storage device or media if provided to the requester.
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Florida home fraud ring leaders arrested
Posted Date: Monday, March 20, 2023
The Broward County property appraiser and sheriff arrested three after an investigation into a real estate property theft criminal enterprise involving $12 million of property in Broward County, Fla.
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Virginia passes bill on release of judgment liens
Posted Date: Monday, March 20, 2023
The Virginia General Assembly passed legislation to create a procedure by which a settlement agent may release a judgment lien when the lien creditor has failed to respond to a request in writing to pay the amount owed. The bill awaits the governor’s signature.
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Investment company appeals case involving transaction with forged deed
Posted Date: Wednesday, March 15, 2023
A real estate investment company appealed a take-nothing summary judgment on its claims against a title insurer, title agent and escrow agent arising from a real estate transaction involving a forged deed. The investment company argued by failing to issue a title policy or by improperly releasing escrowed funds to a defrauding party, one or more of the appellees breached a fiduciary duty, were negligent, breached a contract, committed fraud, fraudulently induced a transaction, and breached an insurance code provision.
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Oregon introduces discriminatory language covenant legislation
Posted Date: Wednesday, March 15, 2023
The Oregon Legislative Assembly introduced legislation that would require a county clerk to replace a recorded instrument with a court-ordered version that redacts discriminatory practices. It makes changes to the court process for reviewing the language.
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Arizona AG announces judgment against real estate companies
Posted Date: Wednesday, March 15, 2023
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes announced her office secured a consent judgment against two Tucson, Ariz., real estate companies accused of consumer fraud. Among other things, the companies were alleged to have failed to disclose underlying mortgages on properties they sold to consumers.
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