Did you know your house may get stolen

[rphillips]

Our definitions of "stolen" is totally different.. For me what you're explaining is someone who is "upside down" in their house, the owe more on it than it's worth. If you buy a house, and let it run down, and your equity is used up, or if you buy a house worth $400K, get it paid down to $380 and the mkt. goes down and now it's worth $350K, nobody stole anything, you're just upside down.... If the sheriff comes by to tell you got to get out, the owner wants you out. But you've not sold it, and the new owner has legal paperwork showing the house is his... That's when he's stole your house... And that's what I's wondering if anyone ever heard of that, except in the commercials on TV?

[Suzukian]

Yes, it happens, rarely though. Usually with much older people. I saw an hour long special on T.V. about it, and there seems to always be someone in the paper trail not doing their job. It was only discovered when the people sold their house and then found out they "on paper" did not own it. Somewhere along the line their mortgage was sold, they didn't read the fine print and lost their home. It usually gets (always really) unwound, but what happens it turns out these people are paying a mortgage to a shell company that purchased their loan and sold it as a derivative loan (kind of like what caused TARP) and it becomes impossible to pinpoint who owns the point. Possession is 9/10ths of the law, what these people loose is lawyer's fees and valuable years at a time of their life when they should be enjoying life. It also happens if a single elderly person dies, and leaves the house to his heirs, and they find out he's been scammed. That gets really messy. I have identity protection, and my wife's job and her knowledge protects us. I know people who have lost money and it has taken very long for them too get their money back. People fake identity theft to try and get money not due to them.

I know exactly what you talking about, deeds, and stuff in Town Halls, but it's just people working in their that don't know you. This is why you should have whoever handles your accounts have a sit down with you and discuss what protections you have, especially if you have substantial assets because those are the people that are targeted.

[Rob S.]

Sounds like you guys could use what I have: an extended family of lawyers.

[argonsagas]

Another bit of wake-up information has just surfaced on the subject.....Toronto police are suggesting thirty incidents have occurred in this area alone.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/organized-crime-groups-behind-gta-home-sales-mortgages-without-owners-knowledge-1.6719978

[rphillips]

Yes, that looks like fraudulent sales. In those cases, I think the "BUYER" may get scammed and lose "HIS" money, but I'm still looking for an instance where a man owns his home, free and clear, and actually loses it because of some scammer. I'm still thinking this stuff I'm seeing advertised on TV, to be sure nobody steals your house, is just completely a scam.