PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner said he's cracking down on fraudulent deed transfers, a crime also known as house theft. His office charged five people last December and January for an alleged scheme to steal 11 houses.
But none of the victims have reclaimed ownership yet of their stolen property. For those actual homeowners regaining title is a long and sometimes arduous process.
"This is one of the houses that were stolen," said Krasner, standing in front of a Strawberry Mansion rowhome. With boarded-up windows, it didn't look like much, but it was assessed at $14,000 in 2019 when it was recorded as being sold to Lance Felder.
The actual owner only found out when he went to check on the house and saw the locks were changed. Felder was charged with theft, as was the notary who attested to the supposed sale.
But the owner won't be able to reclaim the property for months. Community Legal Services attorney Michael Froelich explained that even a fraudulent deed becomes part of home's public record of ownership. It can't simply be vacated.
"The victim needs to hire a lawyer and file a lawsuit called a 'quiet title' to deal with the fraudulent deed. It can take six to 18 months to wind its way through the court system," he said.
Froelich said he helped dozens of low-income homeowners through the process, but it can be difficult for thoe who don't qualify for free help.
"The problem is trying to find the defendant, trying to find the scammer," he detailed, "because you have to serve them with notice of the lawsuit and that can take a very large amount of resources."
The city records department is working on the prevention end with a tool called Deed Fraud Guard. In the meantime, Krasner is urging law firms to represent homeowners pro bono, to ease the process for victims.