33. Someone Could Steal Your Parent's Deed, Here's Your First Step

Have you seen the commercials promising to lock down your parents' title? Deed fraud has become an epidemic, and the people behind it aren't always strangers. Sometimes it's someone in your parent's own circle, a neighbor, a caregiver, even a family member, who takes advantage once trust is built. Once a deed gets changed, someone else can take ownership of the home outright, move into it, or borrow against it, and by the time you find out, the damage is already done.

Here's the part that actually matters: those paid title-lock services don't lock anything. They notify you after a change happens, and you can get that same notification for free through your county. Pair that with a credit freeze on all three bureaus, and you've closed the two biggest doors scammers use. It takes about half an hour to set both of these up, and it's worth doing this week, for your parents and for yourself.

None of this is foolproof, but Proverbs 15:22 reminds us that plans succeed with good counsel. Take the half hour. Sign up for the alerts, freeze the credit, and pay attention to who's around your parent day to day. That's how you protect what matters most.

Topics covered: deed fraud, title theft, quitclaim deed, county owner alert, credit freeze, elder financial abuse, caregiver background check, notary fraud, vulnerable parent, aging parent scams, title lock services, identity theft, elder scam prevention

Article mentioned in this episode: Watch here

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