ZOWLY
Awareness, not a product
Title & deed fraud

The scam that goes after your home itself.

Most fraud goes after your money. Title fraud goes after your house — a scammer forges paperwork to transfer your deed or borrow against your equity, often without you knowing until the damage is done. It's rare, but growing, and worth understanding.

How it works

A fraudster forges a deed transfer or a loan document in your name, using stolen personal information. They might try to sell a home you own, or take out a HELOC against your equity and disappear with the cash — leaving you to untangle it. Public property records make the ownership details easy to find.

Who scammers target most

Paid-off homes (lots of equity, no lender watching), second homes and rentals you don't visit often, vacant or inherited property, and elderly owners. The common thread: property nobody's keeping a close eye on day to day.

Simple things that help — mostly free

✓Many county recorder offices offer free property-alert sign-ups that email you if anything is filed against your address. Check if yours does.
✓Notice if expected mail stops — a missing property-tax or mortgage statement can be an early sign someone changed your address.
✓Occasionally look up your own property record online to confirm the owner and any liens still read correctly.
✓Keep an eye on homes you don't live in — the ones easiest to target are the ones you rarely check.
✓Paid title-monitoring services exist if you want them — worth comparing on your own, not something to buy on impulse.
Where Zowly stops: this is awareness, not a service. Zowly doesn't monitor your title, doesn't hold your records, and isn't selling you a protection product or earning a referral if you buy one. If you want monitoring, the free county alerts are the first stop; paid services are your call to weigh.

General education about a type of fraud, not legal or security advice. Availability of county alerts and the specifics of title protection vary by location. Zowly is a financial calculation and education tool.