‘We’re so vulnerable’: Deed to $4M North Carolina home transferred to a complete stranger without owner’s knowledge — the local county said ‘there's absolutely nothing they can do’

How did this happen?

According to North Carolina law, county Registers of Deeds aren’t required to verify the legitimacy of paperwork they receive.

In this instance, Mangum, who claims it was all a misunderstanding, has since been charged with obtaining property under false pretense. But how did this happen in the first place?

According to Mangum, in an interview with ABC11, she believed Adams’ property was in foreclosure when she started to make moves to get the deed to the home into her trust. She said that, once she learned the property was not in foreclosure, she stopped all paperwork. She also claimed that she wants to amend the paperwork to return the property to Adams.

However, she'd filed paperwork with the Wake County Register of Deeds, listing herself as the owner through a fraudulent trust. No legal checks are required to verify the legitimacy of the deed transfer, allowing it to be recorded without Adams' knowledge.

The Wake County Register of Deeds released a statement about the case, which stated in part:

"The Register of Deeds is not required to verify the legal validity of a deed when it is presented for registration, nor are they required to verify the credentials or legal standing of the notary or drafter of the document (G.S. 47-14). With more than 500 documents processed through the Wake County Register of Deeds office daily, it would be impossible to verify the legitimacy of each document."

Even if Mangum is convicted, Adams will still need to go through civil courts in order to correct the record.

In the meantime, he hopes his frustrating ordeal prompts changes in the laws that allowed Mangum to change the deed in the first place.

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How to protect yourself from deed fraud

There are steps homeowners can take to protect themselves from deed fraud. Check if your county offers a deed or title fraud alert service to monitor changes to deeds in your name.

While that wouldn't have protected Adams in this instance, since his name wasn't on the new deed, it can help prevent other types of deed fraud.

Title insurance, which many homeowners get once they purchase a home, also offers protection from title defects, including fraud. It can come in handy with such common title issues as: back taxes, filing errors, liens, title forgeries, easements, and conflicting wills.

Finally, if you suspect deed fraud on your property, contact authorities immediately and seek legal counsel.

Acting quickly is important, because once the deed is filed, in many cases it requires a court order to reverse.