CLEVELAND — Cuyahoga County is poised to become the first county in the nation to install two-factor authentication software for its recorded documents, as a way to help prevent fraudulent property transfers.
[Note: This is the second part of a News 5 investigation into deed fraud. To read the original story, click here.]
"You can still notarize a document the same way you did 100 years ago," Brian O’Malley, Cuyahoga County Director of Real Estate Services, said. "The technology hasn't really caught up with that process."
The software, created by government software company Neumo, is the first two-factor authentication property alert system in the country. Property owners can sign up to receive immediate notifications when documents are filed with their name or personal information.
"If a document is presented – with your name or your personal number, you'll get an immediate text or email saying, 'Is this you?'" O'Malley said. "We won't proceed until we get the response saying yes I did sign this document, you can proceed."
Right now, many counties across Ohio offer free property alerts, a way to notify you if any properties of yours have transferred on the day it happens. This new software would allow a property owner to instantly reject a property transfer attempt, as opposed to being notified about a fraudulent property transfer after the fact.
"It's definitely getting worse," Matt Coury, president at Neumo, said. "With the ability to record online easier, and the ability to find things like notary stamps, we're continuing to see property fraud, deed fraud increase across the country."
The county plans to roll out this software early next year.
Deed fraud on the rise
As News 5 reported on Tuesday, one Cleveland family is still working to recover their family home after a fraudulent deed document was filed with the county earlier this year.
Priscilla Harris Norris died in 2014, but documents show she somehow signed paperwork in March selling her family home.
Her daughter, Tangie Harris, knew something was wrong.
"I'm thinking - that's not possible," Harris said.
The property is now owned by Happy Home Hunters LLC. Ohio business records with the Ohio Secretary of State show the LLC is run in part by Michael Prince.
Prince is a familiar name to investigators: he's accused of stealing 19 properties across Cuyahoga County and pleaded guilty in 2023 to theft and tampering with records. However, he never showed up for his sentencing and faces up to 29 years in prison. Police are still searching for him.
RELATED: He was convicted of stealing 19 homes in Cuyahoga County. How is that even possible?
Watch the original story about Michael Prince here:
The fraud was made possible through forged notarized documents. While major property transfers require notary approval to verify the signer's identity, that didn't happen in this case.
News 5 tracked down the notary, who is located about an hour away in Kent.
That notary explained to News 5 that he suspects his notarization was forged as well. He provided News 5 with his notary ledger, which showed he had not notarized any documents since 2021, and never notarized any quitclaim deed documents. He also provided News 5 a copy of his notary stamp and signature, which did not match the stamp and signature on Harris Norris' document.
Harris remains determined to fight for her family's property despite the challenges ahead.
"I know its going to be a lot of work to get it back and it's sad this man is preying on people and some people don't have the wherewithal to fight – but I'm going to fight for it," Harris said.
