ST. LOUIS — Officials with St. Charles, St. Louis, Lincoln and Franklin Counties are warning the public to be on guard against scammers who attempt to register a fraudulent deed to claim ownership of your home, sell it, or borrow money against it.

Local recorders of deeds say a new, free online alert program will "notify you of the people that you don't know, [who] are lurking around your greatest investment." 

Prosecutors with St. Louis County charged two people with attempting to steal a property owned by the city of Dellwood by filing a fraudulent deed. It’s one of a series of such crimes charged in the St. Louis region in recent years, according to a press release.

“I’m aware of one case in St. Charles County where a family member tried to fraudulently transfer a property in the owner’s name,” said St. Charles County Recorder of Deeds Mary Dempsey. "On a national level... usually people are not finding out until either a home is being built on the property. Or when you go to sell your property, you're finding out that maybe there's a lien on your property."

Here are a few tips that will help you identify fraudsters:

• The property is not owner-occupied and has no outstanding mortgage or liens that would confirm the owner’s identity.
• The property is for sale below market value
• The seller wants a quick sale and doesn’t even negotiate fees
• The seller asks for payment by cash or wire transfer
• The seller refuses to attend a signing in-person and claims to be out of the state or country
• The seller is difficult to reach by phone or video; only communicates by text or email; and/or resists identity verification
• The seller insists on using their own notary for the sale

Recorders are urging the public to sign up for the free property fraud alert program that tells them if their name shows up on any documents that someone is submitting to a local Recorder of Deeds office.

"These criminals are targeting older adults, those that are financially vulnerable [with] homes that are paid off, vacant land and vacant homes," Dempsey said. "You don't know what's recorded on your property unless you sign up... there's no other notice for you unless you're in the program."

Officials say over 28,000 St. Charles homeowners are registered, with over 50,000 in St. Louis County. Find a link to register for your county's alert program at here.