Complaints about deed theft to the New York Attorney General’s Office have more than tripled in recent years, raising concerns about property security across the state.

Dramatic Increase in Deed Theft Cases

Data obtained by CBS News New York reveals a 240% increase in deed theft complaints from 2023 to 2025. Deed theft involves the illegal transfer of property ownership, often through forged documents.

Rising Awareness and Criminal Activity

The Attorney General’s office attributes the increase partly to greater public awareness of how and where to report such crimes. However, prosecutors and the Attorney General also acknowledge that deed theft is becoming increasingly common.

Complaint Numbers and Legal Action

The number of complaints to New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office rose from 149 in 2023 to 222 in 2024, and then to 517 in 2025. In 2024, James co-authored a new law to expand her office’s ability to prosecute deed theft.

This new law was utilized in 2025 to charge two individuals with stealing the home of a widow receiving hospice care in Queens. “We are witnessing a disturbing rise in the number of housing scams, particularly scams such as deed theft,” James stated in 2025.

Prosecutorial Efforts and Challenges

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz highlighted the role of technology in facilitating these crimes. “With the technology advancing and new ways of creating documents…it’s becoming much more prevalent,” she explained.

Katz’s Housing and Worker Protection Bureau, established in 2020, has successfully returned 23 homes to their rightful owners. However, she also noted past challenges in securing resources for these investigations. “There has been times when it’s too much money…too many obstacles in the way to investigate that, and it shouldn’t be that way,” Katz said.

Protecting Your Property

Property owners can proactively protect themselves by signing up for notifications through the city’s Automated City Register Information System (ACRIS). This system alerts owners to any new documents filed regarding their property, including potential fraudulent activity.

A Homeowner’s Struggle

Meng Yu, a homeowner in Kew Gardens, Queens, is currently locked in a legal battle for access to his property. Despite having the purchase paperwork, a woman residing in the house refuses to leave and has allegedly taken over the deed.

“I was shocked. How could this be possible? Because only the owner is supposed to sell the house,” Yu stated. City records reveal a history of questionable transfers involving the same woman, with a property transfer initially occurring in 2006 but not being officially filed until 2018.

The woman denied committing fraud in response to Yu’s lawsuit. She also stated in a bankruptcy filing last year that she does not own any property. Attempts to reach her attorney were unsuccessful.

“I’m frustrated and I don’t know what to say…it’s really hard for us,” Yu expressed. The Queens District Attorney’s Office declined to comment on the ongoing investigation.