Resident alerts
Property fraud alerts: running an electronic notification program
Subsection (b)(3) lets a recorder add electronic notification on top of the mailed notice. How a resident property alert program works, what to watch (parcels and names), how to keep sign-ups safe, and how to get residents to use it.
Many counties across the country already offer a free "property fraud alert": a resident signs up with an email address and is told when a document records against their property or their name. California's SB 255 makes room for the same idea. Subsection (b)(3) of Government Code §27297.7 lets the recorder establish an electronic notification program in addition to the mailed notice.
The mailed notice is required; email alerts are optional. They are also cheap to run, fast, and popular with residents, which is why many offices plan to launch both together.
What residents can watch
- A parcel. The resident searches by address or APN and gets an email when a covered document records against that parcel.
- A name. Useful for owners with several properties, trustees, and adult children watching a parent's home. Name alerts can go out the day the Recorder's index loads, before the parcel has been confirmed.
In SentraDeed, a resident can watch up to 10 parcels or names. Property alerts are sent only once the APN is confirmed, so an uncertain parcel reading never produces an alert to the wrong person. See Reading APNs from document images.
Safe sign-up
An alert program handles personal data and must not become a way to learn who owns what. The rules that matter:
- Double opt-in. Nothing is watched until the resident clicks a confirmation link.
- No owner data in search. Property search returns addresses and masked parcel numbers, never owner names.
- Limits and bot protection: a cap on watches per email, rate limits and a CAPTCHA on public forms.
- One-click unsubscribe and a manage link in every email.
- Accessible, in English and Spanish. See Accessible notices: PDF/UA and WCAG.
Hosted page or your own website
Some counties link to a hosted sign-up portal; others want the form on the county website. SentraDeed supports both: a hosted resident portal, and the County Alerts API so county web teams can build the form into their own site with the same safeguards.
What the email says
Keep it short and plain: the document type, recording date, document number, the parcel or name that matched, and what to do if the resident doesn't recognize it, with a link to the Recorder's page. No attachments, and no request for personal information, so residents can tell it apart from phishing.
Getting people to sign up
Alert programs only help the people enrolled. Counties that get good uptake usually:
- Print the sign-up address on every mailed SB 255 notice.
- Add it to property tax bills and Assessor correspondence.
- Brief senior centers, legal aid, and the DA's real estate fraud unit.
- Post it on the Recorder's home page in English and Spanish.
For residents who receive an alert they don't recognize, point them to What to do if a deed was recorded without your knowledge.
Not legal advice. This article is general information about California Government Code §27297.7 and county recording operations. It is not legal advice. Consult your county counsel about how the statute applies to your office.
