PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Randi Scherman, Senior Staff Attorney at Brooklyn Legal Services, on Deed Theft and Homeowner Protection
2:03:59
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168 sec
Randi Scherman, a senior staff attorney at Brooklyn Legal Services, testifies about the rising problem of deed theft scams, particularly targeting vulnerable communities. She highlights the city's tax lien sale as exacerbating the issue and calls for measures to protect homeowners.
- Emphasizes the lengthy process of reversing deed theft through litigation, often taking decades
- Suggests excluding 1-4 family residential properties from the tax lien sale list to reduce vulnerability
- Advocates for permanent funding for homeownership preservation services like the Homeowner Protection Program (HOPP)
- Recommends passing the Consumer and Small Business Protection Act (CSPA) to strengthen consumer protection laws
Randi Scherman
2:03:59
Good afternoon, chair Hudson, members of the committee.
2:04:02
My name is Randy Sherman and I'm a senior staff attorney at Brooklyn Legal Services, which is a program of legal services New York City, the nation's largest provider of free civil legal services.
2:04:12
And we've been talking a lot today about the importance of our services.
2:04:17
And so d theft scams, no as we've been talking about all afternoon, are on the rise, especially in immigrant and black and brown communities targeting seniors and those already struggling with financial instability.
2:04:30
These scams prey on homeowners facing foreclosure or property tax arrears.
2:04:35
And the the consequences are catastrophic, not just for the families affected, but for neighborhoods they live in.
2:04:42
And to shed some additional light on some earlier testimony, reversing deed theft scams, in through litigation usually takes decades, and and it requires more than just a a simple consultation.
2:05:00
One major factor exacerbate exacerbating the problem of deed thefts is actually the city's tax lien sale, which publishes a list of properties with unpaid taxes.
2:05:11
This list is essentially a road map for scammers who use it to target distressed homeowners.
2:05:17
And in a recent deposition conducted by my office of a fraudster in a partition action, the scammer actually admitted that he regularly uses the tax lien sale list to identify properties to target.
2:05:29
So in some ways, New York City itself is complicit in the growth of deed thefts.
2:05:35
New York struggling homeowners would be less vulnerable to property scammers if 1 to 4 family residential properties were excluded from scammers if 1 to 4 family residential properties were excluded from the tax lien sale list.
2:05:44
And to combat deed theft, we also need permanent dedicated funding for homeownership preservation services such as the homeowner protection program or HOP, which is the state's network of housing counseling and legal services providers working with at risk homeowners.
2:06:00
That network is a crucial tool to preventing deed theft and other scams targeting at risk homeowners.
2:06:07
But, unfortunately, it's threatened with extinction every single year.
2:06:11
Additionally, measures such as the Consumer and Small Business Protection Act or CSPA would bring New York's consumer protection statute in line with those of 43 other states that have far more effective, unfair, and deceptive acts and practices laws and would provide deed theft advocates and their clients with the kinds of tools taken for granted in most other states.
2:06:34
In closing, I thank you for the opportunity to provide this testimony today, and I refer the committee to my more detailed written testimony, which I also, plan to submit today.
2:06:46
Thank you.
