Free Letter Check: Got a Letter Asking You to Pay for a Copy of Your Deed? | MVP Law Group
MVP Law Group APC
(818) 788-7881 Free Letter Check
Free Letter Check

That Letter About Your Deed Is Not From the County

A few weeks after a deed records, an official looking letter arrives. It names your trust, lists your parcel, sets a respond by date, and asks $80 to $135 for a copy of a document you already own. Before you mail anyone a check, send the letter to us. We will tell you whether it is a solicitation, what Los Angeles County actually charges, and whether anything in it needs attention. Free, for clients and non clients alike.

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A recreated example of the official looking deed copy letter, stamped Solicitation, Not a Bill
Your deed is already yours.
Never pay a stranger to prove it.
The MVP Law Group rule for official looking mail

Read it in ten seconds

Look at the top

California law requires these mailers to carry a boxed, bold disclosure at the top of every page naming the county recorder and the county's price. If that box is missing, the letter is already out of line.

Look at the sender

A private company name and a return address that is not a county office. Real county mail comes from the Registrar Recorder in Norwalk, and the county never sends a bill for a copy you did not order.

Look at the fee

Los Angeles County sells a certified copy of a deed for $6 for the first page and $3 for each page after. Anything asking $80 or more is a sales pitch, not a bill. Still unsure? Send it to us.

The same document, two prices

What a copy of your deed actually costs

What the letter asks
$132.50
The figure on the letter our clients bring in most often. Some ask $89, some ask more. All of them are selling a copy of a public record.
What LA County charges
$6
Certified copy, first page, from the Registrar Recorder County Clerk. And if we recorded your deed, the copy is already in your file. Just ask.
Printable guides

Keep these by the mail pile

Two short guides you can print and share with a parent, a neighbor, or anyone who just recorded a deed.

Guide one

The 60 Second Letter Checklist

Six quick checks that separate a county notice from a private solicitation, in the order you should look.

Download the PDF
Guide two

Get Your Deed Without Paying $132.50

Where the original went after recording, the county's few dollar copies, and the free county programs that watch your title for you.

Download the PDF
The full story

That Official Looking Notice About Your Deed Is Not From the County

What the law requires that letter to say, why it knows so much about you, what to do if you already paid, and the letter you should actually worry about.

Read the article
What happens when you send it

Five things we check for you

  • Is it a solicitation? We confirm whether the letter is a grant deed copy service under California Business and Professions Code section 17537.10, and whether it carries the disclosure the law requires.
  • Was your deed recorded correctly? We pull the recorded document and confirm the county returned the original to the right address.
  • Is the property in your trust? A deed that never made it into the trust is the most common gap we find, and the letter is a good excuse to check.
  • Do you need a copy at all? If we prepared the deed, the recorded copy is in your file and we send it to you at no charge.
  • Is anything else in the mail pile a real problem? A notice of a deed you did not sign is the one to worry about. We tell you the difference.
  • Already paid? We walk you through the stop payment, the written cancellation, and the complaint that makes a difference.
Free, no obligation

Send Us the Letter

Fill in the short form below. We will reply from our office so you can send a photo of both sides of the letter, or bring it in. You will hear back from a real person at MVP Law Group, in English, Spanish, or Russian.

Your information stays with MVP Law Group and is never sold. Submitting this form does not create an attorney-client relationship. English, Spanish, and Russian.

Thank you, we have your request

A member of our team will reach out shortly. When we do, reply with a photo of both sides of the letter, or bring it to the office at 6200 Canoga Ave, Suite 202, Woodland Hills. In the meantime, do not send anyone a check.

(818) 788-7881

Already sent the check?

Call your bank about a stop payment the same day, send the company a short written cancellation, and keep a copy of everything. Our article walks through each step, including where to file the complaint that actually gets read. And if the letter made you wonder whether your home is titled the way your plan says, your first consultation with MVP Law Group is always free.

Read What to Do if You Paid (818) 788-7881