In December 2017, someone recorded a deed for a house in the western Las Vegas Valley. Its 71-year-old owner had died more than three months earlier, and the filer later pleaded guilty to theft for using a forged deed1. The Recorder's office said at the time that staff check deeds for required information but are not required to check whether they are true2.
If you own a home in Clark County, Nevada, but live in another state, that gap is yours to watch. The county's free tool is the Clark County property fraud alert, officially the Recording Notification Service (RNS).
The Recorder serves Las Vegas, Henderson, North Las Vegas, Boulder City, Mesquite, Laughlin and the unincorporated areas3. Clark County, Washington, has a separate alert4. For how deed theft works in general, see our main guide.
What should you do first if you live outside Nevada?
Do these seven things once, then look again each year. Most need only a county website or an email.
- Look up your 11-digit parcel number on the Assessor's website.
- Search the Recorder's records by that number and note each document listed.
- Sign up for RNS with the parcel number and each spelling of your name.
- Make sure the Assessor has your current mailing address.
- Mark the tax due date: the third Monday in August, or four installments if the bill is over $1005.
- Save (702) 455-2844 for RNS and (702) 455-4336 for the Recorder6.
- Ask a neighbor or property manager to tell you if anyone moves in.
A deed is the signed paper that moves a home to a new owner. Your title, your legal right to own the home, rests on the deeds the Recorder keeps.
How do you set up the Clark County Recorder's free tools from afar?
Find your parcel number, check what is already recorded, then turn on the alert. After that, make sure the county can reach you by mail.
- Find your parcel number. Search your address on the Assessor's property search. A parcel is one piece of land on the county's maps, and its 11-digit number is called the APN7.
- See what is already on file. In the Recorder's AcclaimWeb record search, pick Parcel #. You can also search by name or by instrument number, the ID of each recorded paper8.
- Sign up for RNS. On the sign-up page, type your email twice, then add each name or parcel number to watch6. At launch, the county allowed five names and parcel numbers per email9.
- Confirm by email. Follow the steps in the county's email to activate your subscription6.
- Check your mailing address. The Assessor keeps the official mailing address for your property. A change needs your signature on a form you can mail or email10.
- Watch for the tax bill. The Treasurer mails it once a year. If it has not come by August 1, ask for a copy, because a missing bill does not excuse a late payment5.
Every deed that moves ownership here must list a name and address for tax statements7. If your tax bill stops arriving, check AcclaimWeb for a new deed on your parcel.
When an alert comes in, look up its instrument number in AcclaimWeb or click the link in the email11. Check the parcel number first, since the alert may be about someone who shares your name6.
What can a Clark County property fraud alert miss?
RNS tells you after a document is recorded, never before. The Recorder's Office must record any document that meets Nevada's rules, and its FAQ says the alert does not change that12.
| Gap | What it means | What you can do |
|---|---|---|
| Only new filings | Papers recorded before you signed up never send an alert ⁶ | Search AcclaimWeb once by parcel and by name |
| Not every name is indexed | The county indexes the people giving and getting the property, under NRS 247.150 ¹¹ | Enroll your parcel number too |
| No parcel number on some papers | Deeds, mortgages and liens (claims for money owed) need one, but not every filing does ¹¹ | Enroll each spelling of your name as well |
| Alerts for strangers | An alert can be about someone with the same name ⁶ | Match the parcel number in the email first |
| One county only | RNS watches papers recorded at the Clark County Recorder's Office, not other counties ¹¹ | Sign up in each county where you own, if it has an alert |
The county is blunt about the limits. "There is no guarantee that using this service will inform you of all documents recorded that may pertain to your property," its RNS page says11. Staff also "cannot view, change, or remove subscriptions," so keep your own note of what you enrolled11.
filings a day were recorded at the Clark County Recorder's office in 2018. A few a day raised enough doubt to be sent to the district attorney's office for review.
Source: Las Vegas Review-Journal, March 3, 2018
One bad filing among them can still cost an owner years, as the Oregon case below shows.
What does Nevada law give you if someone records a fake deed?
Recording a deed you know is forged is a felony in Nevada, and the same law lets the owner sue. First, though, you must ask the filer in writing to record a correction and give them 20 days13.
NRS 205.395 calls the crime a false representation concerning title. It covers anyone who records, signs or notarizes a property document they know or should know is forged or groundless. One offense is a category C felony; a pattern is a category B felony with 3 to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $50,000, or both13.
Prosecutors use it here. In 2015, a Las Vegas man pleaded guilty to two counts of this crime for filing false liens on local real estate. The state also accused him of filing false ownership claims and collecting housing aid for renting to Section 8 tenants14.
If the filer does not record a correction within those 20 days, you can sue for your damages plus lawyer fees13. Under NRS 40.010, you can also ask a court to rule on anyone's claim against your property, which is called a quiet title case15. Read how a quiet title action works before you hire a lawyer.
What happened when Las Vegas homes had no owner nearby?
In each case below, the real owner had died, lived out of state or was a lender holding foreclosed homes. Two cases involved deeds filed with the Recorder, and the third a lease shown to police.
A forged deed after the owner died
A deed for a 71-year-old woman's house was filed more than three months after her death. Both notaries on the papers said they never touched them16. The filer pleaded guilty to theft in 2018, and her plea deal called for a suspended sentence of three to eight years1.
Deeds recorded by an Oregon resident
A 64-year-old woman from Gladstone, Oregon, was indicted in 2018 for recording grant deeds that named her owner of three foreclosed Fannie Mae homes. The homes could not be sold for over two years. Charged, not convicted: we found no report of the outcome17.
Strangers inside, with a lease
A Wisconsin owner found strangers had lived in her Las Vegas townhome for about six weeks. One showed police a lease that she says is fake. Police called it a civil matter, so she had to go to court for an eviction18.
Nevada regulators warned about the same pattern in 2023. Scammers, they said, search public records for property with no mortgage, "most often targeting vacant lots and investment, vacation or rental properties that are non-owner occupied"19. One red flag fits an absent owner exactly: a seller "always claiming to be out of town"19.
If your Las Vegas home sits empty, learn how seller impersonation fraud works. In June 2026, the FBI warned about criminals posing as owners of vacant land and told owners to check for county recording alerts20. In Clark County, that alert is RNS.
Who do you call in Clark County about a suspicious filing?
Call the police where the home is if you think a deed is forged, then the state's fraud unit21. Recorder staff cannot explain what a document says or give legal advice11,12.
| Who | Why you'd call | How to reach them |
|---|---|---|
| Clark County Recorder | Copies and record questions | (702) 455-4336, RecWeb@ClarkCountyNV.gov. Monday to Thursday, 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., closed Fridays ²² |
| RNS help line | Alerts and sign-up | (702) 455-2844, RecRNS@ClarkCountyNV.gov ⁶ |
| Clark County Assessor | Parcel number and mailing address | 702-455-3882, AOCustomerServiceRequests@ClarkCountyNV.gov ²³ |
| Local police | A criminal report | The police department where the home is ¹¹ |
| Nevada Attorney General, Fraud Unit | A fraud complaint | Las Vegas 702-486-3420, Carson City 775-684-1100 ²⁴ |
The Recorder's main office is at 500 South Grand Central Parkway, 2nd Floor, Las Vegas. Branches are at 3211 North Tenaya Way, Suite 118, and in Henderson City Hall, 240 South Water Street22.
If someone posed as you to sell your property, the FBI asks you to report it at ic3.gov20. Own homes in other states too? Check which counties run a recording alert where you own.
Sign-up links, fees and phone numbers on this page were checked against county and state websites on October 25, 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free title alert in Nevada?
Who owns Property Fraud Alert?
What is the Clark County property fraud alert phone number?
Call (702) 455-2844 for the Recording Notification Service, or email RecRNS@ClarkCountyNV.gov6,12. For other Recorder questions, call (702) 455-43366.
How do I get a copy of a deed in Clark County, Nevada?
What are the recording fees for deeds in Clark County, Nevada?
Can I create a transfer on death deed in Clark County, Nevada?
Sources
- Woman pleads guilty to stealing dead woman's Las Vegas home, Las Vegas Review-Journal, Eli Segall, October 2, 2018
- Woman claims ownership of dead woman's house in Las Vegas, Las Vegas Review-Journal, Eli Segall, March 3, 2018
- Clark County Receives Three Achievement Awards from National Association of Counties, Clark County, 2022, checked October 25, 2026
- Auditor provides free notification service for legal recordings, Clark County, Washington, Auditor, October 13, 2021
- Real Property Tax Information, Clark County Treasurer, checked October 25, 2026
- Recording Notification Service sign-up, Clark County Recorder, checked October 25, 2026
- Recordation Process, Clark County Recorder, checked October 25, 2026
- AcclaimWeb record search, Clark County Recorder, checked October 25, 2026
- Recorder's Office Launches Subscription-Based Recording Notification Service (RNS), Clark County (release undated), checked October 25, 2026
- Mailing Address Changes, Clark County Treasurer, checked October 25, 2026
- Recording Notification Service, Clark County Recorder, checked October 25, 2026
- RNS Frequently Asked Questions, Clark County Recorder, checked October 25, 2026
- NRS 205.395, false representation concerning title, Nevada Legislature, checked October 25, 2026
- Attorney General Laxalt Announces Guilty Plea of Las Vegas man for Real Estate Scheme, Nevada Attorney General, October 23, 2015
- NRS 40.010, actions may be brought against adverse claimants, Nevada Legislature, checked October 25, 2026
- Review-Journal report on the May 2018 grand jury indictment, Las Vegas Review-Journal, Eli Segall, May 9, 2018
- Attorney General Laxalt Announces Grand Jury Indictment for Housing Scam, Nevada Attorney General, May 2, 2018
- Wisconsin homeowner urges Nevada squatter law changes after Las Vegas lease dispute, KSNV News 3, July 22, 2026
- Consumer Alert: Real Estate Identity Theft and Fraud on the Rise, Nevada Division of Insurance and Nevada Real Estate Division, August 31, 2023
- Protect Your Property from Illegal Sales Through Parcel Owner Impersonation, FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center, June 16, 2026
- About Property Fraud, Recorders Association of Nevada, checked October 25, 2026
- Contact Us, Clark County Recorder, checked October 25, 2026
- Clark County Assessor, Clark County, checked October 25, 2026
- Fraud Unit, Nevada Attorney General, checked October 25, 2026
- Property Fraud Alert, Fidlar Technologies, checked October 25, 2026
- Attorney General Excessive Charges notice, Clark County Recorder, checked October 25, 2026
- Recorder Fee Schedule, effective January 1, 2020, Clark County Recorder, checked October 25, 2026
- Land Documents, Clark County Recorder, checked October 25, 2026
- NRS 111.655 to 111.699, Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act, Nevada Legislature, checked October 25, 2026
