The Riverside County Recorder's fee schedule has a line that is easy to miss: $10 for the "Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Trust Fund"1. This page follows that money from the counter to the courtroom, using county and state records.
What does the Riverside County Recorder charge to fight fraud?
The Recorder adds $10 to many real estate papers, on top of $14 for the first page. Papers that pay documentary transfer tax, the tax due on a sale, skip it.
The Recorder, part of the Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder, keeps the papers that show who holds title to land, meaning who owns it, and who has a loan on it. Its 2026 fee schedule lists more than 30 kinds of papers that carry the fraud fee1. A sale's grant deed and the papers recorded with it don't1,2.
| Paper | What it does | $10 fraud fee? |
|---|---|---|
| Grant deed for a sale | Moves ownership to a buyer | No, transfer tax is paid |
| Quitclaim deed | Gives away whatever share the signer has, often within a family | Yes, when no transfer tax is due |
| Deed of trust | Pledges the home for a loan, such as a refinance | Yes |
| Affidavit | A sworn statement, such as one saying a co-owner died | Yes |
| Reconveyance | Shows a home loan was paid off | Yes |
| Notice of default | The first formal step toward foreclosure | Yes |
The fee was $2 in 1998 and $3 in 2009. In 2013, the District Attorney (DA) and the Recorder asked for $10, and supervisors approved $6 on a 3-1 vote3. It is $10 today1, but we could not find when that last raise passed.
Riverside's fraud fee grew from $2 to $10
Fee per listed paper when it was set or raised, and today
Show the numbers
| 1998 | $2 |
|---|---|
| 2009 | $3 |
| 2013 | $6 |
| Today | $10 |
Source: Riverside County Board of Supervisors item 3-56, Feb. 5, 2013; Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder fee schedule, revised January 2026.
Where does the $10 go after you pay it?
Into a county trust fund that may only pay for criminal cases about recorded real estate papers. In Riverside County, the DA's office gets it.
Two trails that end at the DA's fraud unit
The fee and the county's free mailed notice both lead to the same office
- Whoever records a listed paper pays the $10.
- The Recorder keeps its costs, up to 10%.
- Each quarter, the rest goes to the trust fund.
- By Sept. 1 each year, the DA reports to supervisors on the work.
- A deed or loan paper is recorded on your home.
- Within 30 days, the county mails you its first two pages.
- If you never signed it, you call the DA's hotline.
Sources: California Government Code 27388; Riverside County Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder, Courtesy Notice release, 2011.
State law splits the money 60% to the DA and 40% to local law enforcement, or gives all of it to a DA who alone investigates these crimes2. In the reports we found for 2012-13 through 2014-15, no other agency got any4,5.
"Funds from the Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Trust Fund shall be used only in connection with criminal investigations or prosecutions involving recorded real estate documents."
What has the fraud fund paid for?
Mostly people. In 2014-15, salaries and benefits took $1.64 million of the $1.92 million the program spent.
Staff costs took 85% of the fund's spending in 2014-15
Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Trust Fund spending, July 2014 to June 2015
Show the numbers
| Salaries and benefits | $1,638,781 |
|---|---|
| Operations and support | $174,908 |
| Administrative fees | $110,007 |
Source: Riverside County District Attorney, Real Estate Fraud Report for fiscal year 2014-15, Board of Supervisors item 3-11, Oct. 6, 2015.
Fee income jumped after the 2013 raise: $1.93 million in 2012-13, then $3.07 million the next year5. In 2014-15, the fund took in $3.21 million and ended the year with $3.06 million on hand4.
In 2013, the unit had three investigators, an investigative technician, three prosecutors and a paralegal3. In 2024, supervisors approved $73,010 from the DA's real estate fraud funds to buy two cars for its investigators6.
Why the DA? In 2013, the DA and the Recorder told supervisors that local law enforcement frequently dismissed these crimes as "purely civil matters." That, they wrote, is why the county made the DA the lead agency in 19983.
State law requires a yearly report from the DA, but the newest one we found on the Board's online agendas covers 2014-152.
What cases does the DA's Real Estate Fraud Unit take on?
Crimes built on recorded papers, such as forged grant deeds. It can't act as your lawyer or get your money back for you.
The unit's page lists "Forgery of grant deeds or other recorded documents" among its cases. It files charges only when it can prove each part of a crime "beyond a reasonable doubt to twelve unanimous jurors"7. So most tips never become cases.
In 2014-15, the unit took 947 tips and filed 21 new criminal cases
DA Real Estate Fraud Unit, July 2014 to June 2015
Show the numbers
| Tips and complaints | 947 |
|---|---|
| Investigations opened | 94 |
| Cases filed | 21 |
| Convictions that year | 15 |
Source: Riverside County District Attorney, Real Estate Fraud Report for fiscal year 2014-15, Board of Supervisors item 3-11, Oct. 6, 2015.
In the Riverside case, the paper police call fraudulent was an affidavit, a type on the $10 list1. Riverside police urged owners to keep their contact details current with the Recorder's Office so they can be told about changes to their title9.
Does Riverside County have a free property fraud alert?
Yes. The Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder mails a free Courtesy Notice when a deed, deed of trust or similar paper is recorded on your property. There is no sign-up.
Since Sept. 1, 201112, the county has mailed each notice within 30 days to the owner in the Assessor's records, whatever address the new paper lists. It includes a copy of the paper's first two pages and the DA's hotline number13. In 2021, the county reported mailing about 17,000 a month14.
A mailing company sends them, so the envelope carries that company's return address along with the county office's logo13. In October 2026, the office asked supervisors to approve its current mailing contract, through June 2027, at $1.40 a notice15. Open the envelope, even if it looks like junk mail.
Riverside got its own state law for these notices, Government Code 27297.7, in 200816. In 2025, a state law called SB 255 rewrote that section so every California county but Los Angeles must mail similar notices by Jan. 1, 202717. Our state-by-state guide to county alerts shows what other counties send.
The notice has limits:
- It comes after recording. The paper is already public when you read about it.
- It comes by mail only. We found no email or text option on the county's pages.
- It follows the Assessor's mailing address. If that address is old, the notice goes there.
How do you report a suspicious filing in Riverside County?
Get a copy of the paper, call the DA's hotline at (877) 723-7779 and send a written complaint with copies. Then ask a lawyer about clearing your title.
- Look up the paper. Search the Recorder's free official records index at rivcoacr.org by name, then order a copy18.
- Call the hotline. The DA's Real Estate Fraud Unit takes calls at (877) 723-777912.
- Send the complaint form. Get it from the DA's Real Estate Fraud Unit page and add a written summary in date order and copies, not originals. Email it to REFComplaint@rivcoda.org or mail it to the Riverside County District Attorney's Office, Attn: Real Estate Fraud Unit, 3960 Orange Street, Riverside, CA 9250119.
- Tell local police or the Sheriff. The county's notice says you may call them too13.
- Ask a lawyer about your title. The DA can't represent you in a civil case, such as a quiet title action that asks a judge to rule on who owns the home7. If you're 60 or older or have a low income, Inland Counties Legal Services offers free help at (888) 245-4257, or (800) 977-4257 for seniors22.
Penal Code 115 makes it a felony to knowingly file a false or forged paper for recording. After a conviction, the prosecutor can ask the judge to declare that paper void21. Our checklist for the days after a fake deed turns up covers the rest.
Frequently asked questions
Does the Riverside County recorder take credit cards?
How do I get a copy of my property deed in Riverside County?
Find it in the Recorder's official records index, then order it online, by mail or at an office. Copies cost $8 for the first page, $1 for each added page and $2 to certify. Online orders take about 48 hours to process before mailing18.
How much does it cost to do a quitclaim deed in Riverside County?
What is the Riverside County Recorder's address?
The Gateway office is at 2724 Gateway Dr., Riverside, CA 92507, and its phone line is (951) 486-7000. You can also record papers and get copies in downtown Riverside at 4080 Lemon St., and in Temecula, Hemet, Palm Desert and Blythe. The Blythe office opens only on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and every office encourages appointments24.
Look up your own record this week
Search the Recorder's index for your name and confirm that the last deed on your home is one you signed. If anything looks wrong, start with the hotline above. Phone numbers and links on this page were checked on October 25, 2026.
Steps after finding a fake deedSources
- Consolidated Fee Schedule, Recorder (ACR 156), Riverside County Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder, revised January 2026
- Government Code section 27388, California Legislative Information, as amended 2021
- Board of Supervisors item 3-56, Resolution 2013-038 on the Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Trust Fund fee, County of Riverside, Feb. 5, 2013
- District Attorney's Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Trust Fund report for fiscal year 2014-15, Board item 3-11, County of Riverside, Oct. 6, 2015
- District Attorney's trust fund reports for fiscal years 2012-13 and 2013-14, Board item 3-5, County of Riverside, Nov. 4, 2014
- Board item 3.16: three vehicles for the District Attorney's Office, County of Riverside, June 11, 2024
- Real Estate Fraud Unit, Riverside County District Attorney, read Oct. 25, 2026
- DA's Real Estate Fraud Unit arrests Mira Loma man charged in fraudulent grant deed case, Riverside County District Attorney, June 14, 2021
- Riverside County woman arrested for allegedly trying to sell victim's home without their knowledge, CBS Los Angeles, Sept. 21, 2026
- Lake Elsinore woman accused of forging name on Riverside home deed, attempting sale, The Press-Enterprise, Sept. 29, 2026
- Suspects Arrested for Attempted Murder, Elder Abuse, and Real Estate Fraud, Riverside County Sheriff's Office, Oct. 16, 2026
- Real Estate Fraud, Riverside County Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder, read Oct. 25, 2026
- New Riverside County Measure Combats Real Estate Fraud, with sample Courtesy Notice and questions and answers, Riverside County Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder, Aug. 23, 2011
- Board item 3.8: real estate fraud notification services agreement, County of Riverside, July 20, 2021
- Board item 3.9: printing and mailing of real estate fraud notifications, County of Riverside, Oct. 6, 2026
- SB 1287 (Hollingsworth), Local government: records: Riverside County, California Legislature, approved July 10, 2008
- Government Code section 27297.7, as re-added by SB 255, California Legislative Information, effective Jan. 1, 2026
- Obtaining Record Copies, Riverside County Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder, read Oct. 25, 2026
- Real Estate Fraud Complaint Form, Riverside County District Attorney, October 2025 version
- Assessor-Clerk-Recorder advises property owners to verify notices before paying for property records, County of Riverside, March 25, 2026
- Penal Code section 115, California Legislative Information, read Oct. 25, 2026
- Inland Counties Legal Services, read Oct. 25, 2026
- Document Recording Services, Riverside County Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder, read Oct. 25, 2026
- Locations, Riverside County Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder, read Oct. 25, 2026
