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Monterey County plans SB 255 notification program to alert prior property owners of recorded deeds
Summary
Monterey County Assessor-Clerk-Recorder Marina Kamacho outlined a proposed SB 255 notification program that would require recorders to mail a notice — including the first two pages of the recorded document — within 30 days to the prior owner at the prior address for specified conveyance documents; the county aims to implement it before the law takes effect Jan. 1, 2027.
Monterey County Assessor-Clerk-Recorder Marina Kamacho said the county is developing a notification program to comply with Senate Bill 255 and to proactively alert property owners when certain property documents are recorded.
"This bill basically is a notification from the recorder when property documents are recorded," Kamacho said, explaining the proposal and the office's goal to implement the program before the statute's effective date. She said the county is preparing operational details, including whether to collect a fee and seeking Board of Supervisors approval for any fee collected at recording.
Under the legislation described in the briefing, the recorder would be required to send a notification letter within 30 days of recording. The notice must be mailed to the prior owner at the prior address so recipients can confirm whether they authorized the recording. The requirement applies to conveyance-related instruments such as deeds, quitclaim deeds and mortgages or deeds of trust, the presentation said. The county intends to include the first two pages of the recorded document with the notice so recipients can inspect it.
Kamacho said the letter will advise recipients who did not authorize a recording to contact the district attorney's fraud division. She also noted coordination with the DA's office: "For fiscal year 2024–25, the DA received 22 real-estate fraud referrals," Kamacho said, adding that several referrals resulted in felony charges.
Until the county program is in place, residents can check the recorder's office in person or contact the assessor's office to review recorded documents and current ownership information. Kamacho urged anyone who discovers an unauthorized recording to notify the district attorney's fraud division so investigators can take appropriate steps.
The county presentation made clear some operational details remain to be set, including any administrative fee and the precise implementation schedule. Kamacho said staff are working on those items and will present them to the Board of Supervisors for approval before any fee collection begins. The law takes effect Jan. 1, 2027; county staff said they are aiming to have the local program launched before then so there is time to test and refine procedures.
The Assessor-Recorder's Office will publish program information and contact procedures when details are finalized; in the meantime, residents who have questions about recorded documents were advised to contact the recorder or assessor's offices and to use the district attorney's fraud division if they suspect unauthorized recordings.
