County Clerk Holly Tanner would like to remind residents and landowners who need a copy of their deed or other public documents, that they can easily be obtained from her office for a nominal cost.

“There is a new solicitation going around,” she stated, having heard from several constituents of a very official looking letter coming from a company out of California called Record Transfer Services.  “This letter looks very official, is very detailed regarding the person’s records and even gives a deadline to respond,” she said.  “The real kicker is that they want to send you a copy of your deed for $83.00!  They appear to be targeting people who have had recent land transactions,” she said.

“Unfortunately, this type of solicitation is not illegal, but that does not mean that it is not a scam,” she said.  “I want to warn everyone not to fall for this as it essentially is a scam to make people believe they have to pay an exorbitant amount of money for a document that they can easily get from their own County Clerk and for a very small fee.”

People wishing to get a copy of their deed or any other public record can call the County Clerk’s office (518.828.3339), stop in the office (560 Warren St., Hudson), email the County Clerk at [email protected] or now, go online to www.columbiacountyny.com.  It is very easy and very inexpensive for people to obtain copies of documents that they may need.  The office is open Monday thru Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.