RENSSELAER COUNTY, N.Y. — A solicitation letter that looks official is showing up in homeowners’ mailboxes across New York — asking people to pay more than $100 for copies of property records they can often get for free or at little cost through their local county clerk’s office.
The letters, labeled from companies such as “Property Records,” are designed to resemble government correspondence, complete with return envelopes and warnings that homeowners may need copies of their deeds and related documents. In one case reviewed by CBS6, the company requested a $132 “service fee” to obtain public records.
For first-time homeowner Katelyn Ostrander, the letter she received immediately raised concerns…