Obtaining a copy of your deed

Over the weekend, a new homeowner sent me an email in response to a solicitation received from a commercial entity.  Here's the email with some identifying information redacted:

I received a letter which states "Deed Processing Center" and asking me to pay $84.00 to get a "Grant Deed".  The company it came from is called "Conveyance Transfer Services, 1776 1 street NW 9th Floor, Washington DC".  It has all the information about my property from public records looks like . . . I don't need to buy the deed as I have the original from my attorney and it is online in the masslandrecords website. (I love the website by the way). It is more for your information and I will not act on this letter. If you need any further information, please let me know.

Maybe five years ago we started hearing about these types of letters.  Back then it was $50 to get a certified copy of your deed so the price has gone up.  My register of deeds colleagues and I discussed these enterprises and whether or not they were legal.  We concluded that while they might be somewhat misleading, they weren't so deceptive as to permit legal action on our behalf to shut them down.  In fact, some people might actually prefer paying someone else to get a copy of his deed rather than doing it himself.  Our response was to publicize the easy availability of deed copies on our various websites, something I'm reminding readers of with this post.

To reiterate, you should have received your original deed back shortly after you purchased your home.  We don't hold it as security while you pay off your mortgage (which is another misconception).  If you need a copy of your deed, just go to our website and print it or come to the registry from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm Monday thru Friday and we'll give you one.