Your Southern Real Estate Resource | Starla Trainor REALTOR ®

What if someone tried to sell your land, and you had no idea?

It sounds far-fetched. It isn’t. The FBI has documented property owners discovering their vacant land was being sold—or had already been sold—after seeing a For Sale sign, finding construction equipment on the property, or even trying to pay their property taxes. Read the FBI’s warning about vacant land fraud.

Why Land Can Be a Target

Selling property remotely isn’t unusual anymore. We sign electronically, communicate by phone and email, and sellers may live hundreds of miles away.

That’s convenient for legitimate owners. Unfortunately, it’s also convenient for someone pretending to be one. The FBI says scammers have used fake IDs, deeds, documents and even fake notary stamps. They can also learn enough about a property through online research to answer ordinary questions correctly.

Vacant land presents an obvious opportunity: no one is living there to notice a sign in the yard, and property without a mortgage may have fewer parties involved in the transaction.

A Land Inquiry That Made Me Stop

I received an inquiry about a substantial piece of Georgia land from someone claiming to be the owner. At first, it looked like a listing lead. Then things stopped adding up.

The name didn’t match what I was finding. Property details and phone information raised questions. I kept asking for identification and information that would let me verify who I was dealing with.

I couldn’t verify it, so I didn’t take the listing.

Instead, I located the actual owners and mailed them a letter letting them know someone had contacted me about selling their property. I can’t say it was fraud because it never progressed far enough to prove that. But I didn’t need to prove a crime to know something wasn’t right.

An agent I know had an even stranger experience. Someone contacted the agent claiming to own a property. Much of the information checked out, but the agent still had concerns and eventually contacted the real owner.

The real owner operated a daycare, and there were children in the background during their call. There had also been children in the background when the person claiming to be the owner called.

The agent believed AI had been used to make the impersonation more convincing. I can’t independently verify exactly what technology was used, but the lesson matters:

Something sounding real is no longer proof that it is real.

What the Alabama Property Protection Act Changes

You don’t need to read a legal briefing to understand the important parts.

Want to read it yourself?

Alabama Securities Commission — Alabama Property Protection Act

Alabama REALTORS® — Alabama Property Protection Act of 2026

How I Screen Land Sellers From the First Conversation

The new law formalizes protections around verification. For me, that diligence starts with the first conversation—not at the closing table.

• Confirm the owner. The name provided should match the ownership information available in county records.
• Confirm the property. Acreage, parcel details and location should line up with what I’m being told.
• Verify identity and authority. Identification and ownership documentation may be necessary before moving forward.
• Pay attention to inconsistencies. Names, phone numbers, contact information or answers that don’t line up deserve a closer look.
• Don’t force a transaction forward. If I can’t verify who I’m dealing with, getting the listing isn’t more important than figuring out why.

For a legitimate seller, those extra questions aren’t a hurdle. They’re another layer of protection for the property they own.

AI Makes Diligence Even More Important

Someone asking whether you still own a parcel, whether it’s vacant, whether there’s a mortgage, where you live or whether you might sell could be asking perfectly legitimate questions.

But if a conversation feels strange, you don’t owe a stranger a complete profile of you and your property.

And if someone claims to be an agent, attorney or title company, verify that person independently before sending sensitive documents.

5 Ways Alabama Landowners Can Protect Their Property

1. Keep your deed and ownership records handy. Know exactly how the property is titled.
2. Ask your county probate office about property-record alerts. Availability varies by county.
3. Keep your contact information current, especially if you live out of state.
4. Look out for your neighbors. If you see unexpected signs, surveyors or construction on property you know isn’t being sold, call the owner. The FBI recommends having nearby people who can alert absentee owners to suspicious activity.
5. Don’t be offended when professionals verify you. If you’re selling remotely and your agent or closing professional asks for identification and ownership documents, remember why.

Before I Market Land, I Want to Know What I’m Marketing

Photography, pricing and marketing matter. But first I want to understand the property.

Who owns it? What does the deed show? Does the acreage match? How is it accessed? Are there surveys, easements, restrictions or ownership issues we need to address?

My background in mortgage lending and real estate taught me to pay attention to the documentation behind a transaction, not just what’s visible on the surface.

If something doesn’t add up, we figure out why before we keep moving.

Frequently Asked Questions

One Last Thought

Remote transactions aren’t going away. Neither are electronic signatures or AI. That means property owners, agents, attorneys, title professionals and even neighbors have to look out for one another.

If something feels off, ask the extra question.

And if you’re selling remotely and someone asks you to prove you’re really the owner? That’s a good thing—because you want them to ask the person pretending to be you, too.