Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

I was the winning bidder for a fourplex on an internet auction. I have all the paper work from the auction house, the emails to and from myself and the seller, the bank wire transfers, etc. What I never got was a warranty or quit claim deed for the fourplex.
The seller has dropped off the face of the earth. His email and phone no longer work. His address is bogus. And the bank that got the transfer won't give me any information. I filed an internet fraud complaint with the FBI, but they haven't got back to me.
My question is (and please don't laugh): Can I fill out my own warranty deed in order to file it with the county?
My son's logic is that it might flush this guy out but he doesn't think this person would be stupid enough to try and contest the deed-it would be like a drug dealer calling the police for having his drugs ripped off.
I'm a single parent of four and he took more than half my life savings. (I was going to rent the place out to supplement my minimum income.)
Please tell me there's something better I can do besides doing as the Romans do while in Rome.
Thank-you,
Maureen.
The fourplex is in Minnesota, but both myself and the seller live in the SF Bay Area in California.

Asked on 5/06/13, 6:29 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys

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There are a lot of problems with your idea, but let's start with the most obvious. What makes you think the seller even owns the property? Who would be slick enough to pull a scam like that, but then be stupid enough to be using property they really own? It's 99% sure you would just be slandaring title of some person who knows nothing about the whole mess, and thereby setting yourself up to be sued. Even if the bogus seller actually owned the property, though, deeds have to be signed by the seller, and unless Minnesota is WAY different from California, the deed has to be notarized, meaning you have to prove that you are the person in whose name the document is signed. So unless you committed several crimes by forging a deed and notarization, and then several more crimes by recording a forged instrument in Minn, you couldn't even do what you want to do. The police and FBI aren't going to help you get your money back, either. You need to come see a lawyer in person.

Answered on 5/06/13, 8:49 pm

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