Don't waste your money, county clerk warns Company charges 'outrageous' price for deed copy BY PATRICIA A. MILLER Staff Writer TOMS RIVER - Why spend $79.50 when you can get it for four bucks? That's Ocean County Clerk Carl W. Block's take on a direct-mail solicitation letter from "National Deed Service, Inc." that's been showing up in residents' mailboxes around the county. The company offers to provide homeowners with a certified copy of their deed for $79.50. But the county clerk's office routinely provides certified deed copies for far less, Block said. "We only charge 25 cents a page, plus two bucks to certify," he said. "For a four-page deed, it's four bucks. We look it up, we copy it, we certify it and give it to you. That's it." The company's letter, which has a Pennsylvania Avenue address in Washington, D.C., advises homeowners that the federal government recommends "property owners should have a certified copy of their deed." "It makes it sound like you really should have a copy of it," Block said. "I would not question that. You probably should. But if you ever need it, come in and get it." Block first found out about the company's offer at a statewide meeting of county clerks recently. Then his office started getting calls about the letter, he said. "We got one call," Block said. "Then we got two calls. Then we got three calls..." While the company is not doing anything illegal by advertising the service, there is no need for the service, he said. "No Ocean County property owner needs to pay the outrageous price of $79.50 to a private company for a certified copy of their recorded dead," Block said. Homeowners who want a certified copy of their deed can go to the public record access room or deed room on the first floor of the Ocean County Courthouse on Washington Street in Toms River, from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, Block said. Property owners who can't go in person can send a letter to the County Clerk's Office. They should first call the office at (732) 929-2053 and provide their property address, purchase date and lot and block number, along with the full name of the owner. "It's unfortunate that companies would prey upon already financially strapped homeowners, especially our vast senior population, many of whom are on fixed incomes, in offering a service that already exists, for a much more reasonable cost," Freeholder Director John P. Kelly said.