Starting Sept. 1, two new Texas laws—Senate Bills 1734 and 693—will take aim at reversing loopholes in the state’s property laws that have allowed bad actors to steal ownership of homes with alarming ease.

Deed theft involves forging or fraudulently transferring property titles, often without the homeowner’s knowledge. The process can take just minutes, but for victims, the legal battle to reclaim their property can drag on for years.

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One such victim is Elizabeth Phillips, who says her trust was betrayed earlier this year when she attempted to sell her home through a company called Epiphany Properties.

“That same day we signed papers, they agreed to pay me $120,000 for my home,” Phillips said.

But when the s

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