Anti–deed theft advocates and a group of city and state lawmakers are urging Gov. Kathy Hochul to impose a temporary eviction moratorium on properties where deed fraud is suspected.

City Council Member Chi Ossé joined the People’s Coalition to Stop Deed Theft on Monday to call for action.

Advocates say the pause is needed to prevent homeowners from being forced out while courts determine whether their properties were illegally taken. Thousands of deed theft complaints have been filed across the city in the past decade, with Black homeowners in Brooklyn disproportionately affected, according to Ossé.

Ossé called on Hochul to use her executive authority to enforce a targeted stay on evictions, modeled on mechanisms used during the COVID‑19 eviction moratorium. Supporters say the state could use existing laws, including sections of the Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law and the Civil Practice Law and Rules, to halt removals in cases where ownership is in dispute.

“This is a targeted legal pause to protect families in the middle of unresolved cases, not a blanket freeze on the housing system,” Ossé said, adding, “No one should be forced out while the courts are still determining whether a home was stolen.”

Ossé says many cases are resolved through default judgments, saying judges often do not see the merits of the case.

In a letter signed by more than 20 City Council members, the group also called for the statute of limitations on deed theft cases to be extended beyond the current five years.

Families like the Irvings in Bed-Stuy say the proposed changes could have kept them in their home as they fought a legal battle spanning more than 15 years. They say their mother, Thelma Irving, unknowingly signed away the rights to their longtime home more than a decade ago.

“She signed a document she thought was a mortgage to make repairs; come to find out it was the right to the home out from under her,” said Diane Irving.

The family was forced out in October despite still fighting their case.

“I am pretty sure we would have still been in our home. This was our family home,” Diane said. “To walk away, to realize they would never be here again, that was really grueling.”

Her sister, Mattie Irving, said the governor’s action is urgently needed.

“We need this now,” she said. “If this were your family and your heritage, you would want something done as soon as possible.”

Advocates say a moratorium would give families time to challenge fraudulent transfers without the threat of immediate removal.