Orleans Clerk: Real Estate Records Almost Restored

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The New Orleans civil court clerk says about 85 percent of the real estate records lost in an October computer crash have been restored.

Clerk Dale Atkins also told The Times-Picayune on Wednesday that the original estimates of how much information was lost were greatly overstated. Instead of the 60,000 conveyance records Atkins first reported missing, she now estimates the number at about 35,000.

The crash still poses problems in real estate sales: Without a complete and verified database of records, title companies can't be sure that a person trying to sell a property truly owns it free and clear.