Title to a property is a record detailing the owners of the property and rights associated with the ownership. Title typically shows a progression of ownership from the first owner to the current one. Title is a fairly simple concept, but when it goes wrong it is a nightmare. That is where name
insurance comes in.
Title Insurance
Title insurance guarantees that the title on a property is marketable when you purchase the home, condo, land, etc. You should always pay for title insurance. It typically costs a few hundred dollars and will save you a bundle if problems arise.
When you buy title insurance, a title
insurance company researches the title for the property. The insurance business
will look to see if the title is clear. Clear simply means that the seller is truly transferring title
to you and no other person may claim ownership. While this sounds fairly simple, rest assured that title problems arise all of the measure
.
Title Problems
You might be wondering how you could possibly have title problems. Here are a few examples:
1. Divorcing Couples Divorce is unpleasant and sometime very ugly. In particularly nasty situations, one spouse may attempt to sell a home without telling the other. To gain clear title, you absolutely need both spouses to sign off on the sale. If you do not
, you are going to become a party of the divorce proceedings. Now, wouldnt that be fun?
2. Estate Sales If you are purchasing a house as part of an estate sale, there may be real problems. The heirs may not be grasping
along and in an effort to get whats mine, can try to sell the residence without including all the heirs in the transaction. If you buy this home, you could finish
up involved in a lawsuit filed by an heir left out of the transaction.
3. Ingress and Egress Issues Title to a property can have technical issues related to egress and ingress. Occasionally, one finds title to a property that is so messed up that the owner doesnt have the right to enter or leave the land because to do so would require crossing another persons property. In short, the property is landlocked and something must be worked out with the neighbors. Typically, a solution comes in the form of hard, cold cashlots of it.
These are just a few issues that might
arise with title. With real estate, unique issues can arise all the measure
.
If you buy name
insurance, you do not
have to worry about problems with title. If a problem arises, you calmly pick up the phone and call the title insurance business
. The insurance business
will come up with a solution, even if it means paying you for bad name
.