Protecting Your Home with Title Insurance

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Purchasing a home is likely the single biggest investment you will make in your lifetime. Before you close, you will want to know that no other individual or entity has a claim or lien to the property.

A title company does all the research to insure that a property has clear title. Making sure that a property is clear of all legal encumbrances is the job of a title company.

You pay the title company a single premium which includes the cost of verifying clear title and covers you in case some fault is later discovered in the title.

The title insurance company performs an extensive search on the title history of the property. The title company can usually identify any title problems that may arise and clear up these problems prior to closing.

Because Real Estate Law is so complicated, you need an expert to make sure that all previous transactions have been correct, so you don't end up with legal problems or a problem selling your property. Your owner's policy will describe the property and outline the limitations on your ownership. It will also set forth the title insurance company's responsibilities should any claim covered by the policy terms arise. Typically your title insurance will protect you in the following cases:

• Contested title — This usually happens when someone who owned or even lived in the home before you claims to still hold an interest. If this happens, the title company will defend the title at no expense to you.
• Defective title — This is a general term for a legal problem with the title that cannot be corrected and includes "contested title" above. Defects are rare, but they can be very difficult, making the property inaccessible, unbuildable, or unsaleable. Any number of other complicated problems define "Defective title" or "Clouded Title." The title insurance company will find these problems, or if they miss them, insure your loss up to the amount of the policy.

Harbor View Lending* a DBA of Megastar Financial can walk you through the pitfalls of getting a mortgage. Give us a call: (207) 571-8034.