Protecting Your Home with Title Insurance

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The biggest investment you will make in your life will likely be the purchase of a home. Before closing on the house, you will want to know that no other individual or entity has a right, 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 insurance company.

You pay the title insurance 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 company performs an extensive search on the title history of the property. Through its research, the title company can almost always identify any title problems that may arise and have these problems cleared-up before you close on the property.

Real Estate law is extraordinarily complex. Title companies make sure that all the T's are crossed and all the I's are dotted so you don't end up with a clouded title and legal problems. Your owner's policy will describe the property and outline the limitations on your ownership. It will also set forth the title 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. In this case, the title company will defend your title and will cost you nothing.
• Defective title — "Defective title" covers any number of problems with the title to your home. It can even include a "contested title". Defects are rare, but they can be very difficult, making the property inaccessible, unbuildable, or unsaleable. Many other complicated problems define "Defective title" or "Clouded Title." The title insurance company will discover these title problems, or should 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 at (207) 571-8034.