Video Summary
When do you need a title search in a real estate transaction? You usually need a title search anytime that you transfer the property or sell the property to a third party. They’re going to want to know whether or not there are any liens against the property. Many people say, “Well, I know there are no liens on it.” However, usually your word is insufficient, so they want a title search or title insurance to ensure that they have marketable title to the property and to insure them against any hidden liens or other problems that were in the chain of title prior to the present owner selling the property. Also, title searches are needed whenever you mortgage the property in that the new lender is going to want to have title insurance to ensure that there are no outstanding liens and who the owner of the property is.
Title searches are conducted in order to have title insurance issued. That’s something that the attorney or the title company reviews. They are now computerized. You can do what they call an ownership and encumbrance search fairly inexpensively if you just want to check to see if there has been any change in the ownership. However, you don’t have any assurances if it’s not accurate; if liens do come up you don’t have any insurance against it. Anytime that the property changes hands, it’s a good idea to get a title search just to make sure that the proper properties were signing the deeds and that there are no mortgages on the property or liens that either the seller or the buyer didn’t know about.
If you transfer in some property and want some title insurance or get a title search, give me a call at (727) 847-2288. Thank you.