Title Center
In a nutshell, title insurance is a statement about ownership for a specific property. It insures that the owners can convey clean and clear title to the buyers, without fear of encumbrances, defective title or adverse claims against the title. A title report will list current money obligations against the property (your mortgage), easements and CC&R’s of record and any other matter of record that may affect the right of ownership, possession and use of the property.
One of the first items many prospective buyers will want to review is the title report; in fact the standard purchase and sale contract makes reference to clean title and the buyer’s right to review a title report. Having a preliminary title report in hand will enable you to kill two birds with one stone:
- You will have a valid Legal Description for any purchase and sale contract. You must have a valid Legal Description attached or the contract is voidable at any time. The Legal Description is Exhibit A.
- You will immediately start the timeframe for title review (usually 5 business days). Your buyers will not have a ‘title review loophole’ to back out of at the 11th hour. This is most commonly found on NWMLS Form #22T.
If you have not already done so, contact the title company of your choice and order your preliminary title report (there will probably be a fee for this, which may be credited back to you if you use that title company for the actual title insurance policy). You should review the report when you receive it and keep an eye out for anything that looks amiss—misspelled names, a lender from a previous mortgage (if you have refinanced the property) or perhaps a spouse that should or should not be on title. Having these issues addressed and taken care of before you get to the closing table will save you time, headaches and even money.
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