Buying Property Is A Numbers Business
- A fire destroys only the house and improvements. The ground is left. A defective title may take away not only the house but also the land on which it stands. Title insurance protects you (as specified in the policy) against such loss.
- A deed or mortgage in the chain of title may be a forgery.
- A deed or mortgage may have been signed by a person under age.
- A deed or mortgage may have been made by an insane person or one otherwise incompetent.
- A deed or mortgage may have been made under a power of attorney after its termination and would, therefore, be void.
- A deed or mortgage may have been made by a person other than the owner, but with the same name as the owner.
- The testator of a will might have been a child born after the execution of the will, a fact that would entitle the child to claim his or her share of the property.
- A deed or mortgage may have been procured by fraud or duress.
- Title transferred by an heir may be subject to a federal estate tax lien.
- An heir or other person presumed dead may appear and recover the property or an interest therein.
- A judgement or levy upon which the title is dependent may be void or voidable on account of some defect in the proceeding.
- Title insurance covers attorneys’ fees and court costs
- Title insurance helps speed negotiations when you’re ready to sell or obtain a loan.
- By insuring the title you can eliminate delays and technicalities when passing your title on to someone else.
- Title insurance reimburses you for the amount of your covered losses.
- A deed or mortgage may be voidable because it was signed while the grantor was in bankruptcy.
- Each title insurance policy Green Escrow writes is paid up, in full, by the first premium for as long as you or your heirs own the property.
- There may be a defect in the recording of a document upon which your title is dependent.
- Claims constantly arise due to marital status and validity of divorces. Only title insurance protects against claims made by non-existent or divorced “wives” or “husbands.”
- Many lawyers, in giving an opinion on a title, protect their clients as well as themselves, by procuring title insurance.
- Over the last 24 years, claims have risen dramatically.