What is a title search?

A title search always tends to confuse even the most avid real estate purchaser. When you are buying a new home and placing a mortgage on it most banks will require the purchaser to insure the property to back the loan. Because the property is being insured and backed by the bank, a title search is always required to be done before the purchasing of the home can be completed. A lot of homebuyers tend to be confused by what a title search exactly entails but the easiest way to explain it is that it is basically done to answer three major questions.

The first is usually to make sure the seller has a salable interest in the property. This means that he or she has the right to sell the property and is doing so in good faith. You sometimes run across family members who are trying to sell off a dying parents’ home without their knowledge or consent. If this was the case the sale would be stopped until proper paperwork was set up, for example, with a power of attorney or someone who is the caretaker of the true property owner.

The second question that the title search tries to answer is whether or not there are any restrictions that pertain to the use of land. As a former real estate professional I once came across a restriction that actually said there was a limit to the amount of cars that could be parked on the driveway. So the family of five who actually had four cars was only allowed to park three cars in the driveway. These cases are rare but the title search tends to find these rarities before the sale is final.

And the last question that the title search will answer is whether or not there are any liens on the property that may need to be paid off before the closing of the sale. Examples of these liens would be back taxes, second mortgages or any other type of assessments.

It is often best to purchase title insurance when buying your new home. This is to make sure no problems arise out of the blue after you become the new owner.

Checking to make sure that there are no claims or clouds on the title history of the property.