The Truth About Title Insurance

We have covered title insurance in previous posts, but we believe the topic deserves a deeper dive. Day in and day out, we receive questions about title insurance from our clients who are purchasing a home for the first time. We love explaining the ins and outs of title insurance to our clients, helping them make the best decisions when going through the home buying process.

In this blog post, we discuss a few commonly asked questions about title insurance. This information, however, does not replace the value of seeking legal advice from an experienced title attorney. If you have questions about your specific situation, we encourage you to contact our office today for more information.

What Is Title Insurance?

In a nutshell, title insurance is there to protect a buyer should a problem with the title be uncovered at some point in the future. If you were to work with our team, for example, we would start by conducting a thorough title examination. After that, we would provide a title commitment through an underwriter regarding the status of the title. If this is accepted, we issue the purchaser a title commitment, which outlines the terms, conditions, as well as any exclusions that will be included in the insurance policy.

What Does Title Insurance Cover?

A home is one of the biggest purchases you may ever make. Title insurance is there to ensure that you are protected against things such as:

• A fraudulent or forged prior deed
• Any unpaid taxes
• Construction liens against the property
• A judgment lien against the seller
• If a name is listed incorrectly
• Lack of a notary’s signature
• If a mortgage was never fully paid off
• An outstanding Home Equity Line 
  

Of course, this is not an exhaustive list of everything covered under title insurance - but you get the idea. If you purchase title insurance, you would be covered, legally and financially, from any title flaws that date from the time before the property was in your possession. The best part is that you are protected by your policy for as long as you own the property in question.

If you plan to buy a home in Florida this year, the sooner you can sit down with a real estate title attorney, the quicker you can plan for full protection throughout the process.

Is Title Insurance Required?

Title insurance is not required, but it is always recommended. Purchasing a home is a major financial decision, and doing so without title insurance adds a high level of risk to the transaction. In Florida, title insurance normally runs well below one percent of your total purchase price. Protecting yourself from potential title challenges, legal fees, and time engaged in litigation is worth the additional expense. Consider how devastating it would be to learn later on that you didn’t actually own the property you moved into thinking you had purchased it fair and square. While it is a relatively rare occurrence, it does happen more than you might think. Is it worth the risk? Absolutely not! 

How Do I Get Title Insurance?

This is the easiest question for us to answer. If you live in the Sunshine State, all you have to do is contact us online and one of our Jacksonville Beach, FL title attorneys will get the process in motion. At Atlantic Coast Title & Escrow, we make it our mission to make real estate deals safe and simple for you.