Buying A New House? Why You Need Owner’s Title Insurance

Before you can understand why you need title insurance, it’s important to understand what title insurance actually is. As part of your real estate closing, your closing attorney (who is often also a title agent) will review the chain of title to the property you are purchasing. The title search usually goes back about 40 years depending on the kind of transaction, and includes a search of all kinds of public records – not just deeds and mortgages on the property, but also foreclosure actions, judgments, probate cases, family court matters, tax liens, etc. This process verifies that the seller actually owns the property and that the seller is actually free to sell it. But, because title searches are limited…