11/26/2015
Buying a home is likely the largest investment you will make in your life. Title insurance protects your investment in many cases where there are rival claims on your property. Each time a property exchanges hands, there are more opportunities for mistakes, oversights, and complications to occur, increasing your risk. Here are a few of the examples of when title insurance is necessary.

Why You Need Title Insurance in Coconut Grove

  • The land remains intact after a fire destroys the home. A defective title may take away not the 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 a mortgage may have been signed by a person under age.
  • A deed or a mortgage may have been made by an insane person or one otherwise incompetent.
  • A deed or a mortgage may have been made under a power of attorney after its termination and would, therefore, be void.
  • A deed or a 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 had 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.
  • If the insured refinances and pays off an earlier mortgage and the discharge was not recorded or one is recorded but an assignment is missing, this would be covered under the policy. Most owners would not know that there is a missing assignment or discharge until sale. At that point they would find out a few days before closing, at best. If they have Owner’s Title Insurance Policy we would cover this issue and undertake the search for the missing documentation.
Ideally you will not fall into any of these situations, but the fact is that 1 out of 3 real estate transactions are held up by problems with the title. If a problem goes undetected, it can come back to bite you. Your home is your future, and you protect your future with home insurance. You also need to think about the past, and protect your home's past for the future with title insurance. Call Riva Title at 786-787-7888 to get a quote.
  • The policy issues that the homeowner has actual pedestrian and vehicular access to and from the property.
  • The Owner’s Policy covers a homeowner who is forced to remove or correct existing structures that were built without a permit or that violate an existing zoning law or zoning regulation. This zoning coverage extends to boundary walls and fences.
  • The homeowner is covered where subdivision laws have been violated prior to the homeowner’s purchase, and as a result, the homeowner is unable to obtain a building permit, is forced to correct or remove the violation, or is unable to complete a sale or loan.
  • The homeowner is covered if he or she is forced to remove a boundary wall or fence because it encroaches onto a neighbor’s land, onto an easement or over a building set back line.
  • The one time premium includes an increase in coverage by 10% a year for the first 5 years the policy is in effect.
  • Most of the time the homeowner doesn’t find out there is an issue until a few days before closing. This can prove to be an issue because many sellers schedule back-to-back closings on another piece of property and need to close in order to get the proceeds to purchase the new house. Your closing needs to happen as scheduled. Without Eagle Owner’s Policy this very well may not happen. If the homeowner is insured with an Eagle Owner’s Policy then most often the Title Company will issue a letter to the closing agent to move forward with the closing and will undertake to resolve the issue.
  • A Lender's Policy protects the lender, NOT the Borrower. Some borrowers are under the mistaken impression that since they have to pay for the lender’s policy it will cover them if there is a title issue. Please understand that the Lender is not going to track down assignments or remove fences and that lender policy coverage often does not arise unless there is a foreclosure.
  • The additional premium for the Owner’s policy is equal to a retainer for a few hours of billable time when an issue surfaces and an attorney has to be hired.

For Title Insurance in Coconut Grove

You can trust that your home investment is safe when you are protected by Riva Title in Coconut Grove. We have the legal expertise and experience to ensure that your closing process goes smoothly and to defend you against claims made against your title and property. If you would like to find out more about title insurance and the closing services that we provide, pay us a visit on our website. Call 786-787-7888 to talk to a professional today.