A title is essentially property ownership, it is the owner’s right to possess and use the property.

A title search is a detailed examination of the public records pertaining to your property. These searches provide us with information pertaining to the owners of the property, any liens/judgments attaching to the property, current and past mortgages and much more. The title searcher examines court records, deeds, property and name indexes and the city tax databases.

Title insurance is a safeguard against defects in title to real property resulting in a claim against your ownership. Title Insurance identifies, protects and eradicates risks and losses caused by problems within the chain of title.

The Chain of Title is the sequence of transfers of title to a property. The chain of title begins with the current owner and goes back to the original owner of the property.

The Lender’s Policy insures the legitimacy and enforceability of the lien of the Lender’s Mortgage or deed of Trust. The Lender’s Policy insures the lender for the amount of money borrowed against the property. You will need to purchase a Lender Policy for every new mortgage that is taken out on the property.

The Owner’s Policy insures the owner that the title to the property is free from defects (except for those which are listed as exceptions in the policy). Normally, an owner’s policy is issued when the property is purchased and will remain in effect as long as you own the property.

All to often there are hazards lurking in a title that could keep you from getting title to the property you want to own. A few things we have discovered during title searches include:

• Mistakes that were made in the public records
• Mortgages, judgments or tax liens that were outstanding
• Documents that were executed using fabricated or expired powers of attorney
• Undisclosed heirs with claims against the property
• Deeds by persons not legally capable of signing the documents

Title Insurance policies guarantee that you own your property. It protects you from any title defects by defending it in court, and helps to correct or clear your title where possible. Title insurance may also compensate you for any loss that may occur, including the cost of legal representation.

The Closing or ‘settlement’ process is what it takes to complete any real estate transaction.

The purchaser / current owner does. Your Mortgage Company or Real Estate Agent may have suggestions for you,  however,  the choice of which company to use, is up to you.

Not really. Both terms are used more or less interchangeably, and refer to the process of finalizing a sale or refinance, the exchanging of money or real property, and the recording of all legal documents.

Closing costs often include the following: recording fees, title insurance, storm water fees, prorated interest and property taxes, mortgage insurance premium, attorney’s or settlement fees, document preparation fees, homeowner’s insurance premium, and escrows for homeowner’s insurance.

Once a closing agent is identified, the lender will send us your name, address, contact information the contract and the lender instructions. From this, we can open the file and order the title search. We will need to get some additional information from you prior to closing:

Payoff information for Sellers – We will need account numbers for any mortgages or accounts that are being paid off at closing. For each loan that is being paid off, we will need to have a written payoff statement from the mortgage company, that tells us exactly how much is needed to satisfy the lien. Due to privacy concerns, many lenders require signed, pre-authorization from you, to release this information to our office (considered a 3rd party) We will call and then provide the form.

Since every closing is unique, we may need additional information from you to properly prepare for your closing. We will contact you with any additional information we may need.

Once a contract is signed you may be contacted for information. Seashore Title & Settlements handles the rest, keeping you up to date on the progress of the closing and informed of any details needed along the way. Once everything is together, we will contact you to set your closing time and date.

At closing, you will sit down with the settlement / closing agent to review and discuss all of the closing documents. Any questions you have will be answered at this time. After the documents are signed and notarized, you will be given copies, your keys, and then become new homeowners !

On the designated closing date itself, a sale or refinance takes approximately 30 minutes, whereas a new home purchase could take up to an hour. The steps leading up to a closing date however typically requires a couple of weeks to coordinate and complete.

Please bring a photo ID as we will need this to verify your identity. If you are bringing funds to closing, please bring a cashier’s / bank check made payable to Seashore Title & Settlements. If you prefer to wire the funds, please let us know and we will provide you with our wiring instructions. Clients must call and verify the amount needed, our account and routing numbers prior to transmitting funds.

Ask anyone who has worked with us, and you’ll probably hear the difference at Seashore Title is attention to detail without the tension and stress sometimes associated with the process. We stay on top of the entire process, and keep everyone informed at every step so that if things do get complicated, we can handle it for you with ease.