In the blog post, “Today, The Land Became Ours“, Antoine gave the advice that if you are offered title insurance, TAKE IT! He didn’t go into detail of the whats and whys so, today you’re in luck! I’m going to do it. First a little background…
The property we bought was once the family land of the previous owner. In fact, they owned pretty much all of the land in the immediate area. It had been passed down to the siblings. From the stories told, as the siblings started getting older and/or sick, they gave selling rights to the one sister providing that she share proceeds if sold to the heirs. She had a parcel of property that was solely hers that butted up next to another piece of property that had several heirs. We bought both, that will be later explained in another blog post. Here is where things get hairy. If we had just bought the piece she owned, we’d be fine. But we also bought the one with heirs and this is where the title insurance comes in.
At your closing whether it be a house or land, you (if you’re a DIYer), the closing lawyer, or title company will search to make sure the property is being sold free and clear in good faith. During the title search they are going to make sure there are no liens on the home, the mortgage is paid up, there are no judgments or unpaid taxes connected to the property, and they will verify easements. Most importantly, they are going to make sure that all “T”s are crossed and “I”s are dotted regarding anything that can hinder a legit sale, including making sure all possible heirs are notified and on board with the sale. But, we’re humans, and humans make mistakes. And this is where your title insurance will kick in.
In the event that the sale goes through and something goes wrong – including a long lost heir showing up at your doorstep 10 years after you buy, declaring they have rights (and legitimately they do) to your land – you will be glad you as the owner, paid that one time fee for that title insurance. What will then happen is, the company with whom you have the insurance will do all they can to settle the issue and if need be, pay for any damages, legal fees, or even in some cases pay out your equity should you have to actually leave your property.
In our case, it was a good idea to have the insurance. Like I said before, it was family land that had been passed down and around for years. Just when we thought we were ready to close, someone else popped up. And each time, they had to be notified and agree to the sale. It took several months, but we finally contacted everyone and they all agreed. BUT, juuuuust in case, that insurance is there. You may not have our specific problem, but I must say, paying a one time fee for a lifetime peace of mind in my opinion is worth it. Because if you don’t have it, and something pops up, you as the owner are now on the hook to remedy it or be in danger of losing your dream home.
TAKE THE TITLE INSURANCE!
(We are not in the insurance or financial business. We are just sharing our experiences of what we feel was valuable to our situation of purchasing our land. Please do all of your own research and see what will suit your specific situation best.)
~Deidra