What Does a Title Company Do?

How do you know that you own a piece of property? What happens if there is a dispute and someone else claims that they own your land or your home? It might seem unlikely, but legal disputes over title happen all of the time and they can be painful and costly to resolve.

What is a Title Company?

A title company is responsible for verifying the legitimate owner of a property and then issuing title insurance to protect the owner against title lawsuits. They also transfer titles between owners. 

As a buyer, you don’t want to be reliant on the seller’s account of the real estate title and any liability that might be associated with it. There could be a third party with a lien on the property, for example, that was either withheld or unknowingly not disclosed. 

If this is the case, you might end up spending much more than you should on the property.

Do I Need a Title Company?

A title company can offer vital protection against title lawsuits, and only a title company can offer title insurance to protect you against the unknowns. According to Zillow.com, there are 2 types of title insurance: owner’s title insurance and lender’s title insurance. It is a good idea to pay for both, although customs differ according to the area. 

If you have both types of title insurance and it turns out you are not the legitimate owner of the property because someone else has the true title, the title insurance would pay you the value of the home and pay the lender what they lent you to purchase it. 

If you need to complete the paperwork to transfer ownership of a property, a Title Company in Jacksonville FL can help you to sort out the red tape.