Why Title Insurance is Your Greatest Asset

Go Beyond the Search

Buying a home is one of the most significant financial milestones in a person's life, representing both a dream realized and a massive investment of capital. While most buyers are meticulous about home inspections and locking in insurance rates, many overlook the invisible foundation of their purchase: the property title. Title insurance is not just another line item in your closing costs; it is an essential indemnity contract that protects your ownership rights from undiscovered defects that even the most thorough public record search may fail to identify.

You might wonder why insurance is necessary if a professional search has already been conducted. The reality is that there is no such thing as a "perfect" title. Even the most diligent title professional is limited by the accuracy of public indexes, and many hazards exist entirely outside of those records. Hidden perils such as forged deeds, undisclosed heirs appearing years later, or documents executed by mental incompetents can surface long after you have moved in. Without protection, a court could rule in favor of a third party, potentially causing you to lose your home and your entire investment.

Beyond the threat of losing ownership, title insurance shields you from the financial burden of a previous owner's mistakes. Unpaid contractor fees, child support liens, or property tax debts are often attached to the home itself rather than the individual, meaning they become the buyer’s responsibility upon transfer. Furthermore, your policy entitles you to a legal defense. If your ownership is challenged, the insurance company covers the cost of attorneys to defend your title in court and settles any resulting claims. Unlike most insurance, there are no annual premiums; a single payment at closing protects you for as long as you own the property.

Although the Title Professional searches all records and indexes, this examination cannot protect the client from hidden title defects. The attorney’s opinion normally excludes such matters and the client has no recourse except as to his grantor, should a non-record title defect cloud the title such as:

• Forgery of Deed, Mortgage Release, etc.
• Deeds delivered without consent or after death of a grantor.
• Undisclosed heirs.
• Deeds from Mental Incompetents or minors.
• Pretermitted heirs.
• Errors in recording documents.
• Discovery of a will of an apparent intestate or a later will in a testate estate.
• Federal Gift or Estate Tax Liens.
• A false impersonation of a true owner, spouse or lien holder.
• Documents executed pursuant to an expired power of attorney.
• Deeds from a corporate entity without authority.
• Misinterpretation of a Trust, Will, Deed or other documents.
• False representation of marital status.
• Lack of service or jurisdiction of parties in judicial proceedings.
• Legal descriptions apparently, but not actually adequate.

• Capacity and powers of foreign personal representative or trustees to act. - Assessment passed, but not yet placed on tax duplicate.
• Errors in tax records.
• Rights of common law spouses.
• Deeds which are actually mortgages.
• Deeds, Mortgages or land contracts set aside by Bankruptcy proceedings.
• Defective notarization.
• Rights of military personnel.
• Prescriptive rights not of record.
• Lack of necessary parties in judicial proceedings.
• Financing statements in a name of a known-owner debtor.
• Criminal proceedings creating a lien-Ohio racketeering statute.
• Erroneous reports of government officials.
• Deeds to and from non-existent or fictitious persons.
• Void conveyances in violation of public policy, (gambling debt, and restraint of trade).