In a nutshell, quite a bit can go wrong with a title search, but that is a good thing for you. Most often, when a title search “goes wrong,” it means that the property you’re hoping to buy has significant drawbacks that could cost you money.
What kinds of drawbacks would a title search uncover?
There are two major categories of concerns for property buyers to understand. They are:
- Deed restrictions: Deeds can have concerning restrictions on pets, property use, vehicle numbers and the ability to run a business. Depending on your needs from a home, the deed itself may be a deal-breaker.
- Title claims: Anyone who has done work on a house may place a claim on that house when there is a payment dispute. Many title searches come back without issue, but a routine title search may uncover liens or other claims on the property.
These two concerns describe a general history of a home and its use in the past. You should consider it a successful and appropriate result if the title search ends with a serious consideration. That means your attorney’s research was accurate and detailed. That also means the control is now in your hands.
More information means more control
A title search is nothing more than an accumulation of necessary information. In real estate, everyone is an investor and investors depend on accurate, timely information. When you have that title search in hand, you can then make the right choice; maybe that choice is to negotiate the property price down significantly; perhaps it’s to move on. Either way, the choice is yours. And that’s not so much a title search going wrong, as it is going very right for you.
