by admin | Oct 6, 2021 | Uncategorized
O is for Owners,
T is for Title, scratchin’ temple
The last P, it’s pretty simple.
It’s Policy.
An Owner’s Title Policy could be the only thing that saves your asset from a huge financial loss.
OTP … It’s as simple as ABC.
For most people, owning a home is the cornerstone of their financial future. Over time, as your home builds equity, you can use that money to pay for college, supplement retirement or put a down payment on that beach house!
OTP can shield you from being sued if someone claims THEY own your land, or they have a lien against the equity, or they fixed the roof and nobody paid them. Protecting against claims does not just cover payment of loss. It also provides attorney support in court should things get nasty.
You ever had a bank and met a lender on a nice hello?
Well, banks do not mess around with their money. If you get a loan, they make you pay for a lender’s title insurance policy to protect them. Buyers have the option to purchase a policy to protect themselves, but this article is not about where you should or shouldn’t get a policy. … You absolutely should!
Hip Hop Hooray!
You are still reading so you must agree. Since we’re all down with OTP, let’s talk about how much it costs and the level of protection you want.
The cost is based on the purchase price of the home. It’s a one-time payment, good for as long as you, or your heirs, own the home. But you’ve got a couple of options to choose from.
First, you’ve got your basic policy. That protects you from liens in the history of your title through the date your deed is recorded in the public records. Basic policies are fine, but they do not cover everything.
Now when you buy a policy, do it well, and make sure that it counts.
If you want Treach-level protection, you need an enhanced policy. Enhanced Owner’s Policy provides expanded coverage to include:
○ Post-Policy Forgery
○ Post-Policy Encroachments
○ Post-Policy Adverse Possession
○ Post-Policy Easement by Prescription
○ Building Permit and Zoning Violations
○ Restrictive Covenant Violations
○ And a lot more
If you feel my flow, contact me to get a quote. We can talk specifics, and I will show you how to get down with a discount on a reissue rate.
by admin | Oct 5, 2021 | Uncategorized
Have you ever sold a home where the owner of the record is in a trust? What does that mean? How is that different? What does the title do differently, and how do you know when a property is in a trust?
A trust refers to the fiduciary relationship created to appoint one party to manage assets on behalf of a third party. This relationship is established between the creator of the trust (the grantor) and the trustee, who holds and administers the property within the trust on behalf of the beneficiary designated to receive the property. The trustee is appointed to administer the trust while acting in the best interests of the grantor.
So how does this transaction differ from a traditional sale?
Well, the short answer is … it isn’t that different. There are a few things we (the title company) will need in order to begin the sale. We will need a copy of the Trust Agreement from the Seller. This will include names, permissions, and who is the signing agent of the trust.
The sale contract will have the seller’s name as the name of the Trust and the representative of the trust will sign as Trustee. For example: “Trustees name”, Trustee.
For settlement, we will need to verify the separate bank account that is open in the name of the trust.
Whenever a listing comes up that has the owner of the record in a trust, the best thing to do is to call Advantage Title immediately. Our Director of Business Development, Jessica Scott, will walk you through the process and ensure that your transaction is handled smoothly and efficiently.
by admin | Sep 29, 2021 | Uncategorized
What do you do when your next listing is in an estate? And what does that mean for the title?
While selling a property held in an estate is slightly different from your traditional sale, it doesn’t have to be difficult! The best way to sell this kind of property is to be prepared.
When an owner of a home passes away, typically, that home goes into the individual’s estate. The first thing we do is verify the Personal Representative of the Estate by using the Maryland Registers website.
Once we know who the PR is, Advantage Title will request some documents, so it is important to let the Personal Representative listing the house know upfront that we are going to need the following items:
- Death Certificate
- Letters of Administration from the PR
- EIN # for Estate
From there, everything proceeds as normal. When selling estate property, you’ll want to have the seller on the contract of sale as “The Estate of *Name of Deceased.*” You’ll also want to make sure that the Personal Representative is signing as “*PR Name* as the Personal Representative.”
Happy selling!
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Uncategorized
Happy One-Year Anniversary!
Now that you’ve lived in your house for a year, you should qualify for Maryland’s Homestead Tax Credit. This credit limits any annual tax increase to no more than 10% a year for a principal residence. As values rise, so will your taxable assessment. So lock in your base value now before you overpay on your future tax bills. To register, you must:
1) Live in the Property for a Year as Principle Residents
2) Receive Your Application by Mail or Call 410-767-2165 to Get the Access Number
3) Apply at https://sdathtc.dat.maryland.gov/
by admin | May 3, 2021 | Uncategorized
You have auto insurance in case of an accident.
You have medical insurance for when you’re sick.
You probably even have insurance on your cellphone because what would you ever do without it?
But you’d be surprised how many people ask us, “Do I really need an owner’s title insurance policy?”
Yes. Yes, you do.
Here’s the thing. When you purchase a home, there endless legal and municipal issues that can be tied to your property. Things you may never have even considered.
Title insurance protects you, and getting the right level of protection is critical.
You’ll be required to purchase a lender’s title policy but that policy protects — you guessed it — the lender. Not you.
So you’ll want to purchase an owner’s title insurance policy. The good news is that this is a one-time fee and, once you’ve purchased it, you’re covered for life.
We know that a lot of homebuyers are cost-conscious, and that’s understandable. At the bare minimum, we recommend a basic title insurance policy. That’s going to cover any undiscovered issues that originate before you take ownership but that arise after you’ve got the title in hand.
These are things like an unpaid mortgage from a previous owner or finding out later that someone else’s heir actually owns an interest in your property.
If that happens, you’re covered.
But that only scratches the surface of what could eventually happen in the future. That’s where an enhanced title insurance policy becomes the best choice and the one we recommend in most cases, especially if you plan to own the property for a long time.
An enhanced policy covers everything a standard policy covers and it provides post-policy protection that covers a lot more. Encroachments, easements, forgery … you’re always covered.
In our industry, we see claims filed all the time. And many times, they are completely baseless. They still must be dealt with.
If you don’t have an owner’s title policy, you’ll have to go to court and deal with it on your own dime. The cost of that could be extremely high.
So get the policy and relax. You never know what the future might bring. You’ll just know you’re covered when it happens.
And that’s a great feeling.
