Title search

[Gulana]

What is the name of your state? PA


How do you go about running a title search on a piece of property a house specifically

[seniorjudge]

Q: How do you go about running a title search on a piece of property a house specifically

A: You go to a title insurance company that does business in the county where the land is and you say, "I'd like you to run a title search on a piece of property, namely [insert the address, legal description, whatever info you have]? How much will it cost? When can I get it?"

[nextwife]

Hire a title insurance company.

[Gulana]

Thank you

[FlyingRon]

If you're clever and don't care about the veracity of the results, you can go down and pour over the records yourself. This is handy if you really want to just know who owns a property without really having to rely on the information.

A title company are not only more adept at doing this, but will sell you an insurance policy warranting the results of their research.

[nextwife]

Originally Posted by FlyingRon

If you're clever and don't care about the veracity of the results, you can go down and pour over the records yourself. This is handy if you really want to just know who owns a property without really having to rely on the information.

A title company are not only more adept at doing this, but will sell you an insurance policy warranting the results of their research.

IT isn't always so straightforward. There can be land splits, metes and bounds descriptions with portion sales, partial interests deeds. Does our poster know how to read a legal description, perhaps map it? Who may have been vested with prior interests that have not been deeded out? And many more other filings that could have affected the interest of record, and the ability to convey, such as guardianships, trusts, bankruptcies, etc? The average joe doesn't know that a signature on the deed from the party previously placed in title DOESN"T always legally convey the property. (example: a deed from a person the court has already deemed incompetant in unenforcable, and the conveyance must be handled otherwise, by the legal guardian of the estate. Same with a POA AFTER death, etc.)

[tranquility]

Even more than Nextwife's summary, has anyone actually gone down to a recorder's office and done it? My goodness, I'm sure the filing system makes sense to those who do it day in and day out but I'm here to tell you it is not easy. I'm a person who many will agree is of at least average intelligence and I had a year long class on property issues and spent two class hours and about 6-8 hours out-of-class going over the different ways of tracing property in registries. Then, because I was a grade weasal, I wanted some extra credit and went to trace a property at the registry. It took all day and I became more and more confused and less and less sure of the results as the day went on. I'm sure I would have understood at some point, but it was a skill I decided I didn't need at that stage of schooling.

Hire the title company. Best money you'll ever pay.

[HomeGuru]

Yes, I agree. Hire professionals.