Insurance is always good to have when making major decisions in your life. Title Insurance is a policy designed for those who are buying a home.

What is Title Insurance?

Title insurance offers peace of mind and coverage for property ownership risks. This insurance can be used for vacant lots, single houses, townhouses, and apartments. Title insurance helps with expenses that can add up quickly to become quite costly. It is an affordable policy that has a one-time premium that is valid for the entire duration of the homeownership. You can get the policy before or after you buy the property. Premiums for this insurance policy are paid once.

Why Do I Need Title Insurance?

When you purchase a home or some sort of property, you often assume that all inspections will be done and will disclose any issue. There are times, however, that you will discover hidden issues after you have taken over the property’s title. You will want to be covered if you have to pay to fix the issues you discover. Sometimes a property goes through many ownership changes and information gets lost.

If you have Title Insurance, you can make sure nothing is delayed in the closing. If any issue shows up and is covered under the insurance policy, you won’t have to worry about legal fees or expenses defending you. Title insurance will pay if there is a loss.

Both you, the purchaser, and the mortgage lender are covered.

Common Issues

There are a few common issues that will cost you time, money, and energy. They are the reasons there is Title Insurance.

Scammers selling the property to another owner, resulting in fraudulent mortgages taken out for your property, fraud, and identity theft.

Structures that were built on your land without knowledge or consent.

Forced removal of structures.

Renovations done, structures built on property, unregistered or with no approval from the council.

Errors in the calculation of water rates, council rates, strata levies, and land tax.

Zoning laws you didn’t know about that prevent you from living on the property.

Survey errors

Unregistered rights-of-way, no vehicular or pedestrian access to the property.

Set back non-compliance/deficiencies

Native land claims and environmental hazards are not usually included in the Title Insurance Policy.

Should I Get Title Insurance?

If you are in the process of buying a property, or even if you already own a property, Title insurance can be beneficial to you. If you want to be covered for any of those situations mentioned above, get the policy, and have peace of mind, get the insurance.

You will need Title Insurance if you need to get a mortgage. Lenders want the same amount of protection as the loan.

How Long Does It Last?

It will last until you have repaid the loan. The lender, and you, are protected. As long as you, the insured purchaser, has the title to the property, the policy will be in effect. There are some policies that cover you if you received the title in response to the insured person’s passing, or if it was transferred to you.