Title Insurance & ...

In our June 10th posting we talked about two types of Title Insurance .
Today we discuss what you need to do for your Title Insurance if you are
refinancing your mortgage.

A new owner's title policy is not needed when the owner refinances a
mortgage. If you refinance your mortgage, the lender will require a new
lender's title policy even if you bought your house or condo or refinanced
your mortgage within the last few years. The reason is intervening liens
might have occurred, which will create a title risk for the lender when you
refinance. For example, maybe you forgot to pay the plumber who fixed
the pipes and he recorded a mechanics' lien against your title. Or perhaps
a creditor obtained a judgement against you, which was recorded as a lien
affecting your home.

If you got into a tax dispute with the IRS, there might be a recorded
federal income tax lien, which affects your home's title. If your home was
purchased or refinanced within the last few years, in most states when
you refinance your mortgage, you can obtain a substantial lender's title
insurance discount. But many title insurers "forget" to offer this discount
unless you remember to ask for it. If you purchased or refinanced your
home many years ago, you might not be entitled to a lender's title policy
discount. Yet it is better to ask.