Insight From Guest Valerie Starks on Property Title

For today’s topic, we’ll discuss property title, and who better to discuss this than someone from a title company? That’s why Valerie Starks from Continental Title joined me today to chat about the nuts and bolts of this important topic.

The title company acts as the third party in a real estate transaction and the middleman between your agent and lender. Title companies are responsible for research into the property—they check to see if there are any liens, unpaid taxes, or an unpaid deed of trust. 

Your title company also plays a pivotal role at closing. They’ll go over all pertinent paperwork with you and make sure that there’s no ambiguity about what you’re getting into.

While hiccups in the process do sometimes occur, Valerie and Continental Title are very punctual when it comes to closing dates.  The title company will also process the owner policy. How it works in Kansas City is the seller will pay for the owner’s policy, which, in essence, is insurance that guarantees that their title is free and clear of liens, defects, and other things of that nature. It’s the title company’s job to process the file and pay off any outstanding taxes or liens on the property so that, in the event you’d like to sell the home down the road, it won’t be sullied by a lien or defect.  

The title company acts as the third party in a real estate transaction and the middleman between your agent and lender. 

For your part as the buyer, your lender will require you to purchase a loan policy. The reason behind this is that the lender wants to be sure that they’re in “first lien position”—the highest priority if there were ever to be liquidation of the property.

If any work has been done on the property, making sure all the contractors have been paid so as to prevent any mechanic liens being placed on your property is also important. Your title company will be your safety net in this way as well.  

Investors and builders partnered with Continental will file what’s known as a “Notice of Intended Sale,” which must be filed and recorded with the county the property is in. This notice alerts any contractors who did work on the property that they have 45 days to file a lien on it.

Due to the growing threat of wire fraud, Continental Title has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on security so both buyers and sellers will be safe in the knowledge that no fraudulent activity will occur in their transaction.

I thank Valerie for taking the time to shed light on the title company’s role in a real estate transaction.

If you have further questions for Valerie, you can contact her at 816-468-6122, or feel free to reach out to me by phone at 816-651-5190 or email at Jason@KCHeartlandHomes.com. I look forward to hearing from you.