What a Title Search Actually Finds

A title search traces ownership of a property back through the public record and pulls every document recorded against it. People imagine it as a formality. It is not — it is the stage that decides whether your closing date survives.

What is almost always there

• The existing mortgage, which pays off at closing
• Utility easements — the gas company's right to reach its line
• Restrictive covenants from the original subdivision
• Property taxes not yet due

None of these stop a closing. They are noted, and most appear as exceptions on Schedule B of your commitment.

What causes real work

• A mortgage that was paid but never released. Extremely common. The loan was satisfied years ago and nobody recorded the satisfaction, so the lien is still legally attached.
• Judgments against a former owner that attached while they held title
• Contractor liens from work nobody told the current owner about
• An estate that was never settled — a deceased owner still on title
• A break in the chain, where a deed was never recorded or was recorded incorrectly

What a search cannot find

This is the part worth understanding, because it is exactly what title insurance covers. A search reads the record. It cannot detect a forged signature that looks genuine, an heir nobody disclosed, a recording clerk's error, or a deed signed by someone lacking capacity. Those defects exist regardless of how carefully the record was searched.

Why we start it immediately

Clearing a lien takes as long as it takes the lienholder to respond. Settling an estate takes as long as probate takes. Starting on day one leaves room; starting two weeks out does not. Nearly every delayed closing we see traces back to a search that began late.

Note: general information for Pennsylvania and Alabama property owners, not legal or tax advice. Rates, taxes, eligibility and deadlines are set by statute and by each state’s filed rate schedules and can change. Confirm the specifics with us and with a qualified professional before relying on them for a transaction.