Title Fundamentals,
what a search can and cannot do
The ideas under every search: how a title search differs from title insurance, how estates pass title through probate, and what an automated search can miss. Start here if you are deciding what kind of search you need.
Estate and Probate Transfers in the Chain of Title
When an owner dies, title passes by will or by intestacy, and the record shows it through an executor’s or administrator’s deed, letters testamentary or letters of administration, an affidavit of death, or a survivorship deed. Nominal consideration of $1 or $10 is normal on these transfers and is not a sale price.
Read the guide · 13 min readTitle Search vs Title Insurance: What Each Actually Covers
A title search examines the public record (deeds, mortgages, liens, judgments, lis pendens) and reports what is recorded against a property as of a stated date. Title insurance is a contract from a licensed underwriter that pays if that conclusion is wrong. A search finds problems; a policy pays for them. Lenders require the policy, not the search alone.
Read the guide · 14 min readWhat an Automated Title Search Misses
An automated title search retrieves and matches what is recorded, indexed, and machine-readable. It misses unrecorded interests such as possession rights, short leases, and pre-filing mechanic’s lien windows; records held only on paper or microfilm; and anything hidden by name ambiguity. No matching threshold removes both false positives and false negatives at once.
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