To get a property title search, you can hire a title company or a real estate attorney, or you can pull the records yourself at the county recorder’s office. A professional search generally runs $75 to $200 for a standard residential property, takes about two weeks, and produces a written summary of who owns the property and what liens, easements, or other claims are recorded against it. Most buyers hire it out because title professionals know which offices to check and how to recognize problems that could sink a closing.
What to Gather Before You Start
Every search begins with enough information to identify the right parcel. At a minimum you need the full street address. The current owner’s name helps when several properties share similar addresses. Better still is the legal description, which uses lot and block numbers or boundary measurements to define the property precisely and removes any ambiguity a street address might leave.
The legal description appears on the most recent deed recorded with the county. Many counties also publish it in the online tax assessor database, where a search by address or owner name returns the parcel number and legal description. Having these details in hand saves time whether you hire someone or do the work yourself.
Hiring a Title Company or Real Estate Attorney
For most transactions, buyers use a title company or real estate attorney. These professionals pull records from the county recorder, tax assessor, and courts, and they compile the findings into an abstract of title: a chronological summary of every recorded transaction, lien, and claim that has touched the property.
A standard residential search takes about two weeks. Costs generally fall between $75 and $200, though complicated ownership histories can push a search past $300. Many title companies bundle the search fee with the title insurance premium and closing services, so the search may not appear as a separate line item on your closing disclosure.
Local experience matters more than brand name. A company that regularly handles closings in your county will know where local records live and where recording quirks tend to create problems. Ask your agent or attorney for referrals and get quotes from more than one provider. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has found that borrowers who shop around for closing services can save as much as $500 on title-related costs alone.1Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Shop for Title Insurance and Other Closing Services
Doing a Title Search Yourself
Property records are public. The office that keeps them varies: in some places it’s the county recorder, in others the clerk of courts, the register of deeds, or a local land registry. Many jurisdictions now offer free online access to recorded documents. Others require an in-person visit and use of a public terminal. A few states maintain statewide databases, but most keep records at the county level.
Start by searching the current owner’s name or the property address in the county’s online records system. You are building what’s called the chain of title: the unbroken sequence of ownership transfers going back as far as records allow. Each deed should show who transferred the property, who received it, and when. A gap or inconsistency in that chain is a red flag that needs investigation before closing.
Beyond deeds, search for recorded liens and encumbrances:
- Mortgages and deeds of trust. Confirm that older mortgages were formally released when paid off.
- Tax liens for unpaid property taxes, which take priority over most other claims.
- Judgment liens, which are court-ordered debts attached to the owner’s real estate.
- Federal tax liens. The IRS files a Notice of Federal Tax Lien that attaches to all of a taxpayer’s property, including real estate, and can survive even bankruptcy.2Internal Revenue Service. Understanding a Federal Tax Lien
A self-search can work for someone with patience and attention to detail, but it carries real risk. Professional searchers recognize a missing mortgage release or a misspelled grantor name in context. If you miss something, you have no title company’s liability standing behind you. For transactions involving significant money, the professional fee is almost always worth paying.
What the Search Will Show
A thorough search produces a picture of everything recorded against the property. The chain of title confirms whether ownership transferred legally at each step and whether the current seller has the right to convey the property. Any break raises questions about the seller’s claim.
The search also surfaces recorded liens. A mortgage from a previous owner that was never formally discharged still shows up as a claim. Tax liens and judgment liens create similar problems. Each typically needs to be paid off or released before the property can transfer with clear title.
Easements are another common finding. They grant someone else a limited right to use part of the property. Utility companies often hold easements for power lines or water pipes. A neighbor may have an access easement across your land. Easements usually transfer with the property, so you would be stuck with them.
The search also reveals covenants, conditions, and restrictions that limit how the property can be used. These are especially common in planned communities and subdivisions, where a homeowners’ association may dictate everything from fence heights to exterior paint colors. If you plan to add a structure or run a business from the property, those restrictions matter.
What a Standard Search Can Miss
A title search only covers what has been recorded in county land records. Plenty of claims never make it into those records, and finding them after closing can be expensive.
A separate municipal lien search checks for debts owed to the local government that county records do not capture. These commonly include unpaid water, sewer, or electric charges that can become liens; fines for building code or zoning violations that may have been accruing daily; construction permits that were opened and never closed out; and special assessments for sewer connections or sidewalk repairs that some jurisdictions do not record publicly. No single database captures all of these, which is why experienced buyers or their attorneys order a municipal lien search alongside the standard title search.
A physical survey covers the other blind spot. Encroachments, boundary disputes, and discrepancies in lot size will not appear in recorded documents. A surveyor measures the actual boundaries on the ground and compares them to the legal description, catching problems that paperwork alone cannot reveal.
Reading Your Results
The document you receive after a search can take different forms. A title report simply summarizes findings: who owns the property, what liens and encumbrances exist, and whether there are any apparent problems. It is informational and promises nothing beyond the search itself.
A title commitment goes further. It is a promise from a title insurance company to issue a policy once certain conditions are met. Schedule A lists the proposed terms, including the property description, the parties to be insured, and the insurance amount. Schedule B lists both the requirements you must satisfy before closing, such as paying off an existing lien, and the exceptions the policy will not cover, such as existing easements. Reviewing Schedule B carefully is where the real work happens, because those exceptions define what the insurance will and will not protect you against.
A “cloud on title” is any unresolved claim or irregularity that throws ownership into question.3Legal Information Institute. Cloud on Title Some clouds are minor, like a misspelled name on a deed or a missing notary acknowledgment. Others are serious: a mortgage that was paid off but never released, an unknown heir with a potential claim, or a fraudulent deed somewhere in the chain. Even a minor cloud can delay or block a sale, because most title companies will not insure over unresolved defects. If your report reveals clouds, get a real estate attorney involved before closing.
Clearing Defects the Search Turns Up
The fix depends on the defect. A corrective deed handles clerical errors like a misspelled name, wrong address, or incorrect legal description. It restates the original deed with the error fixed, references the original by recording number and date, is signed by all original parties, and is notarized and recorded with the county.
A lien release handles a mortgage or other lien that was paid off but never formally discharged. The creditor files a release or satisfaction with the recorder. When the original lender no longer exists, tracking down the successor can be tedious but is usually straightforward with help from a title company.
A quiet title action handles the serious disputes: competing ownership claims, breaks in the chain of title, forged deeds, or claims from unknown heirs. It asks a court to determine who actually owns the property. The court notifies anyone who might have a claim, gives them a chance to respond, and issues a judgment that gets recorded. This can resolve everything from boundary disputes to leftover claims after a tax sale, but it requires filing a lawsuit and may take several months if the claim is contested.
The seller is usually responsible for clearing title defects before closing. Your leverage is strongest before you have signed the purchase contract. Once the contract is in place, the title commitment’s Schedule B requirements will spell out exactly what must be resolved for the title company to issue insurance.
Why Title Insurance Still Matters
Even a thorough search cannot catch everything. Forged signatures, undisclosed heirs, recording errors in other counties, and fraud that left no paper trail can all surface after closing. Title insurance covers those risks.
An owner’s policy protects your equity. If someone shows up after closing with a valid claim, the policy covers your legal defense costs and any resulting loss up to the policy amount. Owner’s title insurance stays in effect as long as you or your heirs have an interest in the property.4Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. What Is Owner’s Title Insurance It is optional for the buyer, but skipping it means absorbing the full risk of any hidden defect yourself.
A lender’s policy protects the mortgage lender’s interest and is typically required to get a mortgage loan.5Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. What Is Lender’s Title Insurance It only covers the outstanding loan balance, which decreases as you pay down the mortgage and eventually expires when the loan is paid off.6National Association of Insurance Commissioners. The Vitals on Title Insurance: What You Need to Know It does nothing for your personal equity. If you only have lender’s coverage and a title claim wipes out your ownership, the bank gets made whole and you do not.
Both policies are paid as a one-time premium at closing. The total typically runs between 0.5% and 1% of the purchase price. On a $300,000 home, that is roughly $1,500 to $3,000 for the owner’s policy. The lender’s premium is calculated on the loan amount and is usually cheaper when purchased at the same time as the owner’s policy. Who pays for which varies by local custom and is often negotiable. Owner’s title insurance must be labeled “(optional)” on your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure, making it easier to identify and compare.7Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. TILA-RESPA Title Insurance Disclosures Factsheet You can shop for your own title insurance provider separately from your mortgage, and doing so can meaningfully reduce closing costs.1Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Shop for Title Insurance and Other Closing Services