A title search in real estate is an examination of public records that traces who has owned a property and flags anything recorded against it that could block a clean sale. An examiner typically reviews 30 to 50 years of deeds, mortgages, liens, tax records, court filings, probate records, and plat maps, then compiles the findings into a document called a title commitment (sometimes called a preliminary title report). That commitment is what you, your lender, and the seller rely on to confirm the property can actually change hands. For a standard residential purchase, the whole process runs anywhere from a few days to two weeks.
What Records Get Examined
Most of the work happens at the county recorder’s or clerk’s office where the property sits. The examiner is building two things at once: an unbroken chain of ownership, and a list of every obligation still attached to the land.
- Deeds, to trace who sold the property to whom going back decades. Gaps or irregularities in this chain are red flags.
- Mortgage and lien records, to see whether any lender currently holds a security interest, or whether an older lender’s lien was never formally released after payoff.
- Tax records, to confirm property taxes are current. Unpaid taxes create a lien that takes priority over nearly every other claim.
- Court records, because judgments against the owner, divorce decrees dividing marital assets, and pending lawsuits can all create claims against the property.
- Probate records, to verify that any deceased prior owner’s estate was properly settled and that heirs with a potential claim either received their share or released their interest.
- Plat maps and surveys, to confirm legal boundaries and reveal recorded easements, such as a utility company’s right to run power lines across part of the lot.
A 30-year lookback is common for newer homes or recently subdivided land. A deeper 40- to 50-year search is preferred in areas with older properties or where state marketable-title laws require a longer window. In rare cases involving a broken chain, the examiner may trace records all the way back to the original government land grant.
What the Search Reveals
The chain of title is the backbone of the search: the chronological sequence of every recorded owner from the earliest record examined to the present. A clean chain connects logically at every transfer. A broken chain is a problem that needs resolving before closing.
Beyond ownership, the search surfaces financial obligations tied to the property. Existing mortgages and home equity lines of credit show up. So do tax liens for unpaid property or income taxes, mechanic’s liens filed by contractors who weren’t paid, and judgment liens from lawsuits the owner lost.
Easements also appear. An easement is a legal right allowing someone else to use part of your property for a specific purpose, such as a shared driveway or an underground sewer line. These don’t prevent you from buying, but they do limit what you can build or do on the affected portion. Covenants, conditions, and restrictions, usually called CC&Rs, show up too, particularly in subdivisions and planned communities. CC&Rs can dictate fence height, exterior paint colors, or whether you can park a boat in your driveway.
Reading the Title Commitment
The findings land in a title commitment organized into two main parts. This is the document you’ll actually see, and knowing the structure keeps you from glossing over the parts that matter.
Schedule A
Schedule A covers the basics: the legal description of the property, the name of the current owner of record, the proposed buyer, the purchase price, and the loan amount. If anything here is wrong, like a misspelled name or incorrect legal description, it needs to be corrected before closing.
Schedule B
Schedule B is where the substance lives. It’s usually split into two sections. The first lists requirements, meaning conditions that must be satisfied before the title company will issue a policy. Paying off an existing mortgage, clearing a tax lien, or obtaining a signed release from a prior owner are common requirements. The second lists exceptions, meaning matters the title insurance policy will not cover. Recorded easements, CC&Rs, and mineral rights reservations typically appear here. Some exceptions are standard boilerplate; others are property-specific and worth reading carefully. If an exception concerns you, ask the title company whether it can be removed through an endorsement or additional documentation.
Common Title Defects
Roughly one in three residential transactions turns up some kind of title issue that needs to be resolved before closing. Most are minor and fixable. A few can derail a deal.
- Unreleased mortgages. The most common defect. A homeowner pays off a loan, but the lender never files the paperwork to release its lien from public records. The debt is gone; the lien lingers. Tracking down the original lender, especially after mergers or acquisitions, can take two to six weeks.
- Outstanding liens. Unpaid property taxes, unpaid child or spousal support, mechanic’s liens from contractors, and court judgments can all attach to the property. These must be paid off or negotiated away before closing.
- Recording errors. Misspelled names, transposed digits in a legal description, or documents filed in the wrong county create defects even when the underlying transaction was perfectly valid.
- Forged or invalid documents. A forged deed or a deed signed by someone without legal authority to sell is a serious defect, and often requires court intervention.
- Undisclosed heirs. If a previous owner died and the estate wasn’t properly settled, heirs who were left out may have a legal claim.
- Boundary disputes. When a survey reveals that a fence, driveway, or structure encroaches onto a neighboring parcel, it creates a cloud on the title.
How Defects Get Resolved
How a defect gets cleared depends on what caused it. Some fixes take a phone call. Others take a lawsuit.
Recording errors and unreleased mortgages are usually the easiest. The title company contacts the lender or appropriate party, obtains a corrective document (a lien release, a correction deed, or a re-recorded instrument with the right information), and files it with the county. An affidavit from a knowledgeable party can also clear up minor discrepancies, like a name change due to marriage that was never reflected in the records.
When a defect involves an ownership claim and no money needs to change hands, a quitclaim deed often does the trick. If a divorced spouse never signed away their interest in the property and is willing to do so now, they sign a quitclaim deed releasing whatever claim they might have, and the cloud lifts. The key word is willing. It only works when the other party cooperates.
When cooperation isn’t forthcoming, the last resort is a quiet title action. This is a lawsuit asking a judge to declare who actually owns the property and to extinguish all competing claims. It’s used for adverse possession disputes, missing heirs, forged documents, and title gaps that can’t be resolved any other way. Simple, uncontested cases can wrap in a few months. Contested ones with multiple claimants can stretch over a year and cost several thousand dollars in legal fees.
Who Performs the Search and What It Costs
Title searches are performed by title companies, title abstractors, or real estate attorneys, depending on local practice. In many areas, the title company handling the closing also conducts the search in-house. In others, particularly states where attorneys oversee closings, a lawyer or independent abstractor does the work.
The title search fee is typically modest, often $75 to $200 for a standard residential property. That fee covers only the search and examination of records. It’s separate from the title insurance premium, which is a larger closing cost. Both charges appear on your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure under the title services section.1Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. What Are Title Service Fees? If the title search fee falls under “Services You Can Shop For,” you can compare prices between providers before committing.
Who pays depends on local custom and what the buyer and seller negotiate. In some markets, the seller traditionally covers the owner’s title insurance policy while the buyer pays for the lender’s policy and the search fee. In others, the buyer absorbs all title-related costs. The purchase agreement should spell out exactly who pays for what.
When the Search Happens
The title search is one of the first things that kicks off after a purchase agreement is signed. It typically runs in parallel with the home inspection and appraisal, during the due-diligence or contingency period. For a straightforward residential property with a clean history, expect results within a few days to two weeks. Properties with complex histories, multiple past owners, or older records that haven’t been digitized can take longer.
Timing matters because title defects discovered late can delay closing. If an unreleased mortgage surfaces a week before closing and the original lender has been absorbed by three successive banks, tracking down the right department to issue a release isn’t happening overnight. This is why experienced agents push to get the title search ordered immediately after the contract is executed.
What the Search Doesn’t Cover
A title search finds problems that show up in the public record. It doesn’t protect you against problems that don’t, such as a forged deed buried in the chain of ownership, an heir nobody knew about, or a recording error that even a thorough examiner missed. That’s what title insurance is for. A lender’s policy, usually required to get a mortgage, protects the lender only.2Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. What Is Lender’s Title Insurance? An owner’s policy, which is optional, protects your equity in the home and requires the title insurer to defend your ownership in court if someone challenges it.3Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. TRID Title Insurance Disclosures Factsheet Title insurance is a one-time premium paid at closing, and an owner’s policy lasts as long as you own the property.