We have decades of experience. We have advanced technology to increase efficiency and security. And we have everything you need for a smooth settlement.
Your home is most likely your largest asset, so protecting your property rights is vital to safeguarding your future. Title insurance gives you peace of mind, knowing that you are protected against defects in the title for as long as you or your heirs own the property.
What do we mean by “defects in the title”? Each real estate transaction is unique and comes with different sets of issues to be resolved. Even if your property’s title search comes back clear, each transfer of ownership in your chain of title could post a hidden issue, such as forgeries, fraud, tax liens, contractor liens or unknown heirs. Our owner’s policies can protect the homeowner in the event that someone sues and says they have a claim against the home from before you purchased it.
Unlike other types of insurance policies, you only pay a title insurance premium once, at closing. For this one-time premium, Trident Land Transfer) will issue a policy (called a simultaneous issue) that includes an owner’s policy to you and a lender’s policy to your mortgage company.
In addition to homeowner’s title insurance and other products, we offer lender’s title insurance, also called loan policies, to protect lenders against problems with the title. These policies usually are required in order to get a mortgage loan, and they only protect against claims that affect the lender’s loan.
A lender’s policy may also be required when refinancing in order to protect against mechanic’s or tax liens.
The one-time premium at closing includes both an owner’s policy and a lender’s policy.
We also offer lenders an array of tools and resources to help increase efficiency while maintaining quality and security. Our systems are integrated with multiple loan origination systems and third-party networks and portals, and make it easy to obtain loan estimate fee quotes, place orders, submit queries, and get real-time updates.
After the seller has accepted your purchase agreement, Trident’s title professionals will search the public records to identify the title requirements that need to be addressed in order to provide a marketable title to the new homeowner. The search typically involves a review of land records going back many years.
More than one third of all title searches reveal a title problem of some kind that must be corrected before you go to closing. For example, a previous owner may have had construction done on the property but never fully paid the contractor, who subsequently obtains a lien on the home. Or the previous owner may have failed to pay local or state taxes. These also result in liens on the property that must be paid before ownership can be transferred to you.
Based on the information in the original search, we perform other searches as needed in order to give a marketable title to the insured.
A real estate transaction involves a number of documents, from paperwork for the mortgage loan, to the deed of trust, title insurance and other title-related documents, as well as the closing disclosure.
Our team of experienced, dedicated—and very detail-oriented—settlement agents will prepare all the necessary documents and distribute them to appropriate parties to the transaction via Exchange, our secure online platform.
We offer leading-edge technology and tools designed to increase efficiency, accuracy and transparency in the closing process, including Exchange, which makes it possible to review and sign many closing documents in advance.
We hold settlements at any of our Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Fox & Roach, REALTORS® 60+ locations throughout the Tri-State area. We are also able to hold virtual and hybrid closings where allowed.
Through an efficient partnership network, our proven system for digitally recording documents in counties throughout the United States supports faster processing, quicker turnaround times and cost savings.
The IRS allows taxpayers to defer payment of capital gains taxes on the sale of commercial or investment properties if the proceeds are used to purchase a like-kind property. This is called a 1031 Exchange. We work with many companies that provide 1031 exchange services to close the transactions as required by the IRS.
Unimproved land may pass through many hands, so new construction raises special concerns for both lender and owner.
A survey will determine the property boundaries. Our title searchers will look for the most recently filed survey and check for any existing liens against the property being purchased.
Title insurance protects against future liens as well. For example, if the builder hasn’t paid a subcontractor or supplier, that party could place a lien on your property. The policy would cover any legal fees involved in defending a claim against your property. This type of protection is called Mechanics lien coverage. It is not an automatic coverage under a title policy, and a special request may be required.
A lender’s policy assures the lender that the property has clear title and that they are financing the correct property.
From land acquisition through project completion and sale, we can support developers and builders with the necessary expertise for the planning, development and public record process.
Our experienced title search team can help:
We can provide title insurance, which can make construction loan financing more attractive and help you establish ownership rights to show local governments that a project can proceed. We can also work with you to insure title to individual lots in development, so new owner’s policies can be issued promptly to home buyers.
We can help shorten the project completion timeline, with expedited title search services and prompt handling of any title objections. Contact us early in the development process to minimize project delays.
Beyond lender’s and owner’s title insurance policies, ask us about specialized coverage for different parties, including mechanic’s lien protection or coverage regarding surveys or zoning.
