Title Insurance and Homebuilders - An Unholy Alliance?

RE:Title Insurance and Homebuilders - An Unholy Alliance?

Anonymous — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 11:00:00 GMT

I worked for a title company, and recently severed my position due to their fraud, incompetence, kick-backs, over charging, verbal abuse, and the owner is a down right fool. The owner's mismanagement has cost several customers and business is going down the drain. Hey, it's going down the drain because they are idiots! I am so glad to be out of there! Yes, they do over charge, and will give a discount only if you ask for it! If you don't know you deserve a discount, how do you know to ask?!

RE:Title Insurance and Homebuilders - An Unholy Alliance?

Anonymous — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 11:00:00 GMT

Yes, like it was said: This industry is a joke and a scam! Thank goodness I had the "pleasure" to work at a title company so I know I will not be taken advantage of when I buy my house! How convenient the type of insurance was created by Americans! I am only listed as anonymous because I have a pending lawsuit!

RE:Title Insurance and Homebuilders - An Unholy Alliance?

monica j fox — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 13:00:00 GMT

Can anyone help me with this question> I bought a house, the listing agent ordered the title policy and put an exclusion that included my easement. He knew I was questioning its legality. he put the liber page number and all. Had I known my easement would not be covered, I would not have made the purchase because that was the exact thing I was questioning. I now find out I am landlocked and the title insurance company will not help me.

RE:Title Insurance and Homebuilders - An Unholy Alliance?

Joann — Thu, 02 Mar 2006 13:00:00 GMT

...Continued

RESPA (the federal law) aims at the payers - who wouldn't be paying at all if they had a choice (it's probably really hard for a title agent to resist being squeezed by, say, the homebuilder in the article, though in New York, the net impact on the consumer is zero because of the regulatory picture. Some states do require title agents to be licensed. Unfortunately, most of them seem to require a broad knowledge of other insurance lines in order to obtain a license.

Title insurance is so different from other forms of insurance. It makes little sense to make 70 or 80 percent of the course work and testing deal with issues that are irrelevant - but they do. Even those states with insurance regulation sometimes have regulators who misunderstand title insurance - because they have never specialized in the field and it really is tremendously different from casualty, life, and other lines. Joann -30-

RE:Title Insurance and Homebuilders - An Unholy Alliance?

Joann — Thu, 02 Mar 2006 13:00:00 GMT

I am chief counsel for a title insurance agency in New York. Some states, including New York, New Jersey and Texas, have strong government involvement via their respective state insurance departments, which regulate the charges for title policies, but not necessarily always the costs of affiliated searches.

There was a problem a few years ago with some title agencies (and even underwriters) in New York charging an incorrect rate on refinances - a part of this had to do with the way the rate manual was set up at the time - that has been changed as of this past month. I strongly favor government oversight of the industry - there are too many opportunities out there for unscrupulous operators to fleece a largely unsuspecting public.

Continued ...

RE:Title Insurance and Homebuilders - An Unholy Alliance?

Joann — Thu, 02 Mar 2006 13:00:00 GMT

...Continued

I represented a private client (a friend) on a refi a few years ago, and I had to threaten the owner of a title agency that I would go to his underwriter if he did not give the correct reissue rate. Being in the industry, I knew the proper rate to apply. More lawyers who represent clients in home acquisitions should pay attention to the details of things like title insurance rates and recording charges to insure they are computed and collected properly.

Of course, in those states where lawyers are not a part of the closing process, and the title industry is left largely unregulated, there is a greater opportunity for abuse. In states like New York, where the premiums (if computed correctly) will be the same, anyway, the anti-kickback law aims squarely at the recipients, who will use market pressure to engorge themselves.

Continued ...

RE:Title Insurance and Homebuilders - An Unholy Alliance?

lovegrove — Thu, 05 Jan 2006 13:00:00 GMT

I was ripped off by a title company in Flint, Michigan. They used the realtors builders rate policy and did not disclose this to me. They made an extra $300 and the realtor-builder received a kickback from this scheme. The worst part about this is the realtor could have cared less if he was my neighbor.

RE:Title Insurance and Homebuilders - An Unholy Alliance?

Piermi — Fri, 10 Jun 2005 11:00:00 GMT

Im buying a new house in Michign directly from the builder and I just found that they only pay $25 to buy my Owner insurance while I have to pay the full price to buy the Lenders insurance ($1785) if I use the title company reccomended by the builder (Chicago Title). This would be very different if I bought an old house from a private. The common practice is that the seller pays the full price on the owners insurance and the buyer is given a discounted rate (approx 40%).

RE:Title Insurance and Homebuilders - An Unholy Alliance?

Katie — Tue, 03 May 2005 11:00:00 GMT

This article is very helpful to those who do not understand title insurance and the scandals that are coming into the forefront. Thanks for helping me and probably many others gain an understanding on this situation.

RE:Title Insurance and Homebuilders - An Unholy Alliance?

ScamInMI — Thu, 28 Apr 2005 11:00:00 GMT

Not only the housing industry, but the unholy alliance between the incestuous legal industry cartel and the housing industry cartel, which then extrapolates into the political three ring circus for campaign contributions. You cant believe a word anyone of them says.

RE:Title Insurance and Homebuilders - An Unholy Alliance?

Secret! — Wed, 30 Mar 2005 11:00:00 GMT

This situation is only surprising to the regulators, its been going on for decades. Its about time the playing field gets leveled a bit :-}

RE:Title Insurance and Homebuilders - An Unholy Alliance?

NS — Wed, 30 Mar 2005 11:00:00 GMT

CS hit the nail on the head (no pun intended). Visit the web site www.hadd.com to learn more about this out of control industry.

RE:Title Insurance and Homebuilders - An Unholy Alliance?

CS — Tue, 29 Mar 2005 11:00:00 GMT

The more I read about how the housing related industries operate, the more it looks like organized crime. There is a lot more going on than some title insurance kickbacks. If our government had any spine, or could wean itself from corporate Americas campaign contributions, it would investigate this entire industry and route out the crooks, from the builders and predatory lenders to the bogus warranty companies and code dept bribery, etc.