[su2009]

I have an active California law license and have handled numerous cases where a title insurance policy was the only thing that stood between the homeowner and bankruptcy; for an example of one of my cases where title insurance was crucial to my clients (Mrs. & Mrs. Hays) search Google for "Hays vs. Vanek".

If your neighbor claims your house violates the setback law and is 4 inches too close to his or her house, you will need your title insurance company to step in and defend you - and to pay legal bills that could run a hundred thousand dollars or more, not to mention paying the cost of tearing off the roof and the wall of your house to move your wall further in, and to compensate you for your home's lost value, if you lose; remember that the time allowed by law for you to sue the developer over this will likely have expired.

If a utility decides it wants to run an enormous cable under your home, you will need your title insurance company to defend your claim to your property and compensate you for the value of your home if you lose. If Sumter County, Lake County, or Marion County claims it has the right to widen the street behind, next to, or in front of your house and take most of your yard in the process, you will need your title insurance company to defend you and compensate you for your home's lost value if you lose.

'Not to mention that if you decide to refinance your existing mortgage, or take out a new mortgage, or get a reverse mortage, you will be out of luck without title insurance - no lender will touch your home loan application. And when you try to resell your house, intelligent buyers will want a steep discount since a title insurance policy guarantees that you have good title to the home you are selling, and they will have trouble getting a title insurance policy on a house that doesn't currently have one. Most title insurance companies will only issue policies at the time you buy the property - you will find it difficult to impossible to get one later.

Personally, I would never, ever go without title insurance, and I'd advise clients to avoid buying a house where the owner was so reckless or so poorly advised that they went without their own title insurance policy. It's a one-time purchase that could end up keeping you out of poverty some day. - Suuzen Ty Anderson