title business
By Lydia Blair Special Contributor At closing, some items, like real estate taxes, are divided up between the buyers and sellers so that each party pays their share of the expenses. This is called proration. The amount each party pays is based on the number of days in the year (or month) that they own…
By Lydia Blair Special Contributor When you review contracts every day, spotting mistakes can become routine. The number one mistake that most escrow officers see on real estate contracts involves blank spaces. To be clear – contracts should always be filled in completely. There should be nothing left blank. I’m referring to the standard Texas…
By Lydia Blair Special Contributor Remember privacy? It’s what most Americans enjoyed a few decades ago. Today, it’s elusive and rare. It’s simple for any of us to find just about anyone with a few clicks on a keyboard. In an effort to reduce the solicitations for carpet cleaning, bogus tax filing services, mortgage insurance…
By Lydia Blair Special Contributor When you buy a home, don’t you get a guarantee of clear title? Well … no. Isn’t that why you buy a property through a title company and get title insurance? To get clear title? Not exactly. That’s not the phrase we like to use in the title business. Those…
By Lydia Blair Special Contributor In case you’ve been out of touch lately, we’re experiencing a federal government shutdown. The U.S. government doesn’t shut down too often. But when it does, there is a ripple effect. Some areas feel the effects more than others. We shouldn’t feel it too much in the title business unless…
