Is a quiet title action necessary before you buy your dream home?

If you have finally found the home you wish to purchase, the title company will require a clear title before they can issue an insurance policy to you.

In order to clear up any doubt regarding legal ownership, a quiet title action may be in order.

Understanding a quiet title action

A quiet title action is a legal proceeding with the goal of determining the rightful owner of a particular property. It is sometimes considered a friendly lawsuit to resolve an ambiguity or to ensure that there are no conflicting claims to the property.

Clearing up issues

There are various scenarios that might require a quiet title action:

– Before a property can change hands, the owner dies, leaving the property to relatives. A quiet title action would serve to avoid future family challenges to the buyer of the property.

– A quiet title action can resolve questions about unknown heirs, lessees or lien holders if the house a buyer wants is unoccupied.

– Survey inaccuracies or boundary disputes may require a quiet title action.

– Recording errors on documents involving loans or liens may require a quiet title action.

Keep in mind that while this kind of court action is normally effective in settling a property issue, it may not be sufficient to clear the title of multiple clouds.

Gaining ownership

If you are about to purchase your dream home, you want to know that there is no cloud on the title, no questions about claims, no forgeries or fraudulent deeds in the history of the property and that you will become the rightful owner. A quiet title action may provide the answers you seek.