Thursday, January 28, 2016

Title Insurance

Are planning on purchasing a property in Mexico?  If so, it is important to protect yourself in the event of possible legal disputes regarding your property. Conflicts sometimes occur over ownership rights to a as a consequence of many things: fraud, forged documents, lost heirs and the overlaps of property. One of the ways to insure against potential financial loss is to obtain title insurance. 

What is title insurance?
It´s an agreement of indemnity between the purchaser and the insurance company. With  a title insurance policy you will be protected in case there is ever any claim in title.

Why is it important?
It´s the only way that you can get your money in a situation where you stand to lose your property due to a claim in title . In Mexico it´s the only way that you can be protected. It´s a guarantee that can get you your money back if you ending up losing your property due to a claim in title or fraud. Without title insurance you are on your own if there is a claim and would have to fight off any litigation without the help the notary public, the government, or public registry.

What are the legal effects if I do have the title insurance?
Before the property is insured your lawyers have to verify that the property is free and clear of any liens and confirm that the seller is the rightful owner. Through the title research, which verifies that everything is in order, you will get a complete chain of title from beginning to end- even going back until the time of the revolution if necessary! Every single transfer of title or modification of the property is checked to see if it was done appropriately and the underwriting process determines if the property is insurable or not. As a result of the research you may be denied the granting of the insurance policy on a particular property.

Example
Your neighbor has just completed a survey of his land and determined that his property actually overlaps on to yours. In the area of overlap you have a building, so in theory this building is owned by your neighbor because it is on his property. He owns everything that is built over his property. That is a clear claim in title, and if you have title insurance it would be defended in court. If not, you are on your own.

For more information about purchasing property in Mexico subscribe to our blog, or contact usAnd remember, at Top Mexico Real Estate…
we make it happen!