Life in general, along with real estate title and contracts, don’t always go as we planned. Sometimes there are real estate title issues that might rise if one is not careful enough, or the other party is just being dishonest or fraudulent. This emancipates the issues related to the contracts of sale, indemnity or property tittles. To avoid these kind of circumstances, there are laws which let us avoid these issues. If tangled in any of problems, law will be the savior.
Real estate—property embodying building or home assets—is, ordinarily, a big investment. So new real estate owner tries their best to have the property which is free from all kind of possible problems, to ensure that they invested in something safe. Property title is the first thing they want to protect to ensure they have the ownership. Thus its necessary to go for title search to avoid this kind of situation.
In May, real estate research team at Trulia investigated and reported that housing markets have had the most of the inventory sales. Apart from other states of USA, in Utah housing market is one of top-ten states, as per the report se, has not yet experienced the cooling effect. Increasing population has led to purchases of many houses and rental houses. As a result, home prices in whole Utah state has been skyrocketing since then. And these prices are going deeper in the sky as we approach to the summer of 2019. House Prices augmented by 20%, 11.5%, and 20% in Ogden, Salt Lake city, and Provo respectively. This increment has also led to bigger inventories than ever before. You might think that this will be easy for the buyers that they now have more options to beheld. And that’s normally positive. But at the same time this pretty much challenging for the real estate markets to provide them their desired home or starter home at affordable prices. “Despite gains in these less-expensive tiers, affordability concerns will persist this spring as starter and trade-up home prices continue to march upward,” the Trulia report stated. These rising prices or real estate values may depict the economy is getting better but at the same time it may become unaffordable by many citizen. The demand will decline and supply is already in surplus as home inventory has already kept growing. So to counter these high prices, buyers have to compromise over the other expenses, that is buying inferior products for their consumption (Food, clothes, and other routine products for body and house). With this unprecedented demand-supply of real estates, there might be uprising of real estate title problems and deed frauds. Title here represents all the rights related to the ownership of property whilst deed is the document that transfers the ownership from one party to another. The buyer tries its best to avoid these kind of situations. Real estate title problems are more common these days. Since the law is forged to counter situations like these, people need to know how to tackle these kind of situations immediately without wasting anytime and shedding their worrisome tears and words over these encumbrances.
So how does anyone save his/her head from these kind situations or of his/her endearments? Following are some methods that are highly likely to save the buyers from this encumbrance. Most of all, what one need here is his/her firm determination and struggles in case of u are challenging title case issue. But there are methods which will let you avoid the probable future uprising of this issue; real estate tittle problem.
Title Research
As we know the title is the package of all the rights of ownership, title research here helps us to know about these rights or who is the owner of these rights in simpler words. This process ensures the buyer if the title is good or not based on the collected information of previous records related to title and the owner. Addendum to that this process whether the seller has right to sell the property that you are aiming to buy. Title records are usually the public records stored by the cleric of respected city, or country, or sometimes court. These records are about the chain of the title (all past owners), liabilities, lien, and factors related to them. These records enlist the documents of marriage, tax, probate records, deeds, and mortgages. These offices are open to all, anyone can just come in and verify the properties that they are going to buy. But some people also go for title research firms or any attorney of their choice providing them everything regarding to that they want sans doing anything. But even in-house person can do it too if he has the know-how ‘bout these factors. If they are any issues with title, it can be solved before signing the contract of the sale. This approach is quite helpful taking out flaws before the sale of refinancing the interested property.
Title research consists of five steps. At first, chain of titles are focused, where all the historical data of the property may be beheld backing up to 70-100 years reaching towards the original owner. This information is ordinarily available at cleric’s office, but this can also be received by the title-plants that are maintained by title firms. This kind of research takes lots of time that even a person might have to re-visit office again and again. Secondly, title research get onto the tax research. This approach tries to find if there are any tax accruals yet to be paid to the government. If there are, government may try to sell the property as payment of those taxes. Thirdly, then there is inspection of the respected property’s site. Inspector here inspects all the stipulations whether there is any encroachment or if there is anything being missed or not mentioned here. Addendum to that inspector also ensures if there is other person dwelling in the respected site. This step helps in completeness of the information of the respected property to be sold or refinanced. In the fourth step, title research searches for “Name and Judgement”. There might be any unpaid judgement that might property hold by any previous owners. Judgements are the simply liens or the security of money against the property. If there are any judgements, seller must remove all before transfer of the title to the respected buyer. Finally, title research sums up with the closing, where any kind of hindrance or flaw is found. It is immediately resolved to for further actions.
Title Insurance
Title research is not 100% reliable approach for finding the flaws or protecting real estate title, there might be the chances of missing something even though the title research has been done with excellent expertise or by professionals. If this happens, it will cause future problems for the buyers. This needs further protection. That’s why there is this “title insurance” which protects the investment of the people that are willing to invest in real estate. This secures all the financial losses that might occur due to faulty title of the respected real estate property. Most common example of title insurance is the acquiring of mortgages by the banks for paying loans. In case if loan is not paid in due time and even after warnings. Property kept as the mortgage is sold by the bank so that she can pay its own loan. This is one-time investment, and security is applicable as long as the owner has the rights of the respected real estate property. But when owner sells the property, ownership is transferred but his insurance does not. So the next owner has to pay for his title insurance.
In 2013, Utah issued the new Asset Protection trust law (Utah Domestic Asset Protection Trust, UDAPT)—which provided the greater degree of protection of the title. The trust comes up with following stipulations:
• Trustee Stipulations: At least one of the trustees must be dweller of Utah state. It is not necessary for trustee to be a bank or a company. Addendum to that grantor can be co surety albeit he or she will not rivet powers of making discretionary decision making by himself or herself.
• Trust Stipulations: Trust should be of the irrevocable nature and must be under the jurisdictions of Utah government. Notwithstanding Grantor—being the beneficiary of the trust—will exercise limited power. Addition to that there must part of real estate that must be inside the premises of Utah state. As Utah State will not be at its best exercising its full power where another state’s law is involved too.
• Seasoning: On the lighter note, grantor must have the possession of the assets for the two years before any legal action against him or her. Note that there are variegation to this provision and so it will be more better to consult to your respected attorney to avoid or at least have knowledge of potential action that can filed against you.
• Exclusions: Albeit Utah has removed its onerous exclusions from UDAPT protection, note that Utah does emphasize on requiring certain non-lenient formalities be followed when assets are negotiated and then transferred to the trust and that there not be certain requirement in during the very time the assets are transferred to the trust.
• Limitations: UDAPTs are state based structure. That means that they are especially primarily designed and limited in state law situations. UDAPT laws do not supersede federal bankruptcy laws or certain other federal laws. A UDAPT is not the bona fide structure for “cloaking” assets from present creditors or from the bankruptcy court.
Addendum to that, there is another properly drafted “Spendthrift Trust” can preserve real estate assets of minors or those who are seriously disqualified from Government Health and care program for the disability. They can take advantage of this structure.
Following are the benefits of title insurances:
• It is under the shadow of fulfillment of statutory compliance as per Real Estate Assets Regulation (RERA). This ensures the business of real estate remains uniform and encumbrance free. Its like additional unit for the security of your respected real estate property. Addition to that this also entails the financial crediting services that one can rivet easily with the help of title insurance. It is a safe pathway.
• As per aforesaid mentioned fact, title insurance is one-time investment. This proves to be better defense tactic rather than indulging oneself over numerous litigation costs—which are likely to become burden of shoulder as the time passes and nothing comes out of the case. There are possibilities that one might be offered out-the-litigation settlement, or getting hefty amount of the cost, or uncleared taxes, unpaid lands. Here title insurance is immunity of all these kind of issues once they rise at your table.
• It handles the quarrels whenever there is ownership disputes amongst the parties. Title Insurance steps in as the problem solver in this scenario. This may regarding to historical titles disputes, or frauds, or unclear land titles. These situations are very well handled by the title insurance policies to ensure the security owner of the real estate asset. Thus this insurance provides security as a shield from upcoming claims from previous owners.
• This, title insurance, not only treat itself as financial umbrella but it also saves the home owners lots of time that he or she might have wasted or invested in litigation process, attending the different attorneys or court proceedings and so on so forth. Since these real estate asset claims sucks out the hefty amounts of money to prove that the real estate assets is ours only. As it is one time investment, this is pretty much cost efficient approach.
• Title Insurance also acts as safety umbrella for the residential projects, since this structure helps to protect the real estate assets from historical event related frauds, if they are faced during the time of construction of the very residential project. Thus it only safeguards from situation like these but also entails our trust in real estate business. Addendum to that, this also provides the value addition of property.
Real Estate issues can be very problematic, depressing, but they are not impossible to solve if proper guidance is provided.
Ultimately, sometimes you have to file a lawsuit or a “quiet title action” in order to fix title problems in Utah. When you need legal help with fixing a title issue to real estate in Utah, please give us a call. We want to help you.
Quiet Title Action Lawyer Free Consultation
If you need a quiet title action to resolve title issues in Utah, please call Ascent Law for your free consultation (801) 676-5506. We want to help you.
8833 S. Redwood Road, Suite C
West Jordan, Utah
84088 United States
Telephone: (801) 676-5506
