How to Select a Reputable Title Company

Published by julia | Filed under Buyer / Seller Tips, Listings, Miscellaneous, Real Estate, Shout Outs

Now that you’ve decided on a home to buy and have signed a contract at your real estate agent’s office, you want to select a title company to help with the rest of the process. The title company is there to handle the legal aspects of buying a home, so you can be sure that you’re really the legal owner and have a right to live there. You need to find a good, reputable company to handle this for you, so there will be no problems down the road. Here’s how to select a reputable title company.

Choosing the title company is entirely up to you. It’s actually illegal for a seller to require you to use a particular company. Since the title company is looking out for YOUR interests, that makes sense. So never let a seller tell you that you have to use his or her preferred company. You need to do your due diligence and find the company that you feel comfortable with the most.

One of the best ways to find a good company is to ask your real estate agent or mortgage banker which companies they recommend. These are real estate professionals who have likely been in the business for a while, and you can usually trust their opinions. Most of them have worked with certain title companies over and over, and know without a doubt which ones will look after you the best.

If you still feel the need to do a little research yourself, check around online for reviews of title companies in your area. These reviews are almost always honest reviews from people who have really used a particular company in the past, so you can put a lot of stock in what the people doing the reviewing have to say. Look for a company with a good reputation for exceptional service, accuracy, and organization. Also look for a company with fees that are within your budget, as you’ll likely be paying their fees yourself, or splitting them with the seller.

Finally, once you’ve narrowed down your choices to a few favorite companies, check with the Better Business Bureau to see if there have been any complaints against those companies, and what the nature of those complaints was. If everything looks good in all respects for a particular title company in your area, you may have a winner on your hands. Give them a call and tell them you’re ready to buy a house!