Unfortunately, when people buy and sell homes, problems can arise, one of these being with the title company. For starters, it is not uncommon to see problems with the title, specific to fraud and forgery. In this case, you might find hidden title hazards that remain undetected until after the closing, even when careful precautions have been taken. When you have a good forger, someone determined to work the system in their favor, they can do all kinds of things.
You will find forgers that spend ample time at the local courthouse searching public records to find property that has out of town owners, specifically owners that have been in possession of the property for some time. Then, the forger would forge and record a deed to a fictitious person, assuming the identity of that person prior to listing the property for sale to an innocent buyer. To make the deal even less conspicuous, the forger would handle the contract and answer questions.
Another problem seen with the title has to do with conflicting wills from a deceased former owner. In this case, after a home is purchased, the new owner could find out that a brother or sister of the seller staked a claim on the property as having ownership interest in the house. Sometimes, what happens is the deed is placed away in a drawer without ever being filed at the courthouse officially. Then years later when the owner dies, the deed is discovered and filed. However, after the home is sold, someone such as a potential heir appears, raising problems about having a vested interest in the property.
The same is true about a missing heir. Although this does not happen often, it does happen. In this case, you might purchase a home from a widow and perhaps a son or daughter, believing these to be the only heirs to the late husband who owned the house you just purchased. However, after you bought the house, a few months later some man or woman appeared stating they are the other son or daughter of the late owner. In this situation, you now find yourself in the middle of a big mess over a home you just purchased.
The way you can avoid being in the middle of such situations is to make sure your lender works with a competent closing agent or title agent who will conduct a thorough investigation to the title of the property. That way, any hidden information such as a missing heir or conflicting wills would be uncovered prior to the closing of the house so you are not held up in litigation over a house. Therefore, if you have someone offer to save you money on the title search, we recommend you go with the best, as it could save you tremendous headache later on.