Title Insurance - What is it?

Title insurance is a unique form of insurance. It protects your ownership or title against losses incurred as a result of undetected or unknown title defects, for as long as you own your home. Even if you are the rightful owner of a home, there are instances such as real estate fraud, when your title can come into question. Title insurance continues to protect your ownership from the day of closing to the day you sell your home. Coverage is also extended to heirs who receive your home in the event of your death.

For a one-time fee, some of the covered title risks for residential properties include:

• someone else owns an interest in your title
• existing liens against the title
• violations of municipal zoning by-laws
• encroachments onto an adjoining property (other than fences and boundary walls)
• setback violations
• realty tax arrears
• outstanding municipal utility charges, provided such charges form a lien on title
• existing work orders
• lack of legal access to the property
• unmarketability of the land due to adverse matters that would have been revealed by an up-to-date survey / RPR/ Building Location Certificate
• fraud, forgery and false impersonation to the extent they affect the validity of title

Title insurance premiums
Title insurance is available for a low premium that is paid only once at the time of closing, and coverage is valid for the entire time you own your home. Your lawyer/ notary and his or her staff would be pleased to go over the premiums with you.
The cost of the premium is often offset by the savings from the reduction in the number of searches your lawyer/ notary might have to complete. Additionally, a title insurance policy can be obtained to satisfy lender survey / RPR/ Building Location Certificate requirements, thereby saving you the cost of up-to-date property survey / RPR/ Building Location Certificate. Average survey / RPR/ Building Location Certificate costs can be upwards to $1,200.

You can get more information on title insurance from either of these providers:
Stewart Title Guaranty Company
First Canadian Title