Refinancing - Shopping for Title Insurance

Why are you paying again for title insurance? I haven't had to do this in the 2x I've refinanced.

My understanding is that it is standard with all refis. Lenders fear that you could have sold an interest to someone else or could have taken out a second mortgage, etc. I've never heard of anyone being able to refinance without title insurance. (It can be cheaper if you last refinanced within the past five years - but it'll still cost you.) All lenders with whom I've spoken have required it.

Isn't the cost of title insurance set by NY state law and thus it will cost you the same whoever you go with?

you mean a lien search ?

Entitle Direct is a disc out title insurance company

Last month I refinanced two properties. A country house and a city apartment. In the case of the country house, since it had a HELOC against it, the title insurance rate which was set by the state was reduced. In the city, there was only a transfer of the title insurance at a set amount reduced fee. Although I also thought that shopping around and not using the bank 's title broker was needed, I learned that all the rates were the same and in the case of the coop they were insignificant and in the case of the country, they were dictated by government (That is the law in NY). No advantage of switching the bank vendors from my experience.

as stated above, Entitle will be cheaper.
I have used them twice now

Real time, what was the fee for the title transfer?

Please note that with a coop, the "mortgage" is a pledge of the owner's shares in the coop corporation in favor of the bank. Thus, while it is possible to get a title policy to insure the bank's lien on the coop shares, such policies are not required by banks. What a bank does require in the case of a coop is a lien search to make sure that the shares have not been pledged to anyone else. This is probably the title expense that people think of when purchasing/financing/refinancing a coop.

A condo or a single family house purchase will require an owner's title policy and financing/refinancing a condo or single family home will require a lender's title policy.

Title insurance rates are set by the state and will be the same to the penny no matter which title company you choose. What does vary, however, are the endorsements and fees the title companies charge which can make a difference of a few hundred dollars on a typical closing. Given that the title insurance is going to be the same rate, I'm not sure its worth a lot of time to shop around to save a few hundred dollars when you are talking (presumably) about a mortgage in the high-six or seven digit range.

Hi Top!

While it's probably technically a violation of RESPA for attorneys and title insurance providers to be too cozy with each other, I cynically bet that it happens.

Since the cost to you is going to be roughly the same, you might ask your atty if he/she has preferred title vendors, and if so, why they're preferred, and how, without breaking the law, you can get the best net terms as a consumer.

ali r.
DG Neary Realty

Royal Abstract Company in Manhattan is very good.

esfunding.instantlender.com

Thanks, all. BTW, this is for a Connecticut condo refi.

I agree with front_porch. Since title insurance rates are roughly the same everywhere, just ask your attorney for advice on this matter, hopefully he would be able to help you come to a decision on which insurance company to approach.

Chris - http://americanvisitorinsurance.com

We used Entitle Direct to purchase our apartment and saved approx $3000 in title costs. Everything went smoothly with the closing. Would definitely use them again.

Good stuff

Concerned, are you seasoning your personality so you can soon become like str33teasier, or are you senile, reflected by your several short useless posts on numerous threads?

Hi Topper,

When applying for a mortgage loan for a refinance you, the applicant, CAN indeed shop for your own title insurance. In general I don't recommend it. Your Lender isn't so "cozy" with the Title Company as you may think (unless your Lender discloses as per Federal Regulations that they have an ownership interst in the Title Company). While it's typical of our cynical times after the BOOM and Meltdown to think the worst of such a relationship, the fact is that most Mortgage Lenders select a Title company based on quality of service and longstanding relationships.

If you introduce a new Title company into the mix---your prerogative to do so---you may inadvertently slow down your loan process for closing. Your new Title company may not respond as promptly or efficiently (with all required searches) as the Title company your Lender usually uses. I've personally experienced this poor behavior many times on purchase transactions when the Buyer's Attorney uses her preferred Title company. I have a similar situation on a refinance transaction right now where my client's previous Title company simply will not respond to phone calls, emails or letters to provide an extremely important document for my client's new Refinance closing.

I hope that helps you better understand the process of selecting the Title company. YES, you can select your own provider for this service, but it is not usually done that way by consumers.

Trevor Curran
NMLS #40140
Mobile: 516-582-9181
Office: 516-829-2900
Fax: 516-829-2944
PowerHouse Solutions, Inc.
185 Great Neck Rd, Suite 240
Great Neck NY 11021
Licensed Mortgage Banker – NYS Dept. of Financial Services
NMLS#3528