“ What Exactly Do We Do Here ?” by Victoria Jarboe
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IT ’ S ALL IN THE FAMILY
“ What Exactly Do We Do Here ?” by Victoria Jarboe
My grandmother , Theresa “ Marie ” Jarboe , opened Jarboe Title Company in Southern Maryland in 1980 . You might say that title is “ in the family ”. When I graduated from college , I went to work at Jarboe Title , and I am proud to say that I ’ ve been in the business ever since .
Over the years , my friends and clients have asked me “ Just what does a title company do ?” That ’ s a good questions . Based on where you live and the type of property you are selling , Title companies offer various services . OUr customers appreciate that in Maryland , LEgen ’ ds Title we offer SOup to Nuts help for residential property purchases .
Maryland Title Companies do many things . In some States , you have three separate companies to do everything that we do here in Maryland . To sum it up , we are 1 ) A Title Agency 2 ) A Closing Company , and 3 ) An Escrow Company .
TITLE AGENCY Most Title Companies are actually agents of a Title Insurance Company . If you get your car insurance through the “ I Heart Insurance Company ”, that Company is actually an agent for Erie , or Nationwide , or some other very large Insurance Company . Your agent may dictate the terms of the policy , and discuss how much insurance you need , but ultimately your policy will be written on paper displaying one of the Companies just named . My Company is Legends Title Group , but we write insurance for Chicago Title Insurance Company , and Westcor Land Title Insurance Company .
As a Title Insurance Agent , we review 60 year title searches , and determine whether or not a prior issue can be noted . If no issue is documented , we prepare a Title Insurance Commitment , or “ Binder ” for the Lender ( if applicable ), and / or the Purchaser . This Binder shows 1 ) Information about the subject property ( e . g . address , legal description , current owners ) 2 ) Items that will need to be completed before a policy can be issued ( e . g . a seller ’ s loan will have to be paid , taxes will have to be paid , etc .) 3 ) Things that the policy , when issued , will not insure
( e . g . rights of way granted to other parties in the chain of title ). We also prepare title related documents required to effectuate the transfer . Once Closing is conducted , the Title Agency prepares the signed documents for recording with the proper authorities , prepares Final Title Policy once the recorded documents have been received , and obtains documentation from all Banks , and other lien holders of payment in full , to insure that the Title conveyed to the buyer is “ free and clear .”
CLOSING COMPANY Maryland Title Companies also act as the Closing Company . This means we combine the Title documents and Lender documents , and explain them to both buyer , and seller at Closing . We also inform both parties of their responsibilities in regards to the property after closing ( e . g . water transfer , homeowner ’ s association transfer procedures , property tax credits , etc .) We then notarize all documents , complete Tax Information Sheets , and Patriot Act Forms , and return the originals to the Lender .
ESCROW COMPANY As an Escrow Company , Maryland Title Companies gather all information to prepare the Closing Disclosure ( CD ). The Closing Disclosure is the final record of the transaction between the buyer and seller . In order for an accurate statement to be prepared , the Title Company must 1 ) Obtain written statements from the sellers ’ Lenders and lien holders , showing any amounts due . 2 ) Collect accurate accounting records from any and all Homeowner ’ s Associations , as well as Front Foot Benefit / Utility Companies so that items may be collected , or adjusted on the final CD . 3 ) Acquire the most current statements from State and Local authorities , showing any taxes to be collected , or adjusted on the final CD . 4 ) Compute transfer taxes in the subject property jurisdiction , based
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