If you’ve been following our blog recently, you’ve probably noticed that we’ve talked a little bit about security and privacy. We’d like to share a very real story that happens more often than you’d expect and explains why we’re in business.

A buyer finds a property, they fall in love with it and they put in an offer. Simple right? Before the transaction can be completed, usually a title company like ours, comes in and verifies that everything is in order. We make sure that the title is clean and that there aren’t any pending liens on the property, but what you wouldn’t think to expect is that the seller isn’t even the real owner!

Yes, this happens occasionally and it is truly scary. Maybe a distant family member or even a complete stranger discovers a property that has been unnattended for many years and decides to put it on the market and tries to sell it. Something that is not theirs to begin with! What is somewhat amazing about this is how far some buyers get into the transaction with someone who is not authorized to sell the property. How can you verify who the owner is unless you hire a Title Company? A Real Estate Agent can lookout for signs of fraud but for most properties, there is a public record of it that anyone could easily lookup and learn everything there is to know about it, and therefore appearing to be the owner.

Having the right title company is important too because you just don’t really know what to expect. We’ve dealt with so many deals across the board both commercial and residential, that at this point, we’ve seen it all! If something seems amiss with your