Carmen Arruda, who studied business management and economics in Germany, holds real estate licenses in California and Washington, as well as a notary public’s license. She began working in the real estate industry in 1990, gaining experience in a broad range of real estate sales as well as property management. Since 2004, Carmen Arruda has held the title of Assistant Vice President for the Fidelity National Title Group, and is the firm’s regional account manager for its office in Seattle.
One of the largest providers of escrow services and title insurance in the US, the Fidelity National Title Group provides a service that is critical to the real estate industry, and thus to the overall economy. That service is not well understood by the general public, though. Title insurance, as the name implies, insures the title to real estate. In a real estate transaction, the seller warrants that the property’s title is clean, that is, there are no claims on the property by other owners, lenders, or workers. For example, when a second mortgage or home equity line of credit is secured using property as collateral, the lender files a lien against the property and sometimes neglects to remove it once the loan is satisfied.
The buyer’s attorney performs due diligence on the title as well, searching through the records to verify that no legitimate claims against the property exist. When claims are found, the attorney validates them or takes steps to release them. If a lender has neglected to release a lien after a loan is paid, for instance, the attorney will try to have the lender release it; failing that, the attorney can file a motion with the court to release the lien.
Despite all the due diligence by the best attorneys, legitimate claims against a title sometimes arise, jeopardizing an owner’s claim to the property. In those cases, the company that issued the title insurance steps in to satisfy the claim. Although claims are relatively rare, the industry as a whole paid nearly a billion dollars in 2012 to settle such claims.
One of the largest providers of escrow services and title insurance in the US, the Fidelity National Title Group provides a service that is critical to the real estate industry, and thus to the overall economy. That service is not well understood by the general public, though. Title insurance, as the name implies, insures the title to real estate. In a real estate transaction, the seller warrants that the property’s title is clean, that is, there are no claims on the property by other owners, lenders, or workers. For example, when a second mortgage or home equity line of credit is secured using property as collateral, the lender files a lien against the property and sometimes neglects to remove it once the loan is satisfied.
The buyer’s attorney performs due diligence on the title as well, searching through the records to verify that no legitimate claims against the property exist. When claims are found, the attorney validates them or takes steps to release them. If a lender has neglected to release a lien after a loan is paid, for instance, the attorney will try to have the lender release it; failing that, the attorney can file a motion with the court to release the lien.
Despite all the due diligence by the best attorneys, legitimate claims against a title sometimes arise, jeopardizing an owner’s claim to the property. In those cases, the company that issued the title insurance steps in to satisfy the claim. Although claims are relatively rare, the industry as a whole paid nearly a billion dollars in 2012 to settle such claims.