Taking Quiet Title Action
Quiet title action is a process of investigating and removing any potential claims on a title. The process can be expensive and time consuming. It's important that a real estate investor understand the process and the alternatives that are available.
Undertaking a quiet title action is often necessary in order for the investor to be sure that that the document to a piece of real estate is "free and clear." When that is the case,
no one else can make claims to the real estate. However, if there is a risk that someone could make a case for it, this is a specific legal step that can prevent that from occurring. The use of this process may be vitally important in many instances.
When to Use It
If there is a question about the ownership of the property or a risk that someone else could have a claim, this warrants taking quiet title action. Often, individuals who purchase real estate through a foreclosure will need to do this. Inherited property also should go through this process. However, it is often used as a preventative measure on distressed property. It helps ensure that any claim to full or partial ownership to the real estate is not possible. It can also help ensure there are no additional liens or claims from creditors on the property.
How to Use It
In order to begin a quiet title action, individuals must first have a title company or real estate lawyer process it. This procedure will reveal any specific concerns regarding the ownership. It can pull up any previous ownership claims and reveal potential problems from liens. These are called clouds within the industry. If these are present, it is often necessary to make a legal move to remove them.
Individuals will generally need to file a lawsuit to clear these clouds. However, you must determine if there is any risk to you by doing so. The strength of your claim must be better than that of other claims prior to filing. In short, if someone else is likely to take ownership, it may not be worth the cost of paying for this.
The laws for this process are specific to your county or state. In most cases, the person filing must have possession of the property. An attorney can help you to prepare for any potential roadblocks in the process. The attorney can also take the steps required to process this type of claim. This may include placing notices in the public and to addressing any found claims.
Taking quiet title action is an important step. In most situations, it is worth taking because it provides an opportunity to learn about any potential risks you may be facing in taking ownership of property. There is no benefit to investing a great deal of money into the real estate only to find out that you cannot take ownership of it in the long term. Most people do benefit from this process, but doing it properly will make a can make a big difference in your profitability.
