Regulators review title insurance

A recent piece from the Wall Street Journal brought to mind some of the ongoing battles regarding title insurance. These are a few of my general thoughts as an attorney and title insurance agent for a number of insurers:

Educate clients early in the game about title insurance. I see that as problem number one. If you're not in the industry, who the heck knows what title insurance is and why it's required. If you mention a few tales of people almost losing their homes but for title insurance, I don't think $1,000 or $1,500 will be as difficult to swallow.

Disclose costs early on. Too many clients don't see these numbers until the closing table. Show a few companies' fee schedules right when the contract is signed and it should be fine. I've known many attorneys who bury big fees in their title costs that are not appropriate. These people need to get reported to the A.R.D.C.