Unrecorded Property Searches / Municipal Lien Searches
Not all liens must recorded into the public records of the county where the property is located in order to encumber title.
There is an exception.
The exception to this rule is local municipality liens. Municipalities are not required to follow the same recording laws in order for their liens to attach to a property. Therefore, without an unrecorded lien search (or, if you prefer, a municipal lien search) a transaction professional jeopardizes the ability of new owner to hold title free and clear of all liens.
These municipality liens can also survive the foreclosure process, making this research a vital component to any real estate matter.
Municipal indebtedness is NOT covered by the title insurance policy and is expressly listed as an exception to coverage.. As such, the insurance company takes no financial responsibility in the case where, post closing, there is an undiscovered municipal lien that was unaccounted for, or “survived” the closing. The ENTIRE financial burden may rest solely with the transactional company or new owner.
LienWrite provides Complex Navigational Information Gathering.
Municipalities can be torture to work with. Just ask any processor at a title company or law firm. LienWrite resolves the head ache. On any given property it may be necessary to contact several different governmental entities or offices in order to obtain all of the utility, code enforcement, water/sewer, or permitting liens affecting a property.
LienWrite’s proprietary software was the second production system invented by our Team and should be credited for much of our success. It was developed specifically by our Team and acts as an internal organizational tool, communication software, property search integration, document generator, email server and managerial tool. Technology plus a commitment to the fundamentals enables us to offer Peace of Mind at LienWrite.
“I felt that our experience & knowledge base would translate positively, resulting in adding value to the industry by building a more efficient solution and a higher degree of professionalism into the unrecorded municipal lien reporting service.” says Stephen Lankau, Esq.
It is our opinion that every transaction should include an unrecorded lien search (municipal lien search). If the real estate transactional center fails to call on us or take this vital step(s), they may be subjecting the new owner to unforeseen costs and liability. Municipal information is extremely fractioned throughout many governmental agencies. Gathering all of the information on a particular property can be a “hit or miss” proposal and unless a title company becomes totally committed to this complexity, unrecorded liens at the municipal level may be missed, especially when a title company attempts to venture into a geographic area where they may be unfamiliar. LienWrite has the capacity to cover the entire nation.