Danilo Bogdanovic-Real Estate Consultant -Loudoun and Fairfax County

There has been a lot of talk about an NAR controlled "MLS 5.0" and whether it's good or bad for the RE industry - agents, brokers and consumers alike. Saul Klein wrote a post about its pros and I wrote a post about its cons.

This issue will affect all of us - agents, brokers and consumers - so please take the time to check out the posts and let your voice be heard.

Many home buyers wonder why they should purchase Owner's Title Insurance. Afterall, it's anywhere from several hundred to a few thousand dollars, which is definitely not chump change. To be honest with you, most of those who purchase Owner's Title Insurance will never need it.

But the reason why you should always purchase it is because a title issue could cost you tens, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars and possibly your home.

Here's a recent real life example of Owner's Title Insurance coming to the rescue:

My buyer clients submitted an offer on a foreclosure/bank-owned property in Broadlands. The seller, Wells Fargo, accepted the offer and we continued on with the closing process.

At the 11th hour, the settlement agent, Mike McFarlane from Highland Title and Escrow, and the seller's title agent, Samuel I. White, PC, noticed that there was a discrepancy on one of the forms. The form, which was signed by the previous owners (who were foreclosed on), took the wife's name off the deed and gave the husband sole rights to the property. The husband had signed for the wife using a Power Of Attorney. The problem was that the Power Of Attorney was dated the day AFTER the deed was signed. This meant that the deed was invalid.

This presented a huge problem for everyone because it meant that the wife may still have claim to the property. But...that's where title insurance comes in.

Since Wells Fargo had foreclosed on the property and had title insurance on the property, the title insurance company was responsible for previous owner's issue and Wells Fargo and the buyers were off the hook. The sale could go on.

Had the seller not purchased title insurance, the sale would most likely not have gone on and the buyers would have been without a home. In addition, Wells Fargo would have been stuck with a huge legal mess.

Here's another real life example:

Years ago, there was a plot of land in Countryside that was bought by a developer. The developer built a community of town homes which were all sold to home buyers. Once the development was complete, someone contacted the developer and all of the homeowners in that community saying that they had rights to that land and they were illegally on it.

It turns out that this person, a Native American Indian, provided proof that this land was rightfully theirs based on an 100+ year old written contract. In fact, the land the community was on was a Native American Indian burial ground with some of their ancestors buried in it.

The story ends as such...each home owner's title insurance company got together with the other and they ended up settling with the person for millions of dollars.

But what if one of the home owners did not have title insurance? That homeowner would have to come up with their share of the settlement on their own or give up their home, neither of which are good.

As you can see, once a title issue arises, it's usually not small. Though the possibility of it happening is very small, are you willing to gamble your greatest asset and your family's home on it not happening to you? Several hundred to a couple thousand dollars is a small price to pay when compared to what could happen (IMHO).

NOTE: There's a way to save up to 30 percent off of Owner's Title Insurance. Click here to find out how.

Related Articles

What Is Title Insurance? And How Much Did You Say It Was?!

Eat out in Loudoun County in order to help pay for schools? Sounds odd, doesn't it... Well, that's what Loudoun is proposing - a 4 percent meal tax on "prepared meals" that will go directly to Loudoun County public schools.

Loudoun County officials are even saying that the money generated from the meal tax could replace property taxes. (Do Loudoun residents really eat out that much?!)

The referendum will be on the ballot in November so you have plenty of time to chew on it before voting on it.

Source: NBC4.com

I was out previewing new construction communities in Loudoun County today and stopped by the Pulte Homes Hamlets at Red Cedar Community in Leesburg. Pulte Homes has some great incentives going on in that community right now.

One of the incentives is a free totally finished basement including the rec room, bedroom, closet and full bath (valued at $35K). Pulte also has specials on other options, elevations and lots.

Pulte has three "collections" within the Hamlets at Red Cedar community. They are:

• Manors Collection - Hilton and Fairfax models (low to mid $500K's)
• Ambassador Collection - Westford, Briarwood II and Monterey models (starting in the mid $600K's)
• Stonebridge Collection - Kendall, Wentworth, Compton and Chatsworth V models (starting in the mid $700K's)

If you'd like to know more about the Pulte Homes Hamlets at Red Cedar community in Leesburg including available lots, models, delivery times and spec homes, feel free to contact me via email or cell - 703.582.6900. I've sold a few in that community over the past year or two and stay in close contact with sales staff there regarding what's going on in the community. Therefore, I'm able to have an inside track on what's going on, as well as know what the best negotiation tactics are.

***Note: If you visit the Pulte Homes site and see the advertisement for the "Summer Savings Days" sale June 20 - 22, it does not apply to the Hamlets at Red Cedar community.

For more information about real estate in Loudoun County real estate, check out http://LoudounScene.com and http://LoudounForeclosures.com.

The Village of Waxpool community is located in Ashburn, Virginia off of Belmont Ridge Rd. It sits adjacent to Brambleton and Broadlands (click here for aerial view). All of the homes are on 1/2 acre lots and are in the larger square footage/upper price bracket when compared to the majority of what you'd find in Ashburn as well as most of eastern Loudoun County.

There are three builders in the Village of Waxpool community:

• Brookfield Homes
• Craftmark Homes
• NV Homes

Most of the community has been completed though there are still some lots available. They recently opened the backside of the community to Broadlands so you can now cut through Broadlands to shopping and ammenities without having to drive out to Belmont Ridge Rd.

At one point during the boom real estate market, these homes were selling new for $1.1M and up. Recent sales are from the high $700K's to high $900K's (resale and new construction). There have been 4 resale homes sell in the community this year and there are 5 resale homes currently for sale (both statistics are as of June 13).

There were several investors who bought a new home(s) in the Village of Waxpool community in hopes of making quick money. But the market turned and several of these speculative investors tried to sell them as "short-sales" or they just let them go into foreclosure. This helped drive the prices down, but they seemed to have bottomed out.  If you're looking for a large home on a decent sized lot closer in then Leesburg, you may want to take a look at this community.

As far as road noise and seeing cars drive by on Belmont Ridge Rd, as long as you're in the mid to back part of the Village of Waxpool community, you should be fine. This is something to take into consideration if buying a resale home, but if you're looking at new construction, you should be ok. All of the available lots are on the back side of the community.

Note...If you've heard that Belmont Ridge Rd is expected to be widened to 4 lanes, you heard right. But the widening will be happening between the Dulles Greenway exit on Belmont Ridge Rd and Route 7 (opposite side of Belmont Ridge Rd from this community).

Further Reading

Village of Waxpool official site (not much information there though)

For more information about the Loudoun County real estate market, check out http://LoudounScene.com and http://LoudounForeclosures.com.