Enhanced vs. Basic

Enhanced Title Insurance Coverage

There are few things more important than protecting a home. Even the best title search and examination cannot protect your equity and home from matters not appearing in the public record.

Very few people in the industry realize that like other insurance products, the title insurance industry has insurance products that offer different coverage. Some of the largest title insurance underwriters in the industry, offer an “enhanced” policy, which offers additional coverage from the “standard” coverage to the homeowner.

For example, a “standard” policy covers the homeowner for matters affecting title up to and including the date of the recordation of the Deed, while its “enhanced” policy provides coverage for 28 additional risks, many of them pertaining to future coverage and automatic increases of coverage to cover increases in the value of property.

Although, the enhanced policy premium is ten percent (10%) higher than the standard policy premium, the reality is a minimal cost to the homeowner for the ability to substantially reduce their risk and exposure on one of the largest investments they will make in a lifetime.

To illustrate the differences between a standard Policy and enhanced Policy, below is a representative coverage comparison of standard and enhanced insurance products. This will help you in deciding which policy is the best for you to protect your ownership in your home.

BOTH POLICIES INCLUDE

• Mechanic’s Lien Coverage
• Third Party claims an interest in the title
• Improperly executed documents
• Pre-Policy forgery, fraud or duress
• Non-recorded restrictive covenants
• Defective recording of documents
• Prior recorded liens not disclosed in the policy
• Unmarketability of the title

ADDITIONAL COVERAGES IN ENHANCED POLICY:

• Automatic Increase in original policy amount to cover increased in value of the property
• Policy insures anyone who inherits property from homeowner
• Policy insures a Trustee you transfer the property to after policy date
• Post Policy Forgery
• Post Policy encroachment onto insured land
• Enhanced existing right of access by including both pedestrian and vehicular access
• Losses due to building permit violations
• Losses due to existing violation of subdivision law
• Post policy structural damage from third party easement for mineral extraction
• Violations of restrictive covenants identified in the Policy:

Resulting in loss of title
Resulting in loss from correction or removal
Resulting in loss of use where single family dwelling prohibited

• Forced Removal of existing structure that:

Encroach onto an easement identified in the policy
Violate a building restriction line identified in the policy
Encroach onto a neighbor’s land

• Land cannot be used for single family dwelling under zoning ordinance