EDITORIAL: Blame Albany for gouging homebuyers
What homebuyer even thinks about title insurance? It's one of those things that Americans know they have to buy in the midst of the transactional tornado that is homebuying. Generally speaking, title insurance protects the lender -- not the buyer -- in case the current or previous sellers somehow didn't have clear title to the property.
But like many other expenses in
Blame
Or
That may not all be due to the industry's wining and dining of real estate professionals. But
It's hidden in consumers' costs. When a title insurance company rents out the
The same is true when, as was revealed in 2013, title insurance companies splurge on high-priced dinners, costly gift cards, expensive sports tickets and even visits to strip clubs. Congratulations, homebuyers. You're footing that bill.
Part of the problem is that, for the most part, homebuyers are put on a procedural conveyor belt when they first make an offer. Only rarely do they make a point of choosing their own title insurance company. Instead, they rely on real estate agents or attorneys -- the same people insurers woo with legalized bribes.
That's where the competition takes place, with all the largest companies charging the same price, which is 40 percent more than
OneTitle and Entitle Direct are two small companies that charge less than the regulator-set price. They have only a fraction of the market.
It gets worse. Title insurers in
Some in
On the heels of a
It didn't matter. Within days, the
This is an election year. Voters should take the opportunity to explain things to those legislators.
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