Rep. Ed Towns (D-New York) has introduced a new bill to limit the period of time during which a bank can bring deficiency judgments against foreclosed borrowers.

Currently, the window during which a lender may pursue a deficiency judgment varies by state and can be anywhere from six months to six years.

Clink link for full story!

If Only They Had Known – Title Insurance Story

YES! When purchasing distressed property, it has commonly come out of foreclosure, bankruptcy, and/or sheriff sale. With a property going through many lengthy and complicated processes, as the title agency we search and examine the property records to confirm that the seller is indeed giving clear title.

Title insurance is going to give you protection from any of those liens that may have been paid but never released, property taxes that weren’t paid, federal/state tax liens, and many more items we see on a daily basis. We search and examine the property records at the time of ordering title work and guarantee our work for the life of your ownership and beyond with the issuance of the title policy.

Allison Overman-Tippecanoe Title Services

Kristin Johnsen

Short Sale Specialist

What a great question!  IS money the root of all evil?  The bible doesn’t say money is the root of all evil, it says the LOVE of money is the root of all evil! So do you LOVE your money?  Do the people you do business with LOVE their money?  In today’s world it is important to do business with individuals and companies that DON’T love their money but love helping their CLIENTS!  Business today seems to have gotten away from simple customer service and has become all about the money!  We try our hardest to NOT be about the money at Tippecanoe Title Services which allows us to be about the CUSTOMER! A simple philosophy in life is this:  If I do all I can to help others I will be just fine….I try to live by that and help not only my friends, family and my church but also my clients and customers from real estate agents to consumers.  It’s not always about us and I was reminded of that recently when my 8 year old daughter decided she wanted to help raise money for our Youth Pastor to go on a mission trip to Africa by having a bake sale.  Of course I was very proud of her and helped her set it up and we went into it hoping to raise a couple of hundred dollars but came out of it with over $500 for he and his family’s 4 week vision trip to Africa!  I think people saw the love on my daughter’s face when she stood up in front of the entire congregation and talked about her plan!  A simple act of kindness from a child became a wondrous financial gift to a family.  I don’t LOVE my money, and some days I don’t even like it very much but I can promise you one thing, I LOVE helping my clients!!

Lonny Lawson
Sales/Marketing Director
Tippecanoe Title Services

1. Free parking in our attached garage which is especially nice during bad weather!
2. A warm welcome!
3. Fresh cookies and refreshments!
4. To provide a copy of your DL or other photo ID!
5. To ask questions that you may have!
6. Your closing agent to go over the settlement statement line by line!
7. Your closing agent to review any and all loan documents!
8. To receive copies of all documents pertaining to you!
9. To receive any proceeds you may be getting at the end of closing!
10. Multiple parties to potentially be present such as:
    1. Buyers
    2. Sellers
    3. Lenders
    4. Realtors
    5. Closing agent
    6. Other TTS representatives

11. Last but not least:  Expect Tippecanoe Title Services to do everything in our power to make your real estate transaction as easy and painless as possible……

1.     Expect your lender to give you a detailed GFE (Good Faith Estimate) pertaining to your specific property 3 days after making a formal loan application.
2.     After receiving the order your title company will perform a detailed title search & examination.  Be sure to ask your title company if they have a representative on staff to perform a physical search of the property at the Courthouse?  Not all title companies search documents at the courthouse that may not have been recorded such as liens and judgements.  This is sometimes known as title lite and can impact a homeowner greatly in the future.  Tippecanoe Title has a searcher with 35 years experience on staff to ensure you get the very best search & exam possible!
3.     Stay in constant contact with your real estate agent!  They can help you with many of the questions that may come up during the process.
4.     Your real estate agent and or lender will receive your initial title work, unless you are a FSBO, wiring instructions and preliminary settlement statement  sent out by your title company.  Not all title companies include a preliminary settlement statement however it is Tippecanoe Title Services practice to include this with all initial title work.
5.     Talk to your lender or real estate agent early and often in the process so that you know if and how much money you will need to bring to closing.
6.     Be aware that any aggregate funds in excess of $10k MUST be wired funds.
7.     Any funds needed for closing under $10k must be in the form of a cashier’s check or bank check typically.
8.     Personal checks over the amount of $500 are not allowed by law to be accepted by your title company.  Not all title companies WILL take personal checks so please check with your title company prior to writing a personal check.   
9.     If you are unsure of the exact amount of money needed to close plan on wiring in a little extra and potentially getting a check back at closing.  It is much safer to do this than to have to wire that extra $100 because your aggregate funds needed to close exceed $10k.
10.     Your lender should get you a final TIL (Truth in lending) statement 72 hours prior to closing.
11.     Assuming the closing package has arrived at the title company you should receive a final settlement statement 24 hours prior to closing.
12.     Don’t be afraid to ask questions of your title company!  Tippecanoe Title has an educated staff ready to takle any questions you may have.

This is vastly different than the service you buy with other insurance products.  One way to compare title insurance to other lines of insurance is to imagine if your homeowner’s insurance agent came into your home and inspected all of the wiring at no cost to you.  The agent then repaired any and all faulty or frayed wiring at no cost to you and guaranteed that none of the wiring that was repaired or any wiring that the agent could not see would cause a fire.  Finally, the agent charged a one-time fee for the inspection, repairs and guarantee that would be in effect as long as you or your heirs owned the property. 

     Tippecanoe Title Services finds the faulty wiring, fixes the faulty wiring and charges a one-time premium to guarantee its work!

* excerpts from the “Testimony of Anne L. Anastasi on behalf of The American Land Title Association”.

We pride ourselves on prompt, accurate and complete title service. Plus we provide the personal, attentive service you’re looking for as a Realtor® or financial professional. Knowing that the title insurance will be done in a timely manner, that the work is thorough and complete, and that all the paperwork is handled properly, creates less work for you, less hassles, and more time for you to do your job.

Tippecanoe Title Services, Inc., is locally owned by Stuart Boehning, Beverly Hamersly, Andrew Gutwein, Brent E. Clary, Jill A. Marshall, and Roger Wm. Bennett. Local ownership is a key to better service.

Staff Email Addresses

Jill A. Marshall, Owner
Pam Windler, Title Dept. Supervisor
Lonny Lawson, Sales Representative
Becky Bills, Closing Assistant/Central Processing
Peggy Ferguson, Searcher/Final Policy Coordinator
Kate Spencer, Document Recorder/Support Staff
Kathy Cain, Closing Agent
Allison Overman, Closing Agent

Susie Waymire, Closing Agent Carroll Title Services