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reproduce portions of this site or materials available at this site for personal and
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site must include this copyright statement.
You should consult an attorney for advice regarding your individual situation.
Contacting an attorney does not create an attorney-client relationship. Do not send,
e-mail, or provide confidential information or information you do not wish to be
publicly disseminated until such time as an attorney-client relationship has been
established and requested to do so by an attorney.
Copyright 2009 Law Office of Craig W. Little, P.A. All rights reserved. You may
reproduce portions of this site or materials available at this site for personal and
non-commercial use. All copies of portions of this site or materials available at this
site must include this copyright statement.
Web Articles
Introduction to Title Insurance
"Marking Up" the Commitment and
Finalizing the Title Insurance Policy
When the transaction that underlies the issuance of the title
insurance commitment closes, the title agent will often be asked
to “mark up” the title insurance commitment. In Florida, an
insured party can not receive a final title insurance policy at
closing because the closing documents that create the real
property interest that will be insured must be recorded in the
Public Records before the policy can be issued. But the agent
of the insurance underwriter marking up the title insurance
commitment at the closing will obligate the underwriter to insure
the subject real property interest and the marked up
commitment provides the insured party with evidence of such
title insurance protection until the final title insurance policy is
issued. A title insurance commitment is marked up by hand
written notations being made on the commitment. These hand
written notations evidence that the transaction has closed, that
the requirements for the issuance of the title insurance policy
have been satisfied, the removal of any exceptions to the
coverage of the title insurance that can be deleted, and that the
title insurance policy will insure against losses that result from
insurable title defects that existed prior to the date the closing
documents are recorded. A title insurance commitment does
not provide any title insurance coverage but a title insurance
commitment properly marked up by the agent for the insurance
underwriter provides the insured party with full title insurance
coverage.
Marking up the commitment at closing creates the obligation for
the title insurance underwriter to insure the subject real property
interest and such insurance coverage extends back in time from
the date the closing documents are recorded which is the
effective date of the title insurance policy. But when the
commitment is marked up at closing and the title insurance
coverage created, the Public Records will only have been
searched through the effective date of the title insurance
commitment which pre-dates the effective date of the title
insurance policy. This period of time from the effective date of
the title insurance commitment to the date the closing
documents are recorded is referred to as the “gap.” The gap is
insured when the commitment is marked up even though the
Public Records for this period of time will not have been
searched. The insurer underwriting the title insurance policy will
allow the title agent to mark up the commitment and create the
title insurance coverage, which includes the gap, based upon
the party who holds title to the subject property providing an
affidavit to the title agent at closing that states, in simplified
terms, that they have not done anything or recorded any
documents during the gap that will become defects to the title.
After the closing documents have been recorded, the insurer
underwriting the title insurance policy will perform a search of
the Public Records during the gap period. Even though the
insurer underwriting the title insurance policy has already
insured the gap by and through the marked up title insurance
commitment, they still perform the gap search so they are aware
of any documents that may have been recorded during this
period of time which could result in a claim against the title
policy. If any instruments are found in the gap period, the
insurer underwriting the tile insurance policy may then have a
claim against the then owner of the real property who created
the title defect in violation of the affidavit they provided to the
title agent at the closing.
When the gap search has been completed, the title agent may
then issue the final title insurance policy to the insured party.
Return to Introduction to Title Insurance
"Marking Up" the Commitment and
Finalizing the Title Insurance Policy
When the transaction that underlies the issuance of the title
insurance commitment closes, the title agent will often be asked
to “mark up” the title insurance commitment. In Florida, an
insured party can not receive a final title insurance policy at
closing because the closing documents that create the real
property interest that will be insured must be recorded in the
Public Records before the policy can be issued. But the agent
of the insurance underwriter marking up the title insurance
commitment at the closing will obligate the underwriter to insure
the subject real property interest and the marked up
commitment provides the insured party with evidence of such
title insurance protection until the final title insurance policy is
issued. A title insurance commitment is marked up by hand
written notations being made on the commitment. These hand
written notations evidence that the transaction has closed, that
the requirements for the issuance of the title insurance policy
have been satisfied, the removal of any exceptions to the
coverage of the title insurance that can be deleted, and that the
title insurance policy will insure against losses that result from
insurable title defects that existed prior to the date the closing
documents are recorded. A title insurance commitment does
not provide any title insurance coverage but a title insurance
commitment properly marked up by the agent for the insurance
underwriter provides the insured party with full title insurance
coverage.
Marking up the commitment at closing creates the obligation for
the title insurance underwriter to insure the subject real property
interest and such insurance coverage extends back in time from
the date the closing documents are recorded which is the
effective date of the title insurance policy. But when the
commitment is marked up at closing and the title insurance
coverage created, the Public Records will only have been
searched through the effective date of the title insurance
commitment which pre-dates the effective date of the title
insurance policy. This period of time from the effective date of
the title insurance commitment to the date the closing
documents are recorded is referred to as the “gap.” The gap is
insured when the commitment is marked up even though the
Public Records for this period of time will not have been
searched. The insurer underwriting the title insurance policy will
allow the title agent to mark up the commitment and create the
title insurance coverage, which includes the gap, based upon
the party who holds title to the subject property providing an
affidavit to the title agent at closing that states, in simplified
terms, that they have not done anything or recorded any
documents during the gap that will become defects to the title.
After the closing documents have been recorded, the insurer
underwriting the title insurance policy will perform a search of
the Public Records during the gap period. Even though the
insurer underwriting the title insurance policy has already
insured the gap by and through the marked up title insurance
commitment, they still perform the gap search so they are aware
of any documents that may have been recorded during this
period of time which could result in a claim against the title
policy. If any instruments are found in the gap period, the
insurer underwriting the tile insurance policy may then have a
claim against the then owner of the real property who created
the title defect in violation of the affidavit they provided to the
title agent at the closing.
When the gap search has been completed, the title agent may
then issue the final title insurance policy to the insured party.
Return to Introduction to Title Insurance
Law Office of
Craig W. Little, P.A.