What Is Curative Title Work?
When a buyer signs a contract to purchase a home, the title company conducts a massive historical search of the public records. Frequently, this search uncovers a title defect (a "cloud"). This means the seller does not have clear, undisputed ownership of the property, and the title company refuses to issue title insurance.
The transaction completely freezes. To save the deal, real estate attorneys must perform curative title work. This is the legal process of tracking down the historical errors, drafting the necessary corrective documents, and officially recording them to "cure" (heal) the broken chain of title.
Common Examples of Curative Work
Curative work ranges from simple clerical fixes to massive courtroom litigation:
- Correction Deeds — If a deed from 10 years ago misspelled the property's legal boundary description, an attorney must draft a Correction Deed and hunt down the seller from a decade ago to sign it.
- Satisfying Old Mortgages — Sometimes a homeowner paid off their mortgage 20 years ago, but the bank forgot to record the official 'Satisfaction of Mortgage.' The curative work involves forcing the bank's legal department to issue the satisfaction so the unpayable lien is removed from the public record.
- Quiet Title Lawsuits — If an heir from an old, botched probate case technically still owns 5% of the property but refuses to sign a Quitclaim Deed to relinquish it, simple paperwork won't work. The attorney must file a Quiet Title Action in civil court, asking a judge to forcefully strip the heir's rights away and declare the title clear.
The Impact on Closing Dates
Curative title work is the number one reason real estate closings are delayed. Depending on the severity of the defect, curing the title can take anywhere from three days (getting a bank to fax a payoff letter) to six months (tracking down missing heirs and taking them to court).
Related Terms
- Title Defect — The problem that makes curative work necessary
- Quiet Title Action — The ultimate, most expensive form of curative title work
- Title Insurance — The policy that cannot be issued until the title is cured
Barnes Walker Title Curative Experts
Barnes Walker's dedicated title attorneys specialize in rapid, complex curative title work, tracking down unreleased liens, correcting historical deed errors, and prosecuting quiet title actions to clear massive legal hurdles and get stalled Florida real estate closings across the finish line. Request a legal inquiry for assistance.
Reviewed by the attorneys at Barnes Walker, Goethe, Shea & Robinson, PLLC