It’s of utmost importance for lenders and lawyers to ask the right questions when closing a real estate transaction. This helps them ensure the right title insurance coverage for their clients.
For instance, it’s good to know if the property is a duplex, triplex or any type of plex. Does it include basement apartments? Is it a multi-family residence, and so on? If it is the latter, does it require the Multi-Family Endorsement to optimize the coverage afforded under the policy? This is how selecting the correct coverage for a multi-family residence could safeguard the Insureds and validate their claim in the future.
Claim Summary
In July 2018, the Insured acquired the title to their property in Ontario. The Insured was also issued the Owner’s Title Insurance Policy underwritten by the Company.
A year later, they received an Order to Comply from the City related to prior unpermitted construction and renovations resulting from an inspection in May 2019.
The Chicago Title Resolution
Chicago Title determined that the claim fell within the Policy’s Multi-Family Endorsement and accepted the claim. An engineer’s report was ordered, and the company decided to pay the maximum policy amount since there were many things to remedy. Though the policy amount was determined at $90K, the maximum insured amount was $180K. This was because the residential owner contains a standard provision to address the increase in the fair market value of the Land, which compensates an insured owner for a maximum of 200% of the Amount of Insurance for an Actual Loss because of a Covered Risk. Chicago Title obtained an appraisal that valued the property between $95K and $105K. We, therefore, paid the maximum amount of $105K.
Covered Risk
Title insurance protects the insured from losses due to forced removal or remedy existing structures or any part of them – other than boundary walls or fences – because the portion was built without obtaining a required building permit from the proper Governmental Authority.
Title insurance from Chicago Title can provide peace of mind with the knowledge that your client’s interests are fully protected.
To learn more, visit ctic.ca.
