How do I do a free title search on a piece of land I want to buy?

Answer 1

Many registrars of deeds have their files online. Go to the website, select the region or city, and do an online search there. You can find the book reference starting by address. Then see who owns it, who has liens on it, and whether there are foreclosures or court actions happening to it.

Answer 2

If what you are trying to do is just for fun then you can go to the courthouse and rummage thru the records.

If you are really trying to protect your self them you would be very foolish to try this as a do it yourself project. A mistake made now would not be discovered until the next time the house is sold and may mean that you lose entire value of house.

Clouds on a title that will cost money would not be readily apparent to regular people without a lot of training.

Answer 3

I wouldn't want to risk doing this myself. While you can go the the courthouse and look at the records, you might miss something. It usually only costs $100-$125 to do this through a closing attorney and to me it is worth the cost to pay someone who does this all day, every day. They know how to get it done. Then, buy title insurance to cover any mistakes THEY or YOU could make to assure you have clear title. Worth it in the long run.

Answer 4

You can even go online to your county's website, it'll probably be listed under the auditor.
It'll tell you how much the property is worth, how much the current owners paid for it, what the taxes are, etc. You can get a lot of good information there, all free, and without having to physically go to the court house.

Answer 5

Use your brain send nothing out to someone who JUST joined this site.

Do some foot work yourself but if you are getting a mortgage etc. you will need a professional title search.