From the heart of Roll Tide country. This picture has nothing to do with this post.
Were I not driving across this great big nation of ours, I would have been far more productive on blogging about foreclosuregate. As it is, I’m fairly limited to writing at various truck stops in a larger work that hopes to lay out all of the issues and what the real estate industry can and should do about it.
At the same time, there are issues that I find compelling to at least discuss, seek comments and insights, as I work through the extraordinarily complex scenarios. One such issue is the impact on title.
In discussions with title industry experts on the topic, I’ve been assured that the whole “foreclosuregate” which began with the robosigning scandal won’t have a dramatic impact on title. First, various experts have told me that all the robosigning stuff is just technicalities, details that don’t change the actual economic fact of a borrower who owes money, and a lender who is owed money. Some servicers have cut corners and possibly committed perjury and fraud, but once people get into the files and start unravelling things, it’ll all come clear. Second, I have been advised that the actual act of foreclosure itself clears title, at least for subsequent good-faith purchasers.
Upon further review, I’m not convinced that either scenario will hold up. There may indeed be serious and significant title issues that could affect millions of properties, millions of buyers, title insurance companies, and lenders for years to come.
