Getting a deed

[Wendy Browning]

We moved to Hampton Va and are trying to sell a property in Knoxville that we bought in 2009. It is paid off and we have  a buyer but the title co. we are trying to close with claims that there is a lien on the property from a few owners ago, the bank that we used has cleared the title and we don't know what to do now but we need to sell this house we are far away from it and can't keep up the yard or do maintenance on it. The city says it has no liens and the same with the county where else should we look?

[Jim Viens]

If you got an Owner's Policy of Title Insurance when you purchased the property then the title insurance company you got it through is on the hook to fix the problem. Since you mentioned a lender they likely at least got a lender's policy. If you can find out what title company issued it you can try going back to them to see if they have a copy of the lien release they used to clear title previously. Short of having an Owner's Policy or a copy of the lien release you may be stuck just paying the lien or filing a quiet-title suit.

Case in point as to why one should ALWAYS get an owner's title policy any time a property is purchased.