Jay Beitel is a principal at Polunsky Beitel Green, a Texas-based mortgage law firm. Key differences, protections, and legal considerations for lenders under Texas law Lately, there's been a buzz ...

Recently, Fannie Mae announced its plans to develop a pilot program to bypass traditional title insurance. Since the announcement, there has been a lot of talk about attorney opinion letters (AOLs) ...

Title insurance offers protection from problems with a property’s title, including liens, ownership disputes and encroachments. There are two types: a mandatory lender’s policy, whose cost is based on ...

Q: We are buying our first home and are stretching our savings to pay for the down payment and closing costs, not to mention the moving expenses. Our lender sent us our closing cost estimate, which ...

AOLs are an important emerging trend in real estate finance transactions. However, despite being more affordable than title insurance, they should be used with caution when replacing title insurance.

In the last couple of years Fannie Mae FNMA and its government overseer, the Federal Housing Finance Agency have taken aim at the title insurance industry – an often overlooked but important part of ...

When purchasing property, every penny counts, especially with the high cost of housing. It is only natural to question all the miscellaneous fees attached to the process. However, title insurance is ...

Whether you purchase a house, condo or vacant land, transferring the title is essential to gain legal ownership of the property. However, there may be hidden issues or claims on the title that could ...

Mortgage refinance demand is 111% higher than last year, a surge fueled by declining mortgage rates and renewed interest from homeowners looking to improve their financial position. Refinancing can ...