Title
The legal right to own and use a property. Title comes with the deed. Problems with title, like unpaid liens or bad prior deeds, can cloud ownership.
Every term like this one lights up in the step you're on.
Free to set up. No credit card.Part 1 of 4
Why a seller cares
Title is the right to own the home, and the sale is really a sale of title. Everything in the closing stretch about liens, searches and policies is about proving that right is yours to pass on, clean.
Part 2 of 4
A simple example
You have lived in the home for twelve years and paid the mortgage every month. Title is still checked from the records, because that is where the right lives.
| What can affect title | What it does |
|---|---|
| A recorded lien | Has to be paid or released before title passes clean |
| A bad deed years ago | Clouds title until it is corrected |
| A boundary encroachment | May need a survey and an agreement with the neighbor |
Title is what the records say, and the records are what the buyer's lender reads.
Part 3 of 4
What people get wrong
That living in a home and paying for it settles title. It usually does, but the records have to agree, and sometimes they do not.
Part 4 of 4 · where to read next
Where it appears in the sale
What a definition is, and what it isn't
Keighbor is a software company, not a law firm, brokerage, or tax adviser. This is general information, not legal, tax, financial, or real estate advice about your sale. Your situation may differ. Before acting on a contract, disclosure, title, tax, or pricing question, ask an appropriately licensed professional in your state.
Written and researched by Keighbor Research · drawn from the reference glossary · how we research and check what we publish
One piece of your sale. Here is where all the pieces live.
In your room, this word explains itself where it appears.
Keighbor keeps your whole home sale in one place and defines every term like this one right where you meet it, in the step you're on. Free to set up, with or without an agent.