01
The chain of recorded documents
We pull the recorded instruments and line them up in order, so every gap is visible.
County land records
Title and Liens
Something is clouding your title. We trace it through the record.
Every mortgage, assignment, release and lien on your property is supposed to be recorded in the county's land records. When loans are sold and resold, steps get skipped: a release never recorded, an assignment missing, a document signed by a party with no authority. Those gaps stay on your title until someone finds them.
The Records
What you have probably never been shown.
These records decide what you owe and who can collect it. They are rarely sent to you, and almost never explained. We request them, examine them and tell you in plain language what they prove and what they do not.
- The full recorded chain: deed, mortgage, every assignment and release
- Who signed each document and in what capacity
- The dates each document was signed and recorded
- Whether the loan was placed in an investment pool, and what that pool's records show
What We Check
The rules your file is measured against.
02
Releases after payoff
When a mortgage is paid off, state law gives the lender a deadline to record a release. We document whether one was recorded and when.
State recording law
03
Authority to sign
We check who signed each assignment or release and whether the record shows they had the authority to.
Recorded instruments · Corporate records
04
The note and the mortgage
The right to enforce the note and the recorded mortgage should end up in the same hands. We document where the record shows each one went.
UCC Article 3 · State law
05
Liens that should be gone
Old judgments, paid debts and satisfied loans sometimes stay on title. We identify them and prepare the request to have them released.
County land records
After the Record Goes Out
What a corrected record can lead to.
We do not promise results, and every file depends on what its records show. When a dispute is documented and pursued properly, these are outcomes it can produce:
- A release recorded for a mortgage that was paid.
- A lien removed when it should not be on your property.
- The chain corrected with the missing documents recorded.
- A file ready for a quiet title case filed by you or your attorney.
- A record that holds up. Then you know your title is clear, in writing.
See the Work
Read the method behind the findings.
Our white paper sets out how we read a lien after a loan has been sold, and the sample report shows what a finished examination looks like.
White paper · 36 pages
Reading the Lien After the Loan Is Sold
An eight-point framework for recognizing a defective security interest in a post-transfer file, with findings from 145 scored burden elements. Written for attorneys, trustees, originators, servicers, housing counselors and courts.
Get the white paper
Sample report · PDF · 12 pages
What an examination produces
A complete sample examination record, with every figure made up for illustration. It shows the determination on each element the other side has to establish, the charge-by-charge audit, the response deadlines, and what a homeowner can do with the result.
Open the sample reportCommon Questions
What people ask.
What is a cloud on title?
It is any recorded document, or any gap in the recorded documents, that raises a question about who owns the property or what is owed against it. Common examples are an old mortgage that was paid and never released, a missing assignment, and a lien recorded against the wrong person.
My mortgage was paid off and the release was never recorded. What can I do?
Send the lender or servicer a written request for the release, with proof of payoff. State law sets a deadline for recording a release after payoff, and many states add penalties for missing it. We prepare the request, track the response and document the record.
Do you file quiet title actions?
No. A quiet title action is a lawsuit filed in court, by you or your attorney. We examine the recorded chain and prepare the record a quiet title case is built on.
Does a title problem matter if I am not selling?
Yes. It decides who can enforce a loan against the property and what your heirs or a buyer will face later. It is easier to correct before a sale, a refinance or an estate is waiting on it.
What We Investigate
Want to know what your own records show?
Upload your documents and we will send a free summary of what the record establishes, what is missing and why it matters.