Solution of the Month

A wise man once said, “If you cut corners, you just keep going in circles.” At Silk Title Co., we believe in putting in the extra effort to do things the “right” way as opposed to using quick fixes and temporary Band-Aids. Today, we outline a recent challenge from one of our clients and borrowers.

Background: The Silk Title team and its lender client were working with a borrower on a routine home refinance. The borrower was under the impression that their home was free and clear of any mortgages.

Problem: The Curative team discovered the borrower had taken out a private mortgage roughly 20 years ago that was never released from title. Compounding the issue, the borrower no longer had contact with the private lender. Unlike with a traditional lender, the documentation in this case had to be signed by the specific individual. The borrower attempted to locate the private lien holder on her own but had no luck. The borrower was at a standstill and the mortgage would not expire for 30 more years.

Silk’s Solution: The Silk Title team working on this file began doing their own research to attempt to locate the private lien holder on behalf of the borrower. Creative searching and deep digging ultimately revealed a business in the same geographic area owned by somebody with the same name as the private lien holder. Silk took the initiative and made contact with the business owner, who confirmed he was indeed the private lien holder. Silk was then able to send him the documentation needed to work through removing the old lien from title.

Impact: The loan went on to close with no other issues and the borrower was ecstatic. Furthermore, should the borrower ever refinance in the future, she won’t have this issue pop up again because it has now been permanently resolved.

Do you have a challenging file that needs a solution? We are here to help explore all possible options.