How a home buyer should review a title commitment before closing

Begin with the complete document

A title commitment or preliminary title report is part of the path toward issuing title insurance. It is not the deed, survey, purchase contract, final policy, or a guarantee that every ownership or land-use question has been resolved. The terminology and layout can vary by state and provider. The American Land Title Association's 2021 commitment form includes a notice, commitment conditions, Schedule A, Schedule B Part I requirements, and Schedule B Part II exceptions; a package missing a required part should not be treated as complete.

Ask the title or settlement professional which form applies, whether the copy is complete, and whether a later update or marked commitment will be issued before closing.

1. Verify the commitment identity and date

Record the issuing company and agent, file or commitment number, issue date, commitment date or effective date, proposed transaction, and all attachments. Confirm the exact street address and compare the legal description or land identification with the purchase contract, survey or plat, county records, listing, and parcel information where available.

An address is a locator, not the full legal description. Unit, lot, block, phase, parking, storage, easement, and appurtenant-right details can matter. Do not correct or reconcile a legal description yourself. Send any mismatch to the title professional and appropriate real-estate attorney, and ask whether a surveyor or local records office must be involved.

2. Read Schedule A as the proposed policy setup

On a form using the ALTA structure, Schedule A commonly identifies the proposed policy, amount, proposed insured, estate or interest, current vesting information, and land. Check:

• whether every proposed owner is named as intended;
• whether the lender and loan policy information match the financing;
• whether the estate or interest is the one expected under the contract;
• whether the person or entity shown as holding title matches the transaction;
• whether the policy amount and property description appear consistent; and
• whether referenced exhibits, plats, or descriptions are present.

Do not decide how co-buyers should hold title from a generic article. Ownership structure can have significant legal, estate, tax, and creditor consequences. Ask an appropriate attorney about the buyer's circumstances before instructing the settlement professional.

3. Track Schedule B Part I requirements to completion

Requirements are conditions that the title company says must be satisfied before it will issue the proposed policy. They may call for deeds, mortgage documents, payoff or release evidence, affidavits, entity authority, probate or marital documents, taxes, judgments, survey material, association information, or other transaction-specific items.

Create one row per requirement. Record the exact text, who must provide the document or action, what source will prove completion, the deadline, and whether the title company has confirmed acceptance. “Seller handling” or “expected at closing” is not a completed status.

Do not assume a payoff automatically releases a recorded lien, that a signature solves an authority issue, or that a title company's request states every legal consequence. Ask the title professional or attorney to explain the requirement and the evidence that will clear it.

4. Read Schedule B Part II exceptions as coverage boundaries

Exceptions identify matters the proposed policy will not insure against under its terms. They can include standard exceptions and property-specific matters such as easements, restrictions, covenants, mineral or water interests, rights of others, taxes or assessments, survey matters, association declarations, leases, or recorded agreements.

For each exception:

1. obtain the referenced instrument when available;
2. verify recording information and property connection;
3. ask for a plain-language explanation from the qualified professional;
4. identify the practical buyer question—access, use, maintenance, construction, cost, boundary, shared rights, or future sale;
5. compare it with the survey, plans, inspection, HOA documents, and intended use; and
6. record whether the exception remains, changes, or can be addressed before the policy.

Do not label an easement harmless, a covenant unenforceable, a lien cleared, or title marketable. Those are legal or underwriting conclusions that depend on the instrument, property, transaction, policy, and applicable law.

5. Cross-check title with the other buyer evidence

A title commitment is most useful when compared with related sources:

• Purchase contract: names, property, included rights, title standard, deadlines, and negotiated title or survey provisions.
• Survey or plat: legal description, boundaries, improvements, access, encroachments, and recorded matters shown by the surveyor.
• HOA and condo evidence: declarations, amendments, assessments, transfer requirements, and unit or limited-common-element identity. Use the HOA document guide.
• Seller disclosure: reported boundary, dispute, association, repair, or access matters.
• Municipal and permit sources: legal use, open records, or local requirements where those questions are relevant.
• Inspection and appraisal: property improvements or identity conflicts that need separate physical, valuation, title, or permit review.

A title policy does not replace these sources. Likewise, a permit record or seller statement does not determine what title insurance covers.

6. Distinguish lender's and owner's coverage

The CFPB explains that a lender's title policy generally protects the lender's insured interest, while an owner's policy can protect the homeowner's insured interest against covered pre-policy title claims. Ask for the proposed forms, amounts, endorsements, price, and exceptions, and ask the title professional to explain what each policy would and would not cover.

The CFPB also explains that title services are often among the closing services a buyer can shop for, subject to the transaction and lender process. Federal Regulation X addresses a seller requiring a particular title company in a federally related mortgage transaction. Ask the lender and appropriate professional what choices and timing apply; do not assume a national shopping rule resolves every state or contract question.

7. Confirm changes and the final policy

Ask whether the title search will be updated through recording, which requirements remain, and whether a revised or marked commitment will be provided. Before signing, compare the buyer names, property, legal description, title charges, and agreed terms with the Closing Disclosure and settlement documents. After closing, confirm delivery of the recorded deed and final owner's policy if purchased, then compare the policy with the commitment and retain both.

If an exception, endorsement, insured amount, or legal description changed, ask for a written explanation. Do not assume the final policy is identical to the earlier commitment.

8. Verify money instructions outside email

Closing scams can impersonate a title, settlement, lending, legal, or real-estate contact and send changed wire instructions. Establish the verification process in advance. Confirm instructions in person or by calling a known, independently verified number for the trusted settlement professional. Treat an unexpected change as unverified until confirmed through that process, and contact the financial institution and appropriate authorities immediately if money may have been misdirected.

A printable title commitment ledger

Add open rows to the home-offer evidence worksheet and the home-buyer due-diligence checklist. Use the cash-to-close guide to reconcile title and settlement charges without confusing them with coverage. An online report can organize recorded references and conflicts, but it cannot issue a policy or provide a legal title opinion. The sample Twellie report keeps that professional boundary explicit.