Fund News

When title to real property is held by the trustee of a Qualified Personal Residence Trust (QPRT), Fund Members are sometimes surprised that a Commitment involving a QPRT requires review of the QPRT agreement by the title examiner prior to completion of the Commitment. Title issues involving the ability to rely on the Sec. 689.073, F.S., statutory trustee powers, homestead concerns, and who needs to execute the deed from the QPRT, all cannot be determined until the QPRT agreement has been reviewed. To understand why such review is necessary, the Fund Member must first know what a QPRT is to understand the need to “get a jump” on having the QPRT reviewed. The goal of this article is not to delve into the complex tax ramifications of a QPRT, but rather to provide a general understanding of what a QPRT is, how it works, and what is necessary to insure title. Read the article

Issuing a title insurance policy insuring a loan on Florida real property may involve endorsing the loan policy post-closing as construction of improvements on the land progresses. This is where the Construction Loan Update endorsement (CLU) comes into play. Unlike most other endorsements providing affirmative coverage to the policy, the CLU is issued after closing when disbursements from loan funds to pay the contractor, called “draws,” are requested. The CLU is designed to help the lender ensure that its requirements, allowing the periodic payments of the construction loan to the contractor during construction, are met. The Florida version of the CLU is not unique, but the version authorized for use in Florida differs significantly from the American Land Title Association (ALTA) forms used in other parts of the country. Read the article

As a result of Financial Crimes Enforcement Network’s (FinCEN) most recent anti-money laundering effort, a new Residential Real Estate Rule (the Rule) will take effect on Dec. 1, 2025. Many closing agents in certain Florida counties are already familiar with the Geographic Targeting Orders (GTOs) and have become accustomed to reporting certain cash purchases to FinCEN already. Beginning Dec. 1, 2025, all non-financed transfers to entities or trusts for residential real property in all U.S. states, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, U.S. territories, and Native American land are to be reported to FinCEN, and the reporting requirements under the GTOs will be eliminated. Read the article

By way of background, Florida’s homestead exemption laws have been compared by legal scholars and courts to a chameleon “which changes color to accord with the background against which it is viewed.” Crosby and Miller, Our Legal Chameleon: The Florida Homestead Exemption, 2 U. Fla. L. Rev. 12 (1949). Read the article

This article is the fourth in a series of articles addressing specific title objections that may arise from a lender or borrower’s counsel. Like its predecessors, this article is designed to help Fund Members analyze the merits of specific objections and provide potential resolutions. Read the article

Vacation is not a word often associated with title. Vacation is typically an eagerly awaited plan or the subject of daydreams. When insuring title, however, vacation takes on a whole different meaning. “Vacation” of a platted street or alley means that the public’s interest in a property is being eliminated or “vacated.” This article will discuss what interests are created in the streets and alleys by virtue of the platting process, and once a street or an alley (hereinafter referred to as “street”) is vacated, who owns that vacated land, in what proportion, and the steps for insuring. 

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Frequently, Fund Members receive a Commitment with a deed restriction that one party to the transaction finds objectionable. This article is meant to be a practical guide for addressing those title objections. Read the article

Most real property practitioners are familiar with tax deeds incident to the nonpayment of real property taxes. However, escheatment tax deeds are less common. This article addresses the guidelines for insuring when the tax deed process becomes an escheatment tax deed process. Read the article

Industry Leadership at its Finest! Yesterday, Florida Land Title Association (FLTA) members installed Fund General Counsel Melissa Jay Murphy as their 2024-2025 President.

In today’s real estate market, one can never be too careful when it comes to mortgage payoffs. The mounting increase in payoff fraud and wire diversion continues to disrupt the real estate market as fraudsters find more creative and devious ways of defrauding unsuspecting parties who fall victim to their ploys. This article will revisit mortgage payoffs, address some common underwriting questions, and recommend some best practices and tips to incorporate into the daily practice of handling transactional closings. Read the article