Tax Sale Guide Home
Title Searches
Chapter: LIENS
Just wondering if there is a property that one is serious about, what is the most economical way to do a title search. Would it be cost effective to hire a lawyer each time? Is there a site that does this for you for a reasonable cost?
jrest
I thought I read someplace that with some land registry offices, you can do a title searchs in an other area if the other area has the same online system. Is this so and what systems would that be?
Mike
Can anyone point me to some resources for learning how to do a title search. I've always used a lawyer up to this point, but like the idea of doing it myself some day.
jrest
I phoned a registry office and asked about PPSR system and the lady said that you could not get land information off it and it was for doing searches on things like vechiles. Mind you I phoned over lunch time. Can PPSR access files in other registry offices?
Who do you call for a Title Search, how are they listed in the yellow pages?
Do you have to deal with someone in the search area or are there companies that do prov. wide?
Can someone recomend a company?
Frank
Here's a link to a title search company that does it in Ontario at a reasonable price:
http://www.bdc-canada.com/DOCUM/services/landregistrysearch.htm
I've never used their service and can't vourch for them.
Most lawyer's offices use 'e-reg' to do their transactions and searches these days, and nearly all of the registry offices in Ontario are now on it (but not all - they are being phased-in). If you know what your are doing you can go to the registry office for the property you are looking at and do your own search for $8 (photo-copy costs are extra if you need them - I usually get a copy of the property R plan). Some municipalities include the PIN number in their information kit, but you can get it easy enough at the registry office provided you know the address or legal description of the property.
If you don't know what you are doing, go the registry office anyways. They all have free-lance searchers that hang out there (they work on a consulting basis with the lawyer's offices), and for a small fee they will help you with your search (and you can learn something) - by looking dumb I've had some of them take pity on me and gotten free guidance as to what and where to look for. Just ask at the main desk if there is a free-lancer in the office and they will point you to him/her (chances are they've already done the search on your property ten times that same day for other tax property enthusiasts).
Each registry office houses the information for property within its specific area of jurisdiction. There is a previous posting which lists the location of all registry offices. You can only get information for the properties within their respective areas. The new e-reg system is designed to cover all of them electronically, and most sophisticated lawyers and title shops will have spent the money to get on this system.
Their areas do not always make much sense, for example the registry office which covers properties in Nipissing village (which is only about 10 miles from North Bay - where there is a registry office), is actually in Perry Sound - quite a ways off. When you are looking at a municipal tax sale property, a simple call to the tax office there will tell you which registry office looks after the property in question.
I don't believe that geo-warehouse has all of the information which is required to do a property title search.
Go to this site for the latest list and status of each of the registry offices:
http://www.cbs.gov.on.ca/mcbs/english/4UJMZ3.htm
There are 54 of them.