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Title research guides for
real estate investors

Jurisdiction-specific guides on foreclosure title risks, lien priority, and what survives the auction sale — written for investors who bid at courthouse steps, trustee sales, and online auctions.

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63 posts inTitle Defects× Clear

September 6, 2026

Montana Small Tract Financing Act: Trustee Sales and the Liens That Survive on Rural Parcels

Montana's Small Tract Financing Act creates unique trustee sale rules for rural properties—and several lien types survive foreclosure that would be wiped elsewhere.

State Guide Title Defects

August 29, 2026

Baltimore City Ground Rent: The Redeemable Lease That Survives Every Foreclosure

Baltimore's 18th-century ground rent system creates a perpetual lease that survives tax sales and mortgage foreclosures — a $24/year obligation that can cost you the entire property.

Title research guides forreal estate investors

Montana Small Tract Financing Act: Trustee Sales and the Liens That Survive on Rural Parcels

Baltimore City Ground Rent: The Redeemable Lease That Survives Every Foreclosure

St. Louis County Trustee Sales vs. St. Louis City's Torrens System: Why Missouri Foreclosure Investors Face Two Entirely Different Title Universes

Post-Judgment Execution Liens at Dallas County Constable Sales: The Title Cloud That Survives Your Winning Bid

Colorado DOLA Loans: The Rural Housing Lien with a Right of First Refusal That Can Derail Your Foreclosure Purchase

Georgia Dispossessory Sales: Why Winning a Landlord-Tenant Eviction Does Not Transfer Title

Missouri's Torrens System in St. Louis City: Why Your Standard Title Search Protocol Fails Here

Tennessee's Substitute Trustee Foreclosure: Title Risks Hiding Behind Non-Judicial Sales

Maryland Ground Rent: The Colonial-Era Title Defect That Survives Every Foreclosure

Georgia's Non-Judicial Foreclosure Process: What the Newspaper Ad Doesn't Reveal About Title Risk

Ohio's Dormant Mineral Act: Why Severed Mineral Rights Still Cloud Title at Sheriff's Sales

Florida's Homestead Exemption: The Constitutional Shield That Complicates Foreclosure Titles

Maryland Ground Rent: The 17th-Century Relic That Survives Foreclosure and Bankrupts Baltimore Investors

The Missing Probate Court Approval That Voids Guardian Deeds in Ohio

Confession of Judgment Clauses That Create Liens Before Default: The Pennsylvania Trap

When Courts Unwind Fraudulent Mortgage Satisfactions: A New Jersey Title Disaster

When Air Rights Leases Survive Foreclosure: The Illinois Title Trap That Can Cost You the Building's Value

Federal Tax Liens and the Supremacy Clause: Why the IRS Doesn't Need to Record First in Texas

Easement by Necessity in Texas: When Landlocked Parcels Carry Implied Access Rights That Survive Foreclosure

Reverse Subdivision in Ohio: When County Lot Consolidation Creates a Legal Description Nightmare

The Timeshare Deed That Survived Foreclosure: How Vacation Ownership Interests in Florida Can Trump Your Winning Bid

Co-op Share Liens in New York: Why Foreclosing on a Cooperative Unit Is Nothing Like a Condo

The Timeshare Interval Interest That Survives Florida Foreclosure Sales

When CBP Seizes Your Equity: Customs Liens on Mixed-Use Properties in California Border Counties

The Medicare Secondary Payer Lien That Follows Real Estate Proceeds in Florida

The Zoning Violation That Transfers With the Deed in Cook County, Illinois

The Wetlands Designation That Kills Your Florida Development Deal After Closing

When Heirs Unwind Foreclosure Sales: Duress and Undue Influence Claims in Texas Probate Courts

Mental Incapacity at Signing: When a Texas Deed Was Never Valid From Day One

Forged Deeds and Identity Theft Conveyances: How Stolen Properties Slip Through Title Searches in Texas

Lost Note Affidavits in Texas Foreclosures: When Lenders Can't Produce the Original Promissory Note

The Notary Acknowledgment Defect That Makes Your Texas Deed Voidable

Recording Gap Liability: What Happens to Conveyances During a County System Outage in Texas

The Subordination Agreement That Was Never Recorded: How Failed Execution Scrambles Lien Priority in California

Assignment of Rents That Survives Foreclosure in California: The Trap That Costs Investors Rental Income

The USDA Rural Development Lien's Right of First Refusal: A Hidden Resale Trap in Kentucky

The Post-Closing Deficiency Lien Trap: How Servicers Record Liens After Short Sales in Arizona

When a Deed in Lieu Leaves Junior Liens Alive: A Texas Case Study in Failed Lien Extinguishment

When a Dissolved LLC Signs a Deed in Texas: The Conveyance That May Be Void

When a California Beneficiary Can Unwind a Trustee's Self-Dealing Conveyance — And Why Your Foreclosure Title Isn't Safe

When a Trust Amendment Rewrites Ownership: The California Title Trap That Survives Foreclosure Auctions

Wild Deeds in Texas: The Unindexed Conveyance That Can Destroy Your Foreclosure Title

When a Deed Recorded Out of Sequence Breaks the Chain of Title in Ohio

When a California Judgment Follows Your Seller to Texas: The Domesticated Foreign Judgment Lien Trap

The ERISA Pension Lien That Survives Foreclosure in Ohio: A Risk Most Title Searchers Never Check

Federal Drug Forfeiture Interests That Cloud Arizona Titles Without a Court Judgment

The Missing Certificate of Occupancy That Kills Your Funding at Closing

The Unpermitted Addition That Triggers Mandatory Demolition by Code

The Historic Preservation Covenant That Survives Foreclosure and Kills Your Renovation Budget

The Conservation Easement That Kills Your Development Plans Permanently

The Oil and Gas Lease That Binds Your Foreclosure Purchase for 20 More Years

The Severed Mineral Rights That Let Someone Drill Through Your Foundation

The Solar Lease Fixture Filing That Survives Your Foreclosure Purchase

The Prescriptive Easement That Survived Your Foreclosure Purchase

The Unrecorded Easement That Lets Your Neighbor Block Your Development

The Life Estate Deed That Survives Your Foreclosure Purchase

The Revoked Power of Attorney That Voids Your Deed

The Minor Grantor Problem That Can Unwind Your Entire Chain of Title

The Zombie HELOC That Survives Your Foreclosure Purchase

The Forged Satisfaction That Resurrects a 'Paid Off' Mortgage

The Reverse Mortgage Death That Derails Your Foreclosure Purchase

The Open Building Permit That Makes Your Acquisition Uninsurable

The PACE Lien That Survives Your First Mortgage Foreclosure

Title research guides for
real estate investors