After a property has been foreclosed or it has been acquired by some loss mitigation technique (ie, a deed in lieu, etc.) then it is Real Estate Owned (hence REO) by the lending institution. The lending institution will then need a title search of some type to be done so that all title problems can be identified and cleared up and the lending institution can cleanly sell the property to a new buyer.
We call this an REO Search, and American Documents & Title has done hundreds of these searches in the past and we continue to do many more each month.
Typically an REO Search is 30 to 50 years in length but this does vary with each client and the jurisdiction where the property is located. As with the foreclosure search, the REO Search requirements are individualized and the exact requirements are established by the client. In an REO Search a very keen eye is directed toward handling any previously identified or currently remaining title defects no matter how small. The worst thing for our clients is to have a sale of a property not go through because of some unidentified title defect that allows the buyer to back out of the transaction.
We handle REO Searches in much the same way as we do Foreclosure Searches. We work closely with the client to insure that our order form is complete and accurate. We upgrade the order form as needed to improve our work as we go along. Then we run tight control on our abstractors to make sure they read our order forms and that they comply with our requirements so that we actually deliver what our client needs.
