When you buy real property, you don’t get handed the piece of land. You get title to a piece of land. Title is the owner’s right to possess and use the property. Most people are familiar with insurance that covers events that have not yet happened. Usually, these policies exclude events that occur before the date the policy is issued. You will not find an insurance company that will give you insurance coverage for a car accident that has already occurred.
Title insurance is different. It covers events relating to the title that have already happened. It does not cover anything that happens to the title after the date of issuance. If you have liens filed against the property for taxes that you didn’t get around to paying, your title insurance policy is not going to help you. But, if there is a problem with a deed from fifty years ago, then you may have coverage under your title policy.
