Oklahoma Adds Provisions Regarding Title Insurance
By Zachary Pearlstein, J.D.
Effective November 1, 2015, the State of Oklahoma has updated its regulations concerning title insurance.
The new provisions allow title insurance companies to execute and record certain records. When a mortgagee fails to execute and deliver a release of mortgage to the mortgagor (or designated agent) within 60 days of the receipt of payment of the mortgage by the mortgagee, in accordance with a payoff statement furnished by the mortgagee or its mortgage servicer, an authorized officer of a title insurance company (or appointed agent) may execute and record an affidavit in the real property records of each county in which the mortgage was recorded. The provisions note that the written approval of the title insurance company will appear on the affidavit if executed by an agent.
The provisions describe the contents of the affidavit, which must state that:
1. the affiant is an authorized officer or a duly appointed agent of a title insurance company;
2. the affidavit is made on behalf of the mortgagor or a transferee of the mortgagor who acquired title to the property described in the mortgage;
3. the mortgagee provided a payoff statement with respect to The loan secured by the mortgage;
4. the affiant has ascertained that the mortgagee has received payment of the loan secured by the mortgage in accordance with the payoff statement, as evidenced by:
a. a bank check, certified check, cashier’s check, escrow account check from the title company or title insurance agent or attorney trust account check that has been negotiated by the mortgagee,
b. wire transfer, or c. another documentary evidence of the receipt of payment by the mortgagee;
5. more than sixty 60 days have elapsed since the date payment was received by the mortgagee;
6. the title insurance company or its duly appointed agent has given the mortgagee at least 15 days’ notice in writing by certified mail, return receipt requested, of its intention to execute and record an affidavit in accordance with this section, with a copy of the proposed affidavit attached to the written notice; and
7. the mortgagee has not responded in writing to the notification at least 15 days before the affidavit is recorded.
The affidavit must include the names of the mortgagor and the mortgagee, the date of the mortgage, the legal description of the property, and the book and page or clerk’s document number of the real property records where the mortgage and/or modification is recorded, together with similar information for a recorded assignment of the mortgage. The affiant must attach to the affidavit a photostatic copy, certified by the affiant as a true copy of the original document, of:
1. the documentary evidence that payment has been received by the mortgagee, including the endorsement of the mortgagee of a negotiated check if paid by check or proof of a wire transfer if paid by wire.
2. the bank account number and routing number on the check or proof of wire transfer may be redacted by the filer; and
3. the payoff statement.
The regulations provide that an affidavit, once executed and recorded, shall operate as a release of the mortgage described in the affidavit. The county clerk will then index the affidavit against the real property described in the mortgage and the affidavit.
Zachary Pearlstein, J.D. is Regulatory Compliance Consultant at Bankers Advisory. He is a graduate of Brandeis University and earned his Juris Doctor at Suffolk Law School. Zachary is admitted to the Bar in Massachusetts. He can be reached at Zachary@bankersadvisory.com
Zachary Pearlstein, JD, is a Regulatory Compliance Director with CLA's Mortgage Advisory Division. He joined CLA on January 1, 2014, as part of its acquisition of Bankers Advisory, Inc. Zachary oversees Mortgage Advisory's regulatory compliance team, which focuses on federal and state compliance, fair lending, and the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). He is a graduate of Brandeis University and earned his juris doctor at Suffolk University Law School. He is admitted to the Massachusetts Bar.
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