Editorials - 02/20/03

Sloppy work at vital deeds office is hard to understand and must be addressed

Though this week marks the first time the information has appeared in a news story, we have been hearing of problems at the Register of Deeds Office since November.

At first we thought a petition being circulated was triggered by anger over Joe Hamilton's firing of veteran deeds office staffer LaRae Hooper just one day after he was elected to his second term.

But as we began digging, we discovered the petition questioned Hamilton's qualifications and stemmed from genuine concern that the office charged with maintaining the county's vital records was not being administered property.

The initial alarm was sounded by area paralegals, those professionals who do the title searches required before buyers can purchase their title insurance designed to safeguard any real estate investment.

A group of them started the petition and were ready in December to share their information on the type and frequency of deeds office discrepancies with this newspaper. Before that happened, local real estate attorneys, realizing the magnitude and implications of the problem, decided to send emissaries to meet with Hamilton in hopes of getting matters corrected without any embarrassment or hard feelings.

We continued to pursue the story and were referred to various attorneys, none of whom were then willing to speak on the record.

"We want to work things out with Joe," was the gist of what they told us.

Yet two months after Hamilton agreed to correct mistakes pointed out to him, the county bar association could not find evidence he had done so, and mistakes continued at an alarming rate. Steps were then taken to make county attorney Paul Holt aware of the situation, since Jackson County faces enormous liability if inaccuracies persist.

Realizing everyone who owns property and pays taxes in Jackson County has a stake in the accuracy of real estate records, attorneys last week decided to go public with the information.

We're glad they did, because this is a story that cried out to be written. If ever a story demonstrates "the people's right to know," this is it.

The real estate market in Jackson County is booming, and its health depends on the accuracy of the vital records maintained by the register of deeds.

If deeds or deeds of trust are indexed incorrectly, they cannot be discovered during title searches. If a first lien is not found, a second bank could loan money on the same property, thinking it is holding a first mortgage. If that property owner defaults, the second mortgage holder would seek to recover its loss from the title insurance company. If the error was determined to have been caused by improper record keeping, the title insurance company would seek damages from the county.

How many payouts would it take for a bonding agency to refuse to insure Jackson County? We don't know. But if it ever happened, it would be the end of this county's real estate market, according to one attorney, because it would be impossible for buyers to purchase title insurance.

There's already been one title search that failed to uncover a deed of trust recorded but not correctly indexed. Luckily for all parties involved (and the county), the lawyer representing the seller had prepared the deed of trust and was able to straighten things out before the property transfer was completed.

When it comes to real estate transactions, it should be accurate records, not luck, that protect our investments.

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