Frequently Asked Questions

Title insurance protects property owners and lenders against covered issues with ownership rights. These can include ownership disputes, undisclosed liens, and certain defects in the title record that were not identified before closing. Instead of covering future events, it protects against past issues tied to the property. Somebody else's old problem stops being yours.

If you are financing your purchase, your lender will generally require a lender's title insurance policy. An owner's policy is usually optional, but it is strongly recommended to protect your own equity and ownership rights. Without an owner's policy, you may have to pay legal costs yourself to defend a covered title claim. You pay for it once, at closing, and it lasts as long as you own the house.

In Tennessee, title insurance premiums are generally based on the purchase price or loan amount. The premium is typically paid as a one-time charge at closing rather than a monthly expense. Exact pricing can vary depending on the transaction details and policy type. We can provide a clear estimate early in the process so there are no surprises at closing.

At Vanderpool Law, your closing attorney reviews the legal documents, confirms the title and closing requirements, and sees that the transaction is handled correctly. Your attorney can explain legal terms in plain language and answer questions specific to your situation. A title company cannot give legal advice. For the same fee a title company charges, Vanderpool Law offers four complimentary services to every buyer and seller, before you sign or after: contract review, a preliminary title search, a preliminary settlement statement, and a savings check. All you have to do is ask. Before you sign, or after.

At Vanderpool Law you are the client: for the same fee a title company charges, the firm represents you at the closing table and offers four complimentary services to every buyer and seller, before you sign or after: contract review, a preliminary title search, a preliminary settlement statement, and a savings check. All you have to do is ask. Title companies can coordinate paperwork and issue policies, but they generally cannot provide legal advice to you. We can identify legal risks, answer legal questions, and advise you on contract and closing issues. In many cases, our closing fee is the same as a title company's.

Because a title company cannot give you legal advice, and Vanderpool Law answers your questions as your lawyer before and at closing. That includes contract review, issue spotting, and guidance if unexpected title or deal concerns appear. A title company cannot act as your legal advisor in the same way. For the same fee a title company charges, Vanderpool Law offers four complimentary services to every buyer and seller, before you sign or after: contract review, a preliminary title search, a preliminary settlement statement, and a savings check. All you have to do is ask. Send us the contract, before you sign or after.

It depends on your goals, family structure, and the type of assets you own. A trust can help avoid probate for assets properly transferred into the trust, while a will directs how probate assets are handled. Most plans with a trust also have a short will to catch anything left out of it. Jim will tell you which you need.

A will generally takes effect at death and assets passing under it usually go through probate court. A trust can be effective during your lifetime and can continue managing assets after death under its terms. Assets titled in a funded trust typically avoid probate. They do different jobs. Many families need both.

If you die without a will, Tennessee intestacy laws determine who inherits your probate estate. The distribution may not match your personal wishes, especially in blended family or complex situations. The court will appoint an administrator to handle the estate process. Creating an estate plan allows you to choose decision-makers and control how assets are distributed.

Our office is located at 256 Seaboard Lane G-104, Franklin, TN 37067. We serve clients throughout Franklin, Nashville, and surrounding Middle Tennessee communities. If you need directions or scheduling help, our team can assist before your visit.

Fees vary depending on the service and complexity of your matter. For many real estate closings, our fee is the same as what clients would pay through a title company. Estate planning fees depend on the type of documents and planning objectives involved. Contact us for a clear quote based on your needs.

You can schedule by visiting our contact page at /contact and sending a message through the form. You may also call our office to discuss your matter and appointment options. We will help you identify the right next step for your closing or estate planning needs.

Whoever the contract says. In Middle Tennessee the seller customarily pays both policies on a resale home, but it's 100% negotiable. The full answer, with what moves the price and the reissue rate on a refinance: Who pays for title insurance in Tennessee?

If you own a home here, it's worth a hard look. A will doesn't avoid probate; it guarantees it. Whether a trust is right for you depends on the rest of your situation. The full answer, with what a trust costs and the funding step people skip: Living trust in Tennessee: do you need one?

Two of them, for two different jobs. A durable power of attorney names who pays your bills and signs for you if you can't; without one, your family may have to go to court. A healthcare power of attorney and advance directive names who decides for you in the hospital, and writes down what you want. The full answers: Durable power of attorney in Tennessee and Healthcare power of attorney and advance directive in Tennessee.

You're in the majority; most adults don't have an estate plan, and only about one in four has a will. Do nothing and Tennessee's defaults decide who inherits, who handles your money if you can't, who decides at the hospital, and how the house gets through probate. It isn't a bad plan. It just isn't yours. And fixing it isn't only for rich people: No estate plan? Here's the plan Tennessee has for you instead.

No. A will needs your signature and two witnesses; the notary is for the self-proving affidavit that lets the court accept the will without calling the witnesses. What happens if you die without one, and why a will doesn't avoid probate: Wills in Tennessee: what makes one valid, and what happens if you die without one.

Offer, contract, earnest money, inspection period, loan and appraisal, title work, the Closing Disclosure three business days out, then closing. Where first-time buyers lose money, the state's THDA help, and the contract line that lets you pick who closes for you: First-time home buyer in Tennessee: what happens between the offer and the keys.

It pays if someone else turns out to have a claim to your house from before you bought it. Your lender requires the lender's policy; the owner's policy is optional, and we recommend it. What it covers and doesn't: What is title insurance, and do you need the owner's policy in Tennessee?

No. The 2026 bill to create one was withdrawn. A deed into your living trust, or ownership with survivorship, is how a house passes without probate here. What a quitclaim really promises, what adding a spouse or child to the deed does, and how to take an ex off: Deeds in Tennessee: quitclaim, adding a name, and transfer on death.

You do. Whether you're the buyer or the seller, the Tennessee contract has a place for you to choose who closes for you, and a 2026 law protects that choice. The full answer, with the law and the one question to ask before you sign, is here: Who picks the title company in Tennessee?