Yes. Your new lender needs a lender's title policy, and an insurer can't issue one without a current search. For a Tampa home, we search the Hillsborough County Clerk's official records from your purchase forward, or Pinellas County's for a St. Pete home, so anything recorded since, like judgments or contractor's liens, gets cleared before the loan funds.
Your Owner's Policy Still Protects You
If you bought an owner's title policy when you purchased the home, it stays in force for as long as you or your heirs own the property. A refinance doesn't cancel it, and you won't need to buy a new one, because nothing about who owns the house is changing.
The lender's policy from your original loan is a different story. That policy protected the old lender, and it ends once that loan is paid off at your refinance closing. Our post on owner's versus lender's title insurance explains the split in more detail if you're not sure which one you have.
Why Your New Lender Wants a New Search
Your new lender is making a fresh loan and wants to sit in first position, ahead of every other claim on the property. Florida law backs that up from the insurer's side, since section 627.7845 of the Florida Statutes says a title insurer has to base every policy on a reasonable title search before it issues coverage.
The search on your purchase only covered the records up to the day you closed. Everything recorded after that date is unknown until someone looks, and a lender won't hand over funds on a guess. So we pick up the search, review what's been filed since your purchase and confirm the old mortgage will be paid in full and satisfied of record.
What We Look for Since Your Purchase
Life happens between a purchase and a refinance, and some of it ends up in the public records. Here's the kind of thing a refinance search turns up.
- Money judgments from a lawsuit, an unpaid medical bill or a credit card collection, which can attach to Florida real property once they're recorded
- Contractor liens from a remodel, roof replacement or pool job where someone on the crew wasn't paid
- HOA or condo association liens for late assessments
- City code enforcement liens for unpermitted work or an overgrown yard
- Federal tax liens filed by the IRS
- An old home equity line that was paid down but never formally released
Each of these has to be paid, released or otherwise handled before the new lender will close. Our post on how property liens affect a Tampa closing covers the common fixes, and your homestead status can change how a judgment affects the property, so tell us early if anything on that list sounds familiar.
Where we look depends on the county. A Tampa home's records sit with the Hillsborough County Clerk, and a St. Petersburg or Clearwater home's records sit with the Pinellas County Clerk, which keeps deed images online from 1957 to the present. Either way, we start where your purchase search stopped and read forward to today.
How Long It Takes and What It Costs
A refinance search is usually quicker than a purchase search because there's less ground to cover, though the timing still depends on the county and what we find. Our post on how long a Florida title search takes breaks down what speeds a search up and what slows it down.
The lender's policy premium on a refinance follows Florida's state-set rates, and Rule 69O-186.003 of the Florida Administrative Code sets a reissue rate for a lender's policy on a refinance when an owner's policy insured your title. Keep a copy of your old owner's policy handy and run your numbers on our Florida title insurance calculator before you lock in your refinance.
Cash-Out Refinances and Home Equity Lines
A cash-out refinance gets the same full search as a rate-and-term refinance, since the new lender is still taking first position on a bigger loan. A home equity line of credit can be different, because some HELOC lenders accept a lighter property report in place of a full lender's policy.
Ask your lender which product they're ordering so you know what to expect. If you're adding or removing someone from the deed at the same time, tell us before closing, because that changes the paperwork and the title work we need to do.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I get a title insurance discount when I refinance my Tampa home?
You may. Florida's rate rule, 69O-186.003 of the Florida Administrative Code, sets a reissue rate for a lender's policy on a refinance when an owner's policy insured your title, and the title agent has to keep a copy of that prior policy. Send us the owner's policy from your Hillsborough or Pinellas purchase and we'll apply the rate it qualifies for.
Do I need a new title search when I refinance in Florida?
Yes. Your new lender needs a lender's title policy, and the insurer has to base it on a current title search. The search covers everything recorded since your purchase.
Do I need a new owner's title policy when I refinance?
No. Your owner's policy stays in force as long as you own the home, and a refinance doesn't change ownership. Only the lender's policy is new.
Who pays for title insurance on a Florida refinance?
You usually pay for the lender's policy and the title search on a refinance. Florida sets title premiums by rule, and a reissue credit may apply if you have your prior policy.
What can delay a refinance title search?
Liens and judgments recorded since you bought are the usual cause. An old mortgage or home equity line that was never formally released can also hold things up until the lender records a satisfaction.