These bills were passed by both Houses of the State Legislature.  Governor Hochul's Office must call for the bills to be sent to the Executive Chamber.  Her options are to sign the bill, which is then "chaptered", she may veto the bill or she may negotiate with the Legislature to amend the bill.

Some of these bill authorize a local government to levy a tax or grant an exemption.

The NYSLTA Legislative Committee reviews and tracks hundreds of bills every session, in consultation with our professional lobbyists.

The below tracked bills have passed both houses:

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING
New York State Land Title Association
Via ZOOM
May 14, 2024
10:30 AM


AGENDA
1.  Call to order – President Swarthout
2.  President’s Greeting – President Swarthout
3.  Approval of April Minutes - Executive Director Treuber
4.  Exec Director Report – Executive Director Treuber
5.  Treasurer’s Report – Mr. D’Addona
6.  Title Section Report – Vice-chair Alonso
7.  Agent Section Report – Chair Giliotti
8.  Advocacy Committee Report – Chairs Pereyo & Stancanelli
9.  Education Committee – Chair LaBar
10 Government Regulations Committee Report – Chair Cahill
11. Land Records Committee – Chair Alonso
        a.    Suffolk County meeting report
12.New Business
13.    Adjourn

Real World Stories of Title Insurance Protection

From HousingWire

https://www.housingwire.com/articles/opinion-title-insurance-matters-heres-why/

Last month, the Biden Administration announced the revival of a previously abandoned pilot program that would waive the requirement for lender’s title insurance on certain home refinances – part of a misdirected effort to address housing affordability. Additionally, the CFPB has shortsightedly questioned the benefits and cost of title insurance.

It’s uncertain whether federal regulators are purposefully misleading Americans about the potential savings or just don’t understand how title insurance works. The truth is the cost of title insurance coverage has decreased nearly 8% over the last two decades due to innovation in the industry.

Critics of title insurance highlight a limited understanding of the vital nature of title insurance protection by mistakenly and repeatedly referring to the industry’s lower claims rate relative to other lines of insurance. A 70% claims rate — standard for other insurance lines — on property rights would be catastrophic to our economy. Success in the title insurance industry is measured by preventing claims in the first place. A lower claims rate means that title agents are succeeding in their job by resolving any title issues and reducing risk upfront – protecting the largest asset most households will ever own and source of their greatest wealth over time.

Title insurance is significantly different from other lines of insurance. For a one-time fee paid at closing, title insurance provides homeowners protection for as they or their heirs own the property. Other types of insurance charge monthly or yearly premiums. The facts are clear: title insurance is essential to protecting homeowners and their most important investment both during the initial purchase of a home and refinancing – and it exists for a reason.

Without a title insurance policy, homeowners can find themselves fighting for their property over issues they never knew existed.

Here are some real-world examples of how title insurance protects consumers:

Surviving Spouse Left Without Deed

Under the new pilot program, the requirement for a lender’s title insurance policy on certain refinances would be waived – but this can leave homeowners vulnerable. For example, a property owner passes away and leaves behind his surviving wife. If the widow isn’t listed on the deed, issues regarding ownership could arise when the wife goes to refinance. During the refinance process, title insurance professionals would do their due diligence to disqualify any potential heirs who may attempt to claim the property down the road. This would allow the surviving wife to officially claim ownership of the property. The proposed pilot program would not identify this type of issue with a search engine.

IRS Tells Couple: “You Don’t Own Your Home”

After purchasing their home from an individual who had acquired it from an IRS auction, a couple found out the government agency had rescinded the original sale. The IRS refused to turn over the deed to the new homeowners because of unpaid tax bills by a previous owner. The couple contacted their title company and were told they had coverage for this dilemma. Thanks to their title insurance policy and the great work conducted by their title professionals, the couple was able to keep their home, and they didn’t have to pay a dime out of pocket. Fannie Mae is not capitalized to address these issues, nor is set up to be able to pay these types of claims.

Sold—But Not by Homeowners

After a California vacation home was left unused for several months, the county notified the homeowners that the property had sold – but the owners hadn’t put the house up for sale. This was a case of seller impersonation fraud, where an unsavory actor posed as a homeowner and fraudulently “sold” a property. Thankfully, due to their title insurance policy, the homeowners were protected against post-policy fraud; title professionals were able to expunge the fraudulent deed from the record. The “buyer” also had a title insurance policy for the transaction, and their title company paid them the purchase price of the home – money that they otherwise would have lost without their policy. Fraud and forgery claims account for more than 20% of claims expenses and dollars paid to insureds.
Approximately one-third of all claims are for issues that would not be found in a public records search – demonstrating that title insurance could not be effectively replaced by an automated search engine that will be used under the title waiver program.

Title Insurance Provides Essential Protection

The above examples barely scratch the surface when it comes to the protection provided by title insurance. Time and time again, seasoned title professionals have saved American homeowners from their homes being seized, stolen, or defrauded. The Biden Administration’s pilot program would put Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in charge of resolving any title-related claims that arise for qualified borrowers refinancing – a seismic shift in the housing finance system.

Title insurance is equally important when homeowners refinance. When a homeowner refinances, they obtain a new loan. Lenders require a new title search for a title insurance policy on that loan to protect their investment in the property. If this is not done correctly, the homeowner could still face collection on a previous mortgage thought to have been paid off. Similarly, a lender could face the risk that they do not have the required lien priority.

Under the Administration’s title waiver plan, title insurance professionals will be eliminated from refinance transactions, removing a key layer of anti-fraud protections for consumers and lenders. Consumers and lenders who are victims of refinance fraud would have to investigate and negotiate a resolution with some unidentified department within the GSEs, and consumers could ultimately be forced into property sale or foreclosure.

By turning Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into title insurers, the GSEs would also be moving beyond its charter into a primary market activity. The 2008 financial crisis happened the last time these entities took on significant risk for which they were ill-equipped to handle.

The title industry agrees that homeownership should be more attainable and affordable for more Americans. However, the notion that title insurance is in any way a principal driver of affordability challenges is misguided. Title insurance is crucial to protecting American homeowners, lenders, and their most important investments.

ALTA Honors New York State Land Title Association President with National Title Professional Recognition

Washington, D.C., April 23, 2024 — Eric Swarthout NTP has earned his National Title Professional (NTP) designation from the American Land Title Association (ALTA), the national trade association of the land title insurance industry. Formally acknowledged with his NTP designation on March 1, Swarthout is one of 111 leaders across the United States, and the third in New York State, who have devoted their careers to the land title industry and earned their designation.

The designation recognizes land title professionals who demonstrate the knowledge, experience and dedication essential to the safe and efficient transfer of real property.*

“‘National Title Professional’ is a recognition bestowed upon only the most knowledgeable and committed title insurance professionals,” said ALTA President Don Kennedy. “ALTA members earning their designation must undergo a vigorous audit and demonstrate extensive experience in and dedication to the title insurance industry. Eric has been a title professional for 25 years; his knowledge, expertise and longevity made him an ideal candidate for the NTP designation. I hope other title insurance professionals follow his lead and aim for this achievement.”

As a member of the title insurance community since 1999, Swarthout is the president of Thoroughbred Title Services, a HomeServices of America company, in Rye Brook, N.Y. He also serves as president of the New York State Land Title Association. Swarthout received his New York Title Insurance Producer license in 2015.

A full directory of National Title Professionals is available here.

On March 7, 2024, FHFA announced the intention to explore a pilot that would allow lenders to forgo a lender’s title insurance policy or attorney opinion letter (AOL) on a small population of refinance loans sold to Fannie Mae in an effort to reduce closing costs for borrowers.  Since that announcement, Fannie Mae has been working with FHFA to develop a Title Acceptance pilot framework and has received increased interest from title and settlement service and technology providers seeking to participate in the pilot. 

In response to that interest, Fannie Mae announced today that it will issue a Request for Proposal to identify potential suppliers to participate in the Title Acceptance pilot.  The Request for Proposal, which will be issued by the end of the second quarter, will provide Fannie Mae the opportunity to evaluate interested industry participants for potential inclusion in the pilot that have viable technology solutions for managing title-related risk and reducing closing costs for borrowers.