What does a title company do? The company that confirms the seller owns the home free of undisclosed liens, insures the buyer and lender against title defects, and in Nevada also holds the money and runs the closing as neutral escrow.
A title company does two jobs that most western states combine in one office. The title side searches the public records for the chain of ownership and every recorded lien, easement and claim, issues a preliminary report of what has to be cleared, and after closing issues title insurance policies to the lender and the buyer. The escrow side holds the earnest money, gathers the payoff and HOA documents, prepares the settlement statement, arranges signing, receives the lender's funds, pays everyone, records the deed and disburses the seller's proceeds.
It is neutral by law. The escrow officer follows the contract and written instructions from both sides and takes no position when they disagree, which is why disputes go back to the agents and the parties rather than to the title company.
The buyer usually chooses the title company (federal law forbids a seller from requiring one as a condition of sale), premiums are set by filed rates and vary little between companies, and the escrow officer's responsiveness matters more than the fee. In attorney-closing states a lawyer runs the closing and the title company issues only the insurance.
A worked example
On a $450,000 Las Vegas sale, the title company's preliminary report shows a 2011 deed of trust that was paid off but never reconveyed. The escrow officer tracks down the successor lender, obtains the reconveyance, records it, and closing slips a week. Without the search, the buyer would have taken title with a phantom $200,000 lien on the record.
Read the county record the title search starts from
Questions people ask
Who chooses the title company?
Usually the buyer, and federal law forbids a seller from requiring a particular one as a condition of the sale. In practice the agents suggest one and either side can object.
How much does a title company charge?
An escrow fee of a few hundred to about a thousand dollars, split by custom, plus the title insurance premiums at filed rates: roughly $1,000 to $2,500 for an owner's policy on a typical home, and less for the lender's policy issued alongside it.