How to: Title Research in Texas
From the earliest Texas patents (ie: original grants from Texas & other sovereigns) to the present, the surface and mineral estates have often undergone a lot of changes and tracts of land have typically changed in size, shape, ownership, encumbered status, and use. When researching land title records our task is to locate each change and create an abstract showing these changes throughout time from patent or grant to the present. This document of compiled changes to the land throughout time is often called a runsheet but is basically, just a list of the various links that create a chain of title.
How to Search the Records:
Title is “run” by searching the indices of the various types of records in the County Clerk’s Office throughout time. The search may be completed using different fields of search but the most reliable is by the name of the Grantor or Grantee. Grantor is the individual(s) or entity giving the interest. Grantee is the individual(s) or entity receiving the interest.
a. Types of records:
(i) Real Property Records (Deed Records, Official Public Records, Official Records, etc.)
(ii) Deed of Trust Records
(iii) Oil and Gas Records
(iv) Plat Records
(v) Probate Records
(vi) Marriage Records
(vii) Birth and Death Records
(viii) Commissioner Court Records
(ix) District Court Records (another office outside County Clerk’s with own indices listing potentially applicable lawsuits)
b. Index, Books, Records: How to search title in the County Clerk’s Office?
(i) Find the index applicable to the type of records you are searching.
(ii) Open the index with the applicable year(s) you are looking for (Index books will usually be stacked on a shelf separated by Grantor/Grantee and will be situated in order from sovereignty to present. (Ex: Index A: 1900-1910, B: 1910-1920, etc.)
(iii) Each County has index books that may be slightly different but generally you want to follow the instructions in the book showing where the name you are running is located within the book. (For Ex: Searching for Indiana Jones – then you will open the book and look for the section that contains the Jones surname, then look through the pages in that specific range of pages for Indiana Jones.
(iv) As you find each applicable entry for Indiana Jones you must take notes, get copies, or take photographs of the instrument so you can add it to the runsheet later. Or, you could build the Runsheet as you find applicable instruments if you feel comfortable doing so.
(v) When searching for entities or organizations in the index books it is best to always check the last few pages of the alphabetical section you are in as well as the back few pages of the book. In some counties, clerks would simply add organizations at the end rather than index them based off of name.
(vi) An online search can make this process easier because you will not have to physically pull books throughout time or have to locate the section of the index applicable to your search. You simply can run the record (all or specific) for a name and get all applicable instruments to that name of which you can then sift through. Always check to see how far back the online records are available in order to not miss anything. Also, it is well known that while online records are helpful, they are not always reliable. The most prudent title examiners will double check their work in the courthouse records.
Compiling a Chain of Title:
Knowing what names to “run” comes from building a chain of title from a source deed. A source deed is the instrument that delivers the property to the party who currently owns the property or has rights to the interest we are concerned with. A source deed can also be described as the instrument that conveys the interest or title into a person, group, or family. Normally, review of the county appraisal district for the current surface owner will lead to a source deed into a modern landowner who we are trying to establish good title into. However, a source deed could provide a starting point anywhere in the chain. We use the party named in the source deed and the date of the deed as a starting point to begin our title run. We may run backwards in time by using the Grantee books or forwards in time using the Grantor books depending on the scope of the project and at what time our source deed is located on the timeline.
For Example, say our client wants good title into Indiana Jones’ interests in the Temple of Doom. We would:
a. Ask for a source deed or locate a source deed via running Indiana’s name.
b. Note the name and date of the source deed (For example here – Norman Jones to Indiana Jones (1983))
c. Check the scope of the project (Here, limited to mineral title from 1900 – present)
d. So, with the stated limitation in mind, we would run Norman Jones as the Grantee in order to figure out how he acquired the minerals (if he has them) back in time.
e. If we find a mineral deed in 1953 from Roy Wally to Norman Jones then we can use any reference on that document to help us (For Example: say the Mineral Deed references Volume 120, Page 123 which we go look up and find is a conveyance from Chevy Chase to Mark Wally in 1900.
f. We most likely have created a referenced (cursory) chain of title back to the starting year for this projects scope.
g. Now we can run Chevy Chase and each subsequent Grantee of his forward in time as Grantor to see every applicable conveyance of the land and minerals until the property finally ends up in Indiana Jones. It is important to run each property interest owner from their respective source deed all the way to present. This ensures that no issues arise with wild deeds, after acquired title, or any other title defect or mess. Everything will be caught using this simple but effective method.
h. But what if we found nothing when we were running Indiana Jones as Grantee? Sometimes title can be tricky and will require running the title from a different segment of the chain of title in time to find a good starting place. We could maybe try running forward and then find a reference? We could ask for a resource to help such as a Tobin map which could give us a snapshot of the land in a given county at a given time (Usually around the 1920’s to 1940’s in the case of a Tobin resource). If we have a good property description then we may be able to use more modern resources as tools to help us (County Appraisal Tax Maps, Secretary of State, the General land Office). Usually there is a path to finding a clear segment of the chain of title and finding good starting point.
i. Speaking of maps, as the chain of title changes the land often changes with it. Tracts will need to be plotted out via the metes and bounds descriptions in order to see the changes. It can be very easy to miss a chunk of our acreage leaving a larger tract and the result is sometimes we are led down a rabbit hole. A best practice here is to keep track of changes in the land as diligently as changes in ownership.
Creating the Runsheet:
Runsheets can be created while running title or from notes a title researcher takes after a title run. The notes are important to keep track of and can be a good tool for memorializing your research and helping you keep title straight in your mind. Notes should be formatted as follows; consider the hypothetical:
Volume and Page: 100/003
Record Type: Special Warranty Deed (SWD ok)
Grantor: Indiana Jones
Grantee: Sally Jones
Filed in: Deed Records (DR for short is ok)
Instrument Date, Recorded Date, Effective Date: 6/8/2018, etc.
Basic Property Description: N 150 ac. – Wills Survey – A-132.
Comments: No reservation. Reserves ½ in the minerals. Life Estate. Etc. Reference: 123/500 (The volume and page that was the source of title or that has significance for some other important purpose).
Sophisticated landmen can shine in the comment section by leading title attorneys down a primrose title path. However, landmen should remember to not bias title attorneys and should only provide comments that point out significant title discoveries and not a legal opinion. A best practice for landmen is to work with title attorneys (should the client permit it) to determine what level of diligence the title attorney may want in the form of commentary. Also, the landman should convene with his or her client to understand their expectations and what they would like reported at the contract landman level. Some clients will ultimately rely on landmen in a very significant way in making various business decisions. However, others will not.
The runsheet will include:
A description of the land
Date you ran the title through (scope of research)
Runsheet Notes
A final depiction of the title from earliest title to latest depending on scope.
Flow it Out:
Often, creating a flowchart is a very helpful exercise. A flowchart will depict all the various interests throughout time. It can help the title examiner stay sane when there are a very many conveyances and interests in a chain of title. There are several different flowchart software products available to help. However, I prefer doing everything by hand on a very large or long sheet of paper.
The Final Product:
After the title has been run and the runsheet built to satisfaction a report should be made detailing the work. It should explain the scope of the search, give a brief summary of what was found, and list any potential problems or limitations. Now, the research is memorialized and may be re-visited or updated as needed. If needed, the runsheet can be delivered to a qualified attorney who may render an opinion as to the actual title to lands. Our law firm is available to help create abstracts of title and to render title opinions should the need arise.