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Public Records Q&A
What is a Public Record? What is a Public Record?Generally, public records include those materials that a government unit is required by law to keep and that are open to inspection by any person. For instance, in many jurisdictions, they are the only legal evidence of the existence and priority of a security interest in personal property.Back to top Why search Public Records?A person acquiring an interest in property, such as a purchaser or lender, must search the public record to discover the nature of existing legal interests in that property. Additionally, public records are a rich source of legally obtainable information with wide applicability for research and investigation.Back to top Why register Public Records?Registration is used to legally establish the existence and priority of an interest in property. Examples of these interests include deeds, leases, loans, and mortgages.Back to top How is a secured creditor affected?In general, in order to be considered a secured creditor, and to establish priority, a lender must properly register his interest in the appropriate public records office.Back to top How is a purchaser affected?In general, prior to purchasing real or personal property (real estate, vehicles, or even intangibles such as accounts receivable), the purchaser should assure himself of the validity and extent of the vendor's interest (i.e. Does the vendor actually own it? Has the vendor used the item as collateral for a loan?) The first step is to thoroughly search the appropriate public records office.Back to top What does this mean to an investigator?All investigations, such as insurance claims and underwriting, due diligence, reporting and audit engagements, loan approval and management and regulatory and law enforcement can benefit from the wide range of legally obtainable public records. A thorough analysis of the results of a broad range of public records searches leads to better decision making.Back to top How can Securefact help?Securefact knows public records. Our sole mission is to provide access to public records for those entities that require it for commercial and legal purposes. In addition to a staff of experienced law clerks that can help with your individual enquiries, prepare in-depth reports, and generally make your experience more useful and efficient, we also offer a web based self serve solution and a number of enterprise level services that manage all of an organization's interactions with public records tasks. Contact us for more information.Back to top |
Articles of Interest
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