Title Producer study plan

Classify each lien type (mortgage, mechanic's, tax, judgment, HOA, condo) by its priority rule and state which liens survive a standard foreclosure.

Distinguish general from specific liens and voluntary from involuntary encumbrances across 20 self-written fact patterns.

Diagnose the most common title defects (broken chain of title, forged or undelivered deed, undisclosed heir, missing satisfaction/release, adverse possession claim) and name the standard curative action for each.

Rank competing liens in 12 priority-stack exercises by applying recording statutes, the first-in-time rule, and purchase-money versus non-purchase-money distinctions.

Explain how easements, CC&Rs, encroachments, and survey matters differ from monetary liens in how they affect marketability and insurability.

Trace a chain of title backward at least 50 years using a provided grantor-grantor index set, noting each conveyance, deed type, and recording date.

Read a deed's legal description, recording stamp, and vesting language closely enough to spot a gap, a name variance, or an unprobated estate interest.

Contrast what a title plant, a tract index, and a grantor-grantor index each reveal, and select the correct search method for a given scenario.

Construct a title commitment-style search result listing Schedule A items and Schedule B exceptions from a mock record set.

Re-run three week-1 lien scenarios through the search process to confirm the defect would actually be caught in the records.

Map every covered risk in the standard owner's policy and loan policy to a concrete defect scenario it would pay for.

Separate Schedule B exclusions from Schedule B exceptions and explain why each risk is carved out rather than insured.

Select the correct endorsement (access, survey, zoning, subdivision, environmental, contiguity, etc.) for 15 transaction scenarios.

Compute the premium for an owner's-plus-loan package using a rate card, including the simultaneous-issue discount and any reissue credit.

State the conditions and stipulations of the policy that an insured must satisfy before a claim will be honored.

Explain the freehold and less-than-freehold estates (fee simple absolute, fee simple determinable, life estate, leasehold) and state the underwriting concern each creates.

Decide which co-ownership forms (tenancy in common, joint tenancy, tenancy by the entirety, community property) create an underwriting issue at the death of an owner.

Justify why title insurance exists by contrasting it with casualty insurance and with abstract-plus-attorney-opinion alternatives, focusing on the past-versus-future risk distinction.

Distinguish risks insured as of the date of policy from risks that arise afterward and are outside the policy's scope.

Describe how deeds, wills, intestate succession, and foreclosure each transfer title and where each transfer method most often fails.

Sequence the closing from contract through funding and recording, naming the responsible party and required document at each step.

Reconcile a settlement statement so that all debits and credits balance to zero and each line item traces to a source document.

Draft escrow instructions that handle a payoff, removal of a survey exception, and a repair holdback with a release condition.

Compute prorations for property taxes, rent, and HOA dues for a mid-month closing using both the 365-day and 30-day methods.

Identify the disclosures and notices that must be delivered before consummation and state the consequence of late delivery.

Apply underwriting decision rules to 10 risk scenarios, concluding approve, approve-with-requirements, or decline and stating the reasoning.

Identify the red flags that force additional requirements such as a new survey, owner's affidavit, probate proceeding, or entity authorization documents.

Walk a claim from notice of loss through investigation, proof of loss, and resolution, naming the policy provision that governs each stage.

Distinguish a covered claim from an excluded one and calculate the amount payable within policy limits and any co-insurance or deductible effect.

Explain the subrogation and defense obligations the insurer assumes and the insured's duty to cooperate.

Outline the licensing pathway and list the activities that require a title agent or agency license versus those that do not.

Identify which federal and state disclosure must be delivered at which point in the transaction and which conduct constitutes a violation.

Classify 12 conduct scenarios as permitted, prohibited, or requiring written disclosure under the ethical rules governing conflicts of interest, referral fees, and escrow handling.

State the recordkeeping, escrow reconciliation, audit, and reporting obligations a licensed title agent owes to the regulator, including retention periods.

Describe the disciplinary process and the range of penalties for unlicensed activity and escrow mismanagement.

Take two timed 100-question practice exams and tally every missed item by domain to expose residual weak spots.

Re-teach the two lowest-scoring domains in writing from memory without notes, then check the writing against source material.

Drill the numeric and priority rules (lien priority, premium calculation, proration, policy limits) until each is recalled without hesitation.

Rehearse the distinctions most often confused: exclusion versus exception, owner's versus loan policy coverage, endorsement versus endorsement.

Simulate exam-day pacing by completing a full-length set in one sitting with no reference material.