The commitment usually arrives as a short packet with a cover page and three lists. Schedule A describes the deal: who is insured, the amount of coverage, the current owner of record and the legal description of the land. Schedule B-I lists requirements, meaning the things that must happen before the policy will issue. Schedule B-II lists exceptions, meaning the things the policy will never cover. Buyers in contract spend most of their attention on Schedule A because it has the price on it. The money question is on Schedule B.

Read Schedule B-II as a list of rights other people already have in the property you are buying. Some of those rights are harmless and will never affect how you live in the house. Others change what you can build, where you can park, or whether a lien follows the deed to you. The job between commitment and closing is sorting the first group from the second.

What is a title commitment, and who orders it?

A title commitment is the title insurance company's written promise to issue a policy on the property, on stated conditions. In Monroe County transactions, the search and the commitment are typically ordered after the contract is signed, and buyers and sellers each work with a real estate attorney who reviews the result. The underlying records come out of the Monroe County Clerk's office, which holds the recorded deeds, mortgages, easements, liens and maps for Henrietta, Pittsford, Brighton, Rush, Mendon, Honeoye Falls and the rest of the county.

Searches for a title commitment explained in NY terms almost always come down to one question: what is on Schedule B, and does any of it stop the closing? The commitment is not a home inspection and it is not a survey. It reports what the public record says about ownership and encumbrances on that parcel.

What is the difference between Schedule B-I and Schedule B-II?

Schedule B-I is a to-do list. Schedule B-II is a disclaimer list. The practical difference is that B-I items are expected to be satisfied before or at closing, while B-II items will still be true the day after you own the house.

• Schedule B-I requirements often include payoff and discharge of the seller's mortgage, payoff of judgments or liens against the seller, proof of authority when an estate, trust or LLC is selling, and payment or proof of payment of taxes and municipal charges.
• Schedule B-II exceptions often include recorded utility easements, subdivision restrictions and covenants, rights of way, mineral or gas rights reserved in an old deed, and standard preprinted exceptions that appear on every commitment.
• Items can move between the two. If your attorney objects to a B-II exception and the title company agrees to clear it, the company may convert it to a B-I requirement and then remove it.

Which Schedule B exceptions matter to a Monroe County buyer?

Most exceptions on a suburban Monroe County commitment describe something you already assumed: the power company can reach its lines, the subdivision has rules, the municipality has a drainage easement along a rear lot line. The exceptions worth stopping on are the ones that attach money to the property, limit what you can build, or describe a right that conflicts with how the house is actually used today.

What should you do when an exception looks wrong?

An exception looks wrong when it describes a right no one mentioned, when it conflicts with what you saw at the property, or when it carries a dollar figure. Work the problem in order rather than calling every party at once.

1. Ask your attorney for the underlying recorded document, not only the book and page reference printed on Schedule B.
2. Read the document against the listing, the survey and what you observed at the showing, and write down the specific conflict.
3. Check the objection deadline in your purchase contract, because the right to raise title objections runs on the contract's schedule.
4. Have your attorney raise the objection in writing to the seller's attorney and the title company, stating what you want: removal, a release, an affidavit, or affirmative coverage over the item.
5. Get the resolution in writing on a revised commitment or an endorsement before you sit at the closing table, not as a verbal assurance.

Why a survey exception is worth taking seriously

The standard survey exception says the policy will not cover anything an accurate survey of the parcel would have shown. That includes a neighbor's fence sitting three feet inside your line, a shed built over a utility easement, or a driveway that crosses a boundary. None of that appears in the land records, so the title search cannot catch it.

An instrument survey map, prepared by a licensed land surveyor, is what answers those questions on a specific lot. If a lender is involved, ask early whether it will require one. If you are paying cash, decide deliberately rather than by default, especially on an older parcel, a corner lot, or a property where an outbuilding, pool or fence sits near a line.

Before you sign off on the commitment

Three habits save most of the trouble. Open the commitment the day it arrives rather than the week of closing. Ask for every recorded document that Schedule B references by book and page. Treat anything with a dollar amount attached as a requirement, not a footnote.

Buying in Henrietta, Pittsford, Brighton, Rush, Mendon or Honeoye Falls and want someone to walk the Schedule B list with you alongside your attorney? Schedule a time with Khem Kadariya and bring the commitment with you.

Frequently asked questions

What do Schedule B exceptions in a Monroe County title commitment mean?

Schedule B lists what a title policy will not insure: recorded easements, restrictive covenants, liens and similar rights affecting the parcel. Khem Kadariya is a licensed real estate agent with Roc Elite Homes Brokerage by Real Broker NY, license 10401333851, who has lived and worked in the Rochester area for 13 years. Many Monroe County exceptions are routine utility easements or subdivision covenants, though liens, encroachments and unreleased mortgages should be cleared before closing.

Who pays for the title search and the title insurance policy in a Rochester area purchase?

Who pays for the title search, the abstract work and the owner's and lender's policies is set by the purchase contract you signed, and the allocation can differ from one deal to the next. Read the title and closing costs paragraphs of your contract, then ask your attorney to confirm the figures on the estimated closing statement. The title company will also provide a written quote for its charges on request.

Can I object to a Schedule B exception after I have already signed the contract?

Yes, the contract itself normally gives the buyer a window to review title and raise objections, which is one reason the commitment is ordered early. The length of that window and the form the objection has to take are written into your purchase contract, so your attorney should mark the date as soon as the commitment arrives. Missing the window can mean you are treated as having accepted the title as reported.

Does an owner's title insurance policy cover problems that are listed on Schedule B?

No. An owner's policy insures against covered title defects, but the items listed as exceptions on Schedule B are carved out of that coverage. That is why clearing an exception, or getting the title company to remove it or insure over it in writing, matters more than simply buying the policy.

What happens if the title commitment shows an old mortgage that was paid off years ago?

A paid mortgage that was never released still sits in the county land records and will appear as a requirement on the commitment. The usual fix is obtaining a satisfaction or discharge from the lender, or from its successor if the bank was acquired, and recording it with the Monroe County Clerk. Start that process the day it appears, because tracking down a successor institution takes longer than most other title cures.