Commercial Title Insurance Underwriter

Job Description

Job Description

Job Summary

The Commercial Title Underwriting & Clearance Liaison acts as the critical bridge between our internal production teams, client legal counsel, and our third-party commercial title insurance underwriters. This role is responsible for reviewing, interpreting, and addressing title objection letters on complex commercial real estate transactions across multifamily, retail, office, and industrial properties. By collaborating with our title insurers and internal legal teams, this position designs and executes risk-mitigation strategies to draft, negotiate, and finalize proforma commitments that satisfy client requirements while maintaining underwriting compliance.

Key Responsibilities

• Partner directly with clients, their legal counsel, and third-party title insurers to create, review, and issue comprehensive commercial proforma commitments that accurately reflect negotiated coverage, exceptions, and requirements.
• Serve as the primary point of contact for client legal counsel regarding title objection letters on commercial files. Review objections against the initial title commitment and utilize proforma modifications to formulate formal, structured responses.
• Analyze survey and title issues unique to varied commercial asset classes, including zoning compliance for office towers, tenant-lease exceptions for retail centers, environmental liens on industrial facilities, and utility easements for multifamily complexes.
• Coordinate directly with external insurance carrier underwriters to negotiate over-limit authorizations, high-liability commercial coverages, and specialized policy endorsements (e.g., ALTA 9 series, zoning, comprehensive endorsements).
• Partner closely with internal Title Officers to evaluate property chains of title, and Escrow Teams to ensure all necessary curative documentation (proforma policies, indemnities, affidavits, releases) is correctly structured for closing.
• Work in tandem with the internal legal department to evaluate complex "clouds" on title (e.g., severe mechanic's liens, bankruptcy issues, municipal violations, or boundary disputes) and establish path-to-clearance frameworks.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of advanced commercial title examination, title agency underwriting support, or commercial real estate paralegal experience dealing with complex curative issues.
• Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school OR a strong, proven background as a Senior Title Officer or Senior Commercial Real Estate Paralegal.
• Proficiency with managing title commitments, proforma policies, and closing workflows.
• Expert-level understanding of commercial title commitments, survey reviews (ALTA/NSPS), exception language, real estate law, and the mechanics of title objection resolution.
• Superior legal writing, communication, and negotiation skills, with the ability to remain authoritative yet solutions-oriented when dealing with external corporate attorneys and institutional lenders.

Required Skills

• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Ability to lead conference calls and other interactions with clients and their representatives.
• Customer-first mentality.
• Sharp organizational and project management skills.
• Maintaining poise under pressure.