Mortgage insurance lowers the risk to the lender of making a low down-payment loan to you, so you can qualify for a loan that you might not otherwise be able to get. Typically, borrowers need to pay mortgage insurance when making a down payment of less than 20 percent of the purchase price when purchasing a home or borrowing more than 80 percent of their home’s value when refinancing.

This insurance may enable you to borrow up to 97% of a sales price or home's value. As your equity grows, you may be able to cancel the mortgage insurance depending on the loan product selected. 

You can pay for mortgage insurance through monthly payments or a single payment which may be financed into the loan or possibly negotiated for the seller to pay in purchase transactions.

Title is a document that reflects the legal ownership of a property and the right to use it. A title company checks public and other records to make sure everything is clean with respect to the title of the homeowner’s property. This is called a title search. An Owner’s title insurance policy will protect the homeowner against third party claims not revealed by the initial title search and which arise after the homeowner’s closing. Your Owner’s title insurance protection exists as long as you own the property.

Owner’s title insurance is not required by the lender, but may protect your investment in your property.  Your attorney can provide guidance.

Title insurance isn't like your home or auto insurance – you don't have to pay an annual premium. It's a one-time cost typically financed into the loan.